Third Form Expedition to Pembrokeshire - March 2011
We stared down at the huge rolling waves, dark and ominous and watched entranced as they battered against the coastline. The towers and skyscrapers of London were far behind us replaced by hills and hamlets, rivers and country roads, forests and fens - we were in Wales now.
A group of 40 third formers and four teachers sat on a coach. We were on a trip to Pembrokeshire, to observe the power of nature face to face, in activities, at Sealyham Activity Centre. That evening, after a delicious dinner we had a session of games. The most memorable of these, for many, was the “sock war”. This involved pulling your socks down over your heels so they hung loosely and then pull off other people’s socks. While some boys decided to hide and wait until most boys were out, others went for a kamikaze style attitude. The most notable of these was Samuel Meah, whose speed and agility left many staring at their bare feet, their socks having seemingly vanished into thin air!
The next morning we set off on our first proper activity. My group, led by Miss Robin, set off to do climbing first. While our guides set up we attempted some weazeling. In this, we had to navigate our way down several narrow tunnels, including one when you had to twist your body around in a tiny crack in a boulder. After an hour of this activity, we were ready and raring to climb. While one boy climbed, four other pulled the rope so he was almost entirely dependent on his peers. The climb itself was challenging but nevertheless exhilarating.
The next activity was surfing. As it was March, the water was absolutely freezing, but we still whole-heartedly attempted to catch waves, happy despite the temperature. Most boys caught several waves, and everyone who did so enjoyed the experience hugely. The feeling of riding a wave is not one that can be written, but has to be experienced and enjoyed. After a reasonably long period of this, we hurried back to the coach, where we changed gratefully back into warm clothes after a character-building session.
We rose early the next morning and after another filling breakfast, my group set out to do coasteering, a Welsh extreme water-based activity. We journeyed along the coastline, largely made of slate, clambering along the jagged rocks and holding firmly to resist the onslaught of the waves. We swam, climbed, run and jumped - if there is an extreme sport that contains aspects of all others then truly it is this. The course culminated in a six metre jump into the sea, which was breathtaking and one of the greatest things I have ever done - as you can probably guess, coasteering was most boys favourite activity, myself amongst them.
To finish off we had a reasonably relaxing, but by no means less enjoyable activity- canoeing. At first, I was not particularly co-ordinated with my partner, and ended up pushing the canoe along for the first 20 metres! Nevertheless, by the end of the session, we were working well as a team, having mastered some of the basics and enjoyed an hour canoeing in the sea.
That evening, we finished with sitting round a fire, roasting marshmallows and eating hotdogs. We told jokes, riddles and horror stories and played games, having an excellent time and arriving back just in time for hot chocolate. That night, I reflected on the incredible things I had done, and not for the first time thought “I’m so glad I decided to come!”
By Michalis Inglessis 3H