Dof E SILVER EXPEDITION

Our planned practice for the silver expedition to Whithough Outdoor Centre just beneath Pendle Hill in Lancashire unfortunately had to be postponed due to the unseasonal freezing temperatures and predicted large snowfall. This is the first time in memory that we have had to postpone an expedition due to the weather. We had already planned an expedition to the Peak District for the end of March which initially should have been the qualifier expedition. However, with the support of our DofE assessment team, we were able to re-organise the routes so that this could then be used as our practice expedition.

Leaving school on the Saturday morning by coach, the group of 46 Year 10 pupils travelled to Edale in the Hope Valley. After walking up to the camp site, the teams pitched their tents; each team then spent the day working with a DofE mountain leader to learn and practice the skills that they would need for the expedition. This included sessions on bag packing, expedition nutrition, fitting back packs correctly, in addition to the more usual navigation exercises and route planning. It was unfortunate that the day was cold and showery with a gusty wind and the groups did not see the White Peak at its best.

On the second day, the groups packed up camp and navigated their way to Hathersage, carrying with them (for the first time) their tents and Trangias. At silver award level the expectations are three days, each of approximately seven hours of walking and exploring. This was a challenging day in terms of distance travelled and gave the teams an insight into the reality of walking for three full days, carrying a full backpack over unfamiliar terrain. Although cold, the day did at least stay dry and all teams made it to the camp site and were able to set up tents and cook a hot evening meal in the daylight, before settling down for the night. All groups were up and organised impressively early on Monday morning after a cold night and were eager to be on their way. All teams hiked up to Stanage Edge to meet the instructors and practised different first aid scenarios on the hillside. Teams then navigated their way down the valley to Bamford station for the debrief sessions. Teams and individuals were encouraged to think about what had gone well and what had gone less well, and how they could make changes to ensure the success of the qualifier expedition in the future. It was encouraging to see so many pupils making use of the public transport railway network and catching a train back into Manchester and making their way home from there.

This was a very successful, even if rather cold, practice expedition and we were proud that the teams worked cohesively, always supporting each other through some of the more challenging moments. The WGS staff and DofE team were all very impressed with how much these groups had learned on the practice and we all look forward to a very enjoyable and successful qualifier expedition in September.