Apologies...had connection problems this morning!
Loch Insh Day 1
Tuesday 24th April 2013
Well, as ever quite a tiring and full on first day. The journey up was fairly uneventful – apart from two people being sick.......ONE before they had even got out of Strichen! That MUST be a record!
We had one stop at Aberlour for the toilet and so the children had a chance to have a snack and get to stretch their legs and get some fresh air. The bus was comfortable and before we knew it we were pulling into Loch Insh at around midday.
We got everyone off the bus in their room groups so that we could show each group where they would be. Some moaned when they saw their rooms were UP stairs which meant they, or Mr Jenkins, had to carry their cases up the stairs!
All were delighted with their rooms and once they had had a couple of minutes to get settled we all met in the common room for lunch. Despite sitting all morning on the bus they were ready for their lunch. Johnny Freshwater, the 'boss man' came up to speak to us all while they had their lunch. He went over the rules, the do's and don'ts and what kind of clothes they would need for the different activities. They then had a fire alarm so that we all know what to do if the alarm goes off when we are here.
So, a little later than we should have, we made it down to the Boat House for the first activity. All the groups were sailing but as it was so rough and windy they were taking them out in bigger boats in groups of 5 or 6. A group of boys who had sailed before were going to be taken out by Johnny in the catamaran in groups of three.
The boys going on the catamaran had to get the boat set up and then fight with a wetsuit! If we had video of this we would have been able to make an entry for 'You've been framed!' The challenge of putting on the wet suit took some of them longer than they thought and they were tired out by the time they were ready!
The others made sure they had plenty of layers on and then got their lifejacket on and were off. The groups had to be taken out to their boats in speed boats and this took a bit of time and coordination to get them on to the boats. They then had to set up their boats and get the sails ready for the off. The wind was very strong and it took some time before the boats were off and sailing round the loch.
The boys in the catamaran realised they had taken on quite a challenge! They launched the boat which meant them having to wade into the water and then clamber aboard. Johnny took three out at a time...but poor Harry ended up having an early bath when he fell off and into the water! He now realises how cold the loch is! However, the catamaran was ideal for the windy conditions and before long they were speeding across the loch at high speed. After 20 minutes or so they swapped the passengers and the second group were speeding off.
The other groups actually ended up staying out for over two hours. The conditions made for interesting sailing and one boat had to be 'rescued' when the rudder broke. A speed boat was dispatched and they had to be towed back to the boat house.
They were so late that we did not have time to go back up to the accommodation and had to go straight in for tea. We were late and the staff were waiting for us. We have early tea and EARLY breakfast!! Joy!! However, they all went for soup and bread and this helped heat everyone back up. The man course was baked potatoes or Sweet Sour Pork. They all had good helpings and they were all impressed with the cooking.
We then had some time for a rest and a chance to get their rooms sorted out. Tonight we are going out for a 'Wide Game' and so I am not sure if I am looking forward to this!!
More details about this evening later on!
So....the evening activity was a 'Wide Game'! This is the kind of activity that the kids love and the staff hate! Picture the scenario....all the pupils split into two teams. Each team has a flag to defend. Each team member has a piece of tape on their shoulder. So each team has to try and capture the other teams flag and get it back to base while they also try to get the tape from the other teams players. Added to this they are in an area of woodland.....so chaos ensues! As I said they love it and we hate it! However, the game comes to a quicker end than expected due to the fact they run out of tape!!
So we head back to the boat house and spend a while in the adventure playground before heading back for juice and a biscuit and hopefully bed eventually. The football is on and so some of the boys are quite happy,
Tomorrow, today by the time you see this, is a mixture of kayaking, archery, skiing and problem solving.
We hope you enjoy looking at the photos.
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