So Loch Insh time is here again! It never seems like a year since we were here the last time. But we are here with a new group who are as excited as ever about the week ahead.
Everyone was at their school earlier than requested which is not unusual and some were apparently up very early which would account for some wanting to sleep on the bus and some wanting to start their lunch at 9.30am!
We were left Strichen by 8.45 which was great and we seemed to get along the road very quickly and by 10.15 we were at Aberlour for the toilet stop and a ‘carrry out coffee’ for the staff!
We arrived at Loch Insh around noon and soon had everyone sorted out to their rooms apart from those in the chalets as they were not ready! Jess came to give the introductory talk and then it was time for lunch. This was greeted with great excitement as only a packed lunch can!
Afternoon activities go from 1.30-4.00 and so we were ready and down at The Boathouse eagerly waiting the fun to begin.
Two groups were sailing, two were kayaking and two were skiing in the first round of events.
The sailors went out in three groups. Two groups were on a bigger sailing boat each and a group of eight who had sailed before went out in the smaller boats in pairs. The loch was very windy and presumably they put those who had not sailed in the bigger boats to ease them in while those with some experience soon were flying down the loch! The difficult bit was turning into the wind and coming back up the way again!
The kayakers were out in single or paired kayaks and spent some time in the sheltered bays before heading out on the loch for their journey! Again, one way if the journey would be easier than the other due to the wind and so they would have to work harder as they kayaked into the wind. But they seemed to get the hang of it quickly and they too were soon off on to the expanse of the loch.
The skiers had to navigate getting boots and skis first before hitting the artificial slope! Getting the boots to fit, getting them on and then getting the right skis takes time and is a challenge. Then walking in the boots is the next challenge before finally getting the skis on and trying to manoeuvre about on the slope. Some had been skiing before and so they had a little more confidence. The rest took time to get going and when you first come down the slope even the slowest speed seems very fast to you!
We have early breakfast and tea which means breakfast at 7.30am and tea at 4.30pm! It will be interesting to see what they will be like tomorrow morning!
Tea was sweet and sour chicken with rice or baked potatoes with a variety of fillings. There was soup and then a choc ice to follow.
The evening was taken up with two groups skiing, two groups doing archery and two groups sailing. The evening session is only 1.5 hours which is a shame as they may get an activity in the evening which they would really like for a 2.5 hour session!
At the end of the day everyone was quite happy although we did have a few feeling a little ‘home sick’ and missing their ‘mum’!! But all are asleep now and we look forward to day two!
Click on the link to down load the slideshow!
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