Loch Insh 2016 Blog
Day 2: Wednesday
So here we are…half way there….and everyone is having a great time.
Today we celebrated a birthday….Tyler managed to have a special day in Loch Insh instead of being at school. Everyone sang happy birthday for him tonight which took him a bit by surprise.
We woke up bright and early……well….early as we had to be down for breakfast for 7.30! In some rooms all the occupants had to be woken up and would have merrily slept on. But we were up and ready and down for breakfast by the allotted time. They had cereal, toast, potato pancakes and bacon and fruit juice as well as making their packed lunch for the day which is always an entertainment!
After breakfast we were back up the hill again to get the rooms sorted out and get ready for the morning’s activities. So by 9.15 we were getting lined up again for the journey back down to the Boathouse to get going. The weather was lovely yet again and the sun was shining and the skies were blue. However, there was a frost on the car windows early in the morning.
So this morning we had groups doing problem solving, mountain biking, sailing and two groups raft building. In the afternoon three groups were raft building while two groups were problem solving while in the evening we had two groups Canadian canoeing, two groups doing archery and one group mountain biking.
The problem solving went well with all groups and they set about the challenges with enthusiasm although it was good to see the groups work together with pupils they really don’t know well. This is all part of the trip and stands them in good stead for their new challenge after the summer.
Again the sailors were out in the bigger boat as a group. The water is still too cold to take them out in the smaller boats due to the recent snow that means the Cairngorms are still covered in snow. They enjoyed the experience and all got a turn at doing the different tasks needed to sail the boat!
The highlight of the day for ALL of them was the raft building. All the groups did this over the day and is always one of the high points of the trip…..although one or two…..well…one of the ‘older’ members of staff finds this activity quite stressful when they all make their way out on the rafts into the unknown!
Each group is provided with 6 wooden poles, 8 ropes and four or six barrels and are challenged to set about planning, designing and building a raft and then testing its successfulness by taking it out on the water. Again the key here to the who activity is team work and looking and learning from the advice and help the instructors give them. The groups were quite competitive and they spent a fair bit of time building their rafts before going back to the boathouse for their helmets, paddles and life jackets! This is when the excitement grows. They get their raft down to the water’s edge and wait for the signal to head out on to the water. This is the moment of truth. Will they or wont they float and support them in their efforts to go from the shore out into the loch and back!
The air is filled with the screams, shouting and laughter as they set off on their maiden voyages. For one group ….it was only going to be a maiden voyage as the barrels kept disappearing from under the logs and they spent more time in the water! However, after some remedial work they were soon back on track on were off.
The rafts were a great success but of course most of the fun is getting soaking wet and being allowed in the water…..until they realise just how cold the water is and then the faces change quite quickly!
So…after all the fun they have then to dismantle all the rafts and get the gear tidied up again before trudging off a little more slowly to the Boathouse than they did coming across to return the paddles, helmets and life jackets before the long, slow climb up the 69 steps to the Hall where they could get changed, showered and into dry clothes. The fact the weather was kind to us today helped a lot….although they said the water was FREEZING!
But everyone really enjoyed this activity and really is one of the standouts of the trip.
This evening another group was cycling, but with the shorter session than during the day they did not manage to go quite as far. This was a blessing to some who were quite happy to get back as they were so tired!
Again the cycling is a popular activity with most of them. They have a mix of on road cycling and ‘off road’ tracks to be a bit more adventurous on! All I can say is thank goodness for the electric bike once again just to give a little timely boost when you come to the hills! We still have three more groups to go cycling so by the end of the week I think I will have generated enough electricity to power all the lights in Loch Insh!
Two groups were Canadian canoeing tonight. They had a beautiful night for this and the water was very calm and meant that the conditions were almost perfect. They worked in groups of three to a canoe and after being given instruction on using the paddles effectively and again getting their life jackets they spent some time in the sheltered bay to get used to the canoes before heading out on the loch for an adventure. Again the children came back full of excited tails of what they did and how ‘cool’ it was.
So….after a long day it was back up to the Hall for juice and biscuits before going over the programme for tomorrow and getting them ready for bed. Lights out was around ten o’clock tonight and we think most will easily get to sleep tonight as they were certainly tired after a full day in the outdoors carrying out all the activities.
Tomorrow Mr Imlah arrives from Longside and we look forward to him joining up with us for the rest of the week.
We had a surprise visitor tonight at tea time! Mr Taylor arrived t spend the evening with us. Mr Taylor was Longside’s P7 class teacher before he moved to a new job in Macduff. The children were delighted to see him and he joined one group cycling for the evening.
However, he was instantly recognised by one of the instructors! He looked at Mr Taylor and said, ‘You are that teacher from last year that joined in the ‘Wide Game’ and ran about like a mad man for the whole game!’ Well, that just said it all!
Anyway, another great day. We just hope the children have another great day tomorrow. Two groups made it to the shop today and hopefully the other three groups will get tomorrow.