On Wednesday 6th of March, Raukawa Kaupeka headed off to Waipara Adventure Centre for camp. We stayed there for 3 great days and had the best time. We enjoyed plenty of awesome activities and amazing food.

We had a bunch of cool activities to do while at camp. They were so fun. These included low ropes, flying fox, water slide, archery, slug guns, orienteering, team building, shelter building, and bridge building. Everyone’s personal favourites were slug guns, archery and the water slide. All of the instructors were so kind and helped us out so much. We are so grateful for our wonderful time with them.

The food at camp was delicious! Everyone enjoyed it and there was more than enough for everyone. For the two nights at Waipara, we had roast beef and butter chicken, both of which were mouthwatering, especially after a tiring day out in the lovely sunshine. We had pasta bake on the second day at lunch and hamburgers on the final day. Once again these were delicious and no one was left with an empty stomach. Without breakfast, none of us would have been able to start our day energized. There were so many options for breakfast. Cereal, hot chocolate, toast and much more. In between activities, we were fueled with the delicious home baking and fruit that we all brought from home. Overall every single meal was very enjoyable and allowed us to fully take part in our activities.

The scenery was stunning. My friends and I would wake up early every morning to watch the sunrise up on the hill. Across the barbed wire on top of the hill was a grapevine farm. The cabins were so cosy! They were a bit small but great. Every time we would go outside the night sky was beautiful. One night before dinner, the clouds were pink like cotton candy. The trees and bushes and flowers everywhere were so gorgeous to look at. Every time I would wake up out of bed, I would automatically see the trees, right outside my window. In my opinion, this was the best way to wake up.

In between activities and meals, we got some free time to hang out with our friends. Many activities were available to us during our free time. We had brought sports gear to camp and there was a big field to play with friends. However one of the most popular activities that we did in our free time was gaga ball. It was a very fun and competitive game that was quite popular and during the first two days, the arena was quite crowded. On the second day when we had some free time, they opened up the water slide for us to go on if we wanted to. Free time was a good time to relax explore, and chill with friends.

Camp was a great experience for all of us and we all had so much fun. The parents, teachers and Waipara staff were all very important as they made sure we enjoyed Waipara to the fullest. We are all very appreciative. Everyone tried new things and maybe even found a new hobby. Camp will live in our memories for a long time.

by Elissa and Jia-He