Last week we welcomed back our three students, Arlo Haigh, Dre Miller and Kobi Reid, who returned back to school after their 21 day leadership experience at Outward bound in Anakiwa.

Kia Ora,  I’m Arlo. 

In September this year I joined Shackleton Watch 693 at Anakiwa, Outward Bound. Anakiwa is located in Grove Arm inside the Queen Charlotte Sound just before the start of the Queen Charlotte Track. Outward Bound was founded in 1962 by Kurt Hahn with the goal to give young sailors life experience during the war. Outward Bound is designed with the principles of; Learning through experience, Adventure and Challenge and Physical Activities in the Outdoors, during my time there all of this happened.

One of my highlights from the trip was when we went sailing out into the Sounds and were struck by a hail storm at two in the morning. The boat filled with ice and water we all had to group together as a watch to keep warm. Another key highlight for me was completing a half marathon in a decent time. It really taught me that anything is possible if you put your mind to it and just push through because ‘there is always more in you.’

Outward Bound is built around the trust of your fellow group members and the friendships you build. As a person you learn how well you can work as a team when you are under the pump and are pressed to make decisions that could affect you, for example one person being late means the group has to do more fitness. ‘Outward Bound’ is the nautical phrase used to describe a ship leaving the harbour to head to open seas, I feel that Outward Bound is the harbour that I have sailed into and am now leaving to face the open seas which is the big wide world full of meaningful knowledge and eagerness to see what I am faced with. A huge thank you to Kamo High School for offering this opportunity to me. It has been truly life changing and I can't recommend it enough.

Nga mihi nui.

Outward Bound was a once in a lifetime opportunity that offered me so many new experiences. I went sailing for the first time, got to rock climb on an actual cliff face, and tested my limits during hikes.

My biggest highlight of the whole 21 day experience was definitely our 2 night sailing trip. It was filled with many ups and downs, but our group, Shackleton Watch 693, persevered. Despite being hit by a hailstorm on our first night out at sea, waking up at 2am to a boat filled with ice, Shackleton Watch prevailed with Kotahitanga. We powered through the next day having a great time, laughing and singing, not caring about the wet sleeping bags we’d have to use in a few hours.

Outward Bound really pushed me to my limits, it made me realise what I could achieve when I really put my mind to something. Every morning it would be a 6:30am start with a 3km run and then a dip in the freezing cold water. Our schedule was always packed tight, we always had quite small periods of time to get ready or complete a task, and every minute we would be late to something we would have to do one Anakiwa set –consisting of 10 press ups, 10 core twists and 15 squats– so being on time was a must. At the end of our 21 days we had to run a half marathon. This was my biggest physical challenge, I was very unsure about how I would do on the day, and was very nervous beforehand, but I managed to surprise myself and beat my time goal by 15 minutes.

Outward Bound was a great experience that taught me a lot of new things, and pushed me to my limits.

Dre Miller

Outward bound was a once in a lifetime trip that I would highly recommend to anyone who wants to test their mettle and experience a lot of new things. During our outward bound course we did a wide variety of activities such as tramping, sailing, rock climbing, a lot of self reflection, a high ropes course, a half marathon and many other challenging things. A couple highlights from my time at outward bound would definitely be the sailing and the overnight stays in the bush. They were both things that I've never done before and I enjoyed the challenge and the new experience. From my trip I have gained more confidence in myself and my ability to be a leader. I have left the course with many new friends and a lot of fond memories. I have a better understanding of what I am capable of and who I am. Over the duration of the course I have learnt how important it is to manage my time better and how to keep pushing myself in times of difficulty. In the future I would be more confident and comfortable stepping into leadership roles, and this is a big step forward for my growth as an individual. Also outward bound has helped me to manage my time better which has helped me to procrastinate less. Outward bound was an incredible 21 day journey. I've made friends for life, experienced things that I will never forget and never get the chance to do again. I've learnt alot about myself and it was something that I'll remember for the rest of my life. All the very best to the Kamo High School students who will get to experience this adventure in March 2023. It is a life changing experience

Kobi Reid