From August 15 to August 19 Year 13 PE were in the mountains of the Cardrona Valley near Wanaka learning how to cross country ski. The weather was incredible for the whole week and the trip itself was very memorable. 

The vast majority of us had never been cross country skiing before, and the improvements that we all made over the week were impressive.

Throughout the week we had many lessons to get our technique sorted, spending the rest of the time practicing. This involved many falls and a lot of laughter! It was a challenging sport to learn in five days, however also very rewarding. Everyone made the most of the week and we surprised ourselves with how much we improved. Going cross country skiing and staying overnight up at Snow Farm, as well as in one of the back-country huts meant that we were able to have experiences that would be hard to find anywhere else. Night skiing was a personal favourite, and something that I think everyone enjoyed. Side trips to a further away hut were also a highlight for some. It was really inspiring to see the Olympic and Paralympic athletes training as they sped past us and cool that we were sharing the slopes with the masters. We all had the same goals in mind and come assessment day everyone was really supportive and encouraging which gave people the motivation to push themselves to do their very best.

The scenery was incredible and everyone enjoyed getting out of the classroom to try something different. We all had lots of new experiences and got much more out of the trip than just the NCEA credits! I’m sure I can say on behalf of everyone that this camp was one of the highlights of our time at OGHS.