This year the Duke of Edinburgh programme has restarted at UHC, with 20 students taking part in the Bronze Award unit. Teacher Philip Carew tells us about the latest challenge.

As a part of the Award students must take part in an overnight adventure. This needs to be preceded by a training trip. Both events were combined into one. 

Fifteen students planned a trip to Powell Hut in the Tararua Ranges, arranged menus, considered first aid issues, planned the route, created Risk Management Documents, learned map reading and navigation, along with developing the art of one ‘billy’ cooking. 

The students and three adult supporters assembled at the college and travelled to Holdsworth Lodge in the Wairarapa. The climb to Powell Hut on the sides of Mt Holdsworth commenced. 

After climbing for four and a half hours to the hut students explored a little around the hut and then cooked dinner. We spent Saturday night in the hut talking about the day, the gear, what we had learnt and the things we needed to know for the following day (map routes, orientation, leaders, safety etc).

During the night the temperature fell. Fortunately, the hut was quite full and body warmth stopped it from becoming too cold. 

The next day, before dawn we got up to get ready for the day, only to find there had been a good fall of snow. Pipes were frozen and we resorted to melting snow for water. 

Students were well kitted out, so a large number climbed to the top of Mount Holdsworth in the snowy mist. The gradually unfolding views were amazing as the photos recorded (see below).

The climbers returned to the hut and the whole team got ready for the second day of the trip. 

For the rest of the trip students were on their own, supervised from a distance by the adults. They descended Mount Holdsworth and sidled around its lower section to meet the Atiwhakatu River. They walked up the river valley to Atiwhakatu Hut where they got set up for another night in the wild. 

Great cooking smells filled the hut as delicious meals were prepared. A spontaneous concert broke out and a wide range of card games were played into the evening.

The next day dawned fine. After a good breakfast the team packed and cleaned the hut before heading off like a rocket train down the Atiwhakatu Valley under able student leadership. They knocked out a three-hour trip in just over an hour and a half. This was impressive. We then headed back to Lower Hutt.

Overall, an amazing trip that from most received a ten out of ten. Great skills were learnt, and the team achieved increased confidence in living in the outdoors in winter conditions.