Early on a Sunday morning in March, 22 Year 12 PE students and 5 adults left Oamaru to travel to Wanaka for tramping and adventure based learning activities.

The first challenge for the girls was to have a go at windsurfing - each group of 3 or 4 girls had been selected by the staff and their challenge was to learn to work co-operatively with people they were not used to and support each other to try the various activities. As just balancing on the board is a challenge in itself, there was a lot of laughter as bodies hit the water! However, by the end of the afternoon, those who had persevered were able to sail quite well, if not always in the direction they wanted! The evening was spent organizing gear and food in their groups ready for the tramp to Aspiring Hut the next day.

After an early rise we headed up the west Matukituki Valley near Wanaka. It was a beautiful day with great views of Mt Aspiring on the way to Raspberry Creek (the end of the road). Putting on packs was a bit of a challenge but the group settled in to their task and after a four hour tramp we arrived at Aspiring Hut to find the valley was full of keas. Once we had put up the tents we had to have someone on kea patrol while the girls cooked their dinner in the hut so that the tents and gear were not shredded or taken to a nearby tree! Later weary bodies lay down for a well-deserved rest only to be woken early by the shrieks of our feathered friends. Thanks Mark for the very early morning kea patrol! Once the tents were down the girls completed some team orienteering on the flats above the hut, then tramped back to Raspberry Creek and the vans. It had only been 36 hours but showers and ‘real’ food in Wanaka were most welcomed after a long day walking and a sleepless night!

On the final day the groups visited Base Camp in Wanaka for Clip n Climb and team building activities and the lake for challenges in the kayaks and on the paddle boards. It was a fun time but there were some very tired and sore bodies returning home after four days of strenuous activity but with practical assessment for three standards successfully completed. Well done girls – your whole group worked really well together – and I’m sure learnt a lot about each other during the activities. And thanks very much to Mrs Corlet, Miss Wynne, Mr Selbie and Mark for their practical help, encouragement and support of the girls.