Over the 4th - 6th of November, we ran the first Duke of Edinburgh's International Award journey in Tarifa. Ably led by our mountain guides, Steve and Cliodhna and assisted by Dr C Sutcliffe and Ms Heike, our 27 students undertook a strenuous 3-day programme of outdoor survival skills and hiking.
The first day was spent learning basic map-reading and camping skills, including putting up a tent and using a gas stove to cook the food they had brought. They did well with their tents surviving a stormy night. Days 2 and 3 were two separate hikes of around 5 hours each, with the students carrying their equipment with them. On day 2 they were accompanied by staff as they navigated themselves, and on day 3 they were then left alone to navigate to checkpoints along the route.
It was a fantastic trip, which taught the students not only about navigation, camping and hiking but also pushed them out of their comfort zones and taught them how to work as a team and, hopefully, taught them a little bit about themselves.
