On Monday 1 March, the Year 10 girls and boys gathered for the annual Year 10 Survival Camp. The students were punctual, which reflected the high degree of anticipation they had about the trip. After packing the buses and most students demonstrating an ability to be able to understand instructions relating to day pack, duffle bag and spare bag, we split into our groups, bid farewell to family and friends and went on our way. The girls were heading to Long Point, just past Meningie to begin their kayaking adventure, and the boys were heading to Goolwa Beach to carve up the waves for a two hours surfing session.
On Monday 1 March, the Year 10 girls and boys gathered for the annual Year 10 Survival Camp. The students were punctual, which reflected the high degree of anticipation they had about the trip. After packing the buses and most students demonstrating an ability to be able to understand instructions relating to day pack, duffle bag and spare bag, we split into our groups, bid farewell to family and friends and went on our way. The girls were heading to Long Point, just past Meningie to begin their kayaking adventure, and the boys were heading to Goolwa Beach to carve up the waves for a two hours surfing session. After Hugo Jenke had lead the boys in a call and response style chant (something about a church and a pub), the boys had arrived and we were ready to surf. The conditions were good and the waves fairly clean, meaning the boys were able to work on their surfing craft and enjoy their time in the water. After the surf, there was a quick opportunity to use the last public toilet we would see for five days and then we boarded the bus for Hindmarsh Island, where we would have lunch, pack our backpacks and travel over to the Young Husband Peninsula via a small tinny, four people at a time. While packing our backpacks, it came to light that Callum Harlow had decided to bring a dry bag in order to store his water for the week, a decision that he has still not been able to explain due to the inherent wetness of the substance he was intending to keep within his dry bag, a mysterious choice to say the least. Once on the peninsula we became acquainted with some of the local wildlife (a seal and several pelicans, as well as hundreds of nesting birds) while we waited for all the group to make the short trip over. Once we were all assembled there was a quick tutorial on how to read a map and use a compass and we set off on our relatively quick walk to our first campsite at Barker’s Knoll. Within an hour or so we had arrived and it was time to learn how to set up our tents and then how to use the trangia stove to cook our dinner. While what some students cooked could barely be called food, we all filled our stomachs after a big day and prepared for our night walk into the dunes and to the beach side of the Young Husband Peninsula. After marveling at the stars and the rise of a full blood moon, with no light pollution, Hayden Whelan-Davis decided to disappear into the night sky himself, before reappearing about 20 minutes later just before the rest of the group were about to send out a search party into the dunes to find him. After a friendly chat with Mark Andrews, Hayden re-joined the rest of the group as we headed back to our camp to get some sleep before our big hike the following day.
Day two was our biggest hike of the camp and involved about 15km of walking along the beach and through the dunes. With our 20kg packs, some found the going more difficult than others, but spirits were high as Alle Esperida lead the group in song and we attempted to break the back of the hike in the morning to allow us to get to our campsite early and relax in the afternoon. The boys took limited breaks and worked together as a team to make really good time in the morning before the day started to heat up. Although some of the boys overshot the camp and walked a little bit further than required, both groups made good time and were at our campsite by mid-afternoon. Along the walk we saw a variety of wildlife, including some washed up puffer fish, a wide variety of birds and several kangaroos in the sand dunes. Once at the camp, several boys decided to cool off in the Coorong, while Russ Warneke threw a line in and was successful in catching three fish. Alex Noakes found two walking poles (sticks), which he insisted on carrying with him for the rest of the journey, and after some relaxation time, the boys set up camp and started cooking their dinners. Once we were cooking, the idea of walking around, rather than through, our trangia circle proved too much for some, and several boys found themselves doing large numbers of push ups, which are the standard consequence for inappropriate behavior on these trips. After another meal where many were eating questionable substances, the teachers decided the boys needed an early night and the boys retreated to their tents, with some taking detours of ranging time intervals to other groups’ tents before finally arriving in their own.
The third day of the camp involved some post breakfast pushups to make up for some rubbish that was discovered after our initial clean-up of the camp site, before heading off for our morning hike to the change-over point, where we would swap our backpacks for kayaks for the remainder of the camp. The walk was fairly uneventful and relatively quick, which meant we were at our change over point by late morning, which was before the girls arrived with the kayaks. When the girls arrived, the boys and girls swapped stories while unpacking backpacks and kayaks and eating lunch. Some members of the Year 10 group were happier than other to see each other for the first time in 54 hours, with Mitchell Kyriacou keeping track of the seconds until he was reunited with Matilda Caire. After unpacking, it was time to pack up again, with the girls attempting to get all their belongings into their backpacks, which was too much for several of the girls, meaning that some of the boys had to step in and strap some extra bags to their kayaks. In the end, the girls’ backpacks were packed, the boys had loaded their dry bags into their kayaks and it was time for the girls and boys groups to say goodbye and continue on our journeys. Unfortunately, prior to leaving in our kayaks, some of the boys were unable to follow instructions regarding filling up their water bladders, meaning that we had to ration water on the last couple of days of our trip, but hopefully a valuable lesson about listening to instructions and then following directions was learned. The boys set off on their short paddle to the next camp site, but due to the windy conditions the short paddle was still a physical challenge for many, but everyone struggled through and made it to our final destination for the day. The late afternoon was then spent setting up tents and exploring our new surroundings, with the ancient ghost gums, rolling dunes, sandy beach and the Coorong stretching out like a dog waking from an extended slumber, making for a very picturesque scene. After dinner, and some more push-ups, some of the boys explored the dunes and witnessed a stunning sunset, before playing some night games and heading to bed for a well-earned rest. The third day was definitely the most challenging for many of the group and it’s fair to say that although many of the boys were still upbeat, there was a general feeling of exhaustion, mixed with a dash of homesickness and a pinch of apprehension about the next two days, that settled on our camp site on the Wednesday evening.
On Thursday, the fourth day of camp, we were up early to make the most of the perfect paddling conditions. After packing down and eating a quick breakfast we were back on the water, but in contrast to the previous day, the boys were fresh and paddling in calm conditions, meaning that we were able to glide over the water, as opposed to being knocked around by the wind and waves, as we’d experienced the previous afternoon. The sun was out and the ease with which we were able to move forward, mixed with the beautiful backdrop of the glassy water and undulating sand dunes, meant that the negative attitudes from the previous evening evaporated and were replaced with optimism and happiness, as Takunda Mashinge lead the way for one group and Oscar Koral did most of the work in the kayak he was sharing with Hugo Jenke, in the other group. By the time we made a quick morning tea stop we were well over half way to our next camp site, and knowing that the majority of the work was behind us and it was only mid-morning, lifted the spirits further. After another paddle, we were at our lunchtime destination, a giant dune on the edge of the Coorong that, once climbed, offered panoramic views over the Coorong and back inland towards the Fleurieu Peninsula. The dunes also presented the chance for some dune jumping competitions, dune sliding and friendly wrestling between Ali Tahir and Kaan Zade, as well as the chance to just kick back and enjoy the warm sun while taking in the scenery. After enjoying the dunes, it was time to eat lunch and then paddle around the final headland of the day to our final camp site. Once we had arrived and pitched our tents, many of the boys took the chance to have a refreshing swim before some games of death hacky or just chilling out and enjoying each other’s company. Prior to dinner, we ventured into the dunes for a reflection on the camp experience, where the boys thought about the things they had missed and indicated what they are most grateful for in their everyday lives. Their own bed, mum’s cooking and girlfriends were the most missed aspects of everyday life; interestingly not one of the boys mentioned missing their phone or access to social media. After our reflections we shared our last dinner of the camp together, rationed out some more water and cleaned our trangias until they glistened. There was then some time for night games after another stunning sunset, before heading to bed and, in some cases, getting some well earned sleep.
Our final day began with packing up tents and a quick breakfast before making the short paddle across the Coorong to Long Point. Fortunately, the paddle on the last day was quick, as conditions were choppy again, and the short crossing was still a challenge. On arrival at Long Point, the first job was cleaning our kayaks. Some of the boys found themselves cleaning two kayaks rather than one due to an inability to remain in their own tent on the previous evening, but all members of the group got stuck into the task at hand and completed the job efficiently. Many of the boys decided to make use of the first non-bush toilet we’d seen since Monday, as we packed the rest of our gear and returned all borrowed equipment to Wilderness Escapes, the company who ran our camp. Once the trailers were loaded with kayaks and the remaining camping gear, we set off for our lunch stop at Meningie. Once we arrived, the first stop for many was the drink fountain and for others it was the flushable toilets. Once the boys were suitably hydrated and had visited the bathroom, we prepared the famous bucket lunch, which would be our last meal together for the camp. Before boarding the bus and making the 90 minute journey back to school, we did a final debrief, where we spoke about the level of perseverance shown by all participants and how this has built resilience, which can now be applied in other aspects of our lives. The boys were, in general, a credit to themselves and demonstrated not just resilience, but great team work, morale and a willingness to put their heads down and get the job done. Many friendships were made or strengthened on the trip and I’m proud of the way the group conducted themselves both as one team and as individuals. Once back at school, the boys were reunited with the girls and stories of the second half of our journey were swapped. From all reports, the girls were also outstanding and enjoyed building the same skills as the boys on their journey. Thanks so much to all our teacher volunteers who attended the camp and gave up a week of their lives and left their own families at home in order to facilitate this experience for our Year 10 students – we’ll do it all again next year!
Mark Andrews
Year 9-10 Leader and Careers Coordinator
Our Senior Student Leaders have made a great start to their leadership roles this year, and have been actively involved in our community. They were fortunate to have a Leadership Formation Day recently, facilitated by the external group, ‘yLead’. This provided them with an opportunity for skill development and team-building.
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