Lost in the wilderness – The Duke of Edinburgh Bronze Expedition!

Year 9 adventurers test their Bronze Duke of Edinburgh ‘Expedition’ skills in Wymondley Wood

On May the 13th and 14th, our Year 9 Cohort of “The Duke of Edinburgh” adventurers descended onto Wymondley Wood to participate in the ‘Expedition’ aspect of their DofE course. This is just one of the four sections of their training that students have had to complete for their Bronze DofE Award.

Students were tasked with completing a 16km trek on both Saturday and Sunday, around the countryside of Hertfordshire. The students had to navigate using a map and compass to successfully negotiate their routes, relying only on each other and their team. Not only this – but they had to carry all of the equipment they would require to be self-sufficient. This included tents for camping, cooking equipment and ingredients to enable them to cook their own meals.

Luckily, despite the rest of the week being gloomy, the weather held on Saturday, and Sunday actually with some sunshine! Overall the teams did fantastically, with all of our students working together and enjoying the adventure!

Below are quotes from a couple of our students who participated in the award:

Molly P (9 Austin): “In my DofE experience, I had a lot of fun. DofE was very hard, but was an adventure. You learn to rely on the people around you and in your group, as teamwork is a large part of completing the expedition. For example, you need to evenly share the weight you have to carry in your bags, set up your tent, plan and navigate your own routes and plan and cook your meals. It was not all hard work though – you also have time to relax and spend time with other groups. In the evening after setting up, we all sat around playing games and later on, everyone sat around the campfire roasting marshmallows. The walking part of the expedition was definitely hard, especially on day 2 when you just want to go home. But if you push through, it’s definitely all worth it in the end, and I am so glad I completed it.”

Arabella A (9 Hadid) “My experience of DofE was fun. The walk was enjoyable and we did things like play in parks along the way and walked through the woods. Although the bags were heavy, and people’s feet were hurting, it was still a great experience and I thoroughly enjoyed it. The weather was nice and there was great scenery along our route. We saw other groups along the way and talked with them as we continued walking. The overall experience was one I won’t forget and I would definitely recommend it for anyone who enjoys the outdoors.”

Thank you to all of the staff who volunteered their entire weekend to support the event, and a massive well done to all participants who demonstrated resilience, teamwork and determination throughout. The students and staff have put in a great deal of work leading up to this achievement over the past year, and we are incredibly proud of everyone who was involved.

T Hurley and D Stevens (DofE Managers)