Australian Alps Young Explorer April 2017 | Youth Adventure Program
Welcome to the Blog for our Australian Alps Young Explorer program. Follow along as these young folk undertake their adventure at our National campus and in the nearby spectacular Namadgi National Park. Here you will find updates from the program including a written account of each day’s events as well as photos. Sometimes the kookaburras take some time to fly the news back to civilization so apologies in advance if a days adventures come in a bit late Please join in and leave your comments – we’d love to hear from you! Stay tuned for the first post!
Day 1
A sunny day was a great way to start the course and all seven of the boys were excited to be taking part in the first Australian Alps Young Explorer. Our two Instructors Kayla and Bekk are excited to have an adventurous week ahead. The morning was spent getting to know each other and the team quickly bonded. They were given their first problem solving challenge which is called Marble Run. Working together they successfully transported the marble along the highway that they had to form using their piping to get the marble to the destination. They showed some good communication and planning to finally accomplish this. After lunch they headed down to the Murrumbidgee River to build and trial their rafts. Some were better at knot tying than others but they all pitched in to build a super raft….unfortunately the maiden voyage didn’t quite work out as planned and the knots started to come apart. Quick thinking and action allowed them to reach the island on the other side to win their prize – nerf guns!
Tired from the swim they headed back to camp to change. Today, as they sat around the fire at camp, the Young Explorers highlighted that they learnt how to tie the square lashings and the truckies hitch. They were tired but happy with the success that they achieved throughout the day.
Day 2
A beautiful sunny day has greeted our Young Explorers. They’ve had a great morning on the climbing tower. The red holds are the most challenging and they’ve all given it a go climbing as well as belaying each other. They have even had mini races up the easier sections.
In the afternoon the Wolf Pack as they became know as had some lessons on using compasses and maps and navigating which they put to practice with their first hike of 3 km to their campsite. They had a big day and felt very accomplished looking up to a starry night sky as they headed to bed reasonably early.
Day 3
After their first night camping away from the National Base, the Wolf Pack was driven down to the beautiful Orroral Valley in the Namadgi National Park. Here they were surrounded by mobs of kangaroos as they hiked through the valley to visit the old homestead and the remains of the space tracking station.
At the space tracking station they headed down to the nearby creek and learnt how to test the water to see the quality. Any water though that is taken from natural sources should be purified. Lucky for these Young Explorers they had enough water in their packs – this showed good preparation and planning. By now they were becoming expert explorers and were even able to navigate to their campsite.
Day 4
Getting up early in the cool and crisp valley, the Young Explorers packed up camp after breakfast, played a game to warm up and then hiked a short distance to their pick up point. They traveled back to the National Base with excitement as today they would be able to challenge themselves on the very high ropes course. Of course they were a little bit nervous but they all gave it a go and showed a lot of bravery.
They finished the day with a mini solo. A chance to reflect on their achievements so far this program.
Day 5
The Young Explorers woke to a terrific final day. What better way to start the day than Bacon and Egg rolls! Their team called the Wold Pack had become a close knit team by this stage. They were enjoying the games and also learning and practicing their skills like camp cooking, bivouac set up and learning their knot tying. They had shown great bravery and determination in completing the climbing tower, high ropes and raft building but their biggest challenge was ahead – the Giant Swing. With a full body harness each Young Explorer was connected into the safety system. They would then be hauled up by their team members to 7 meters in the air before they would have to courageously pull the swing cord and go flying through the air. The first swing was the most exhilarating followed by whoops of satisfaction. Well done to all the Wolf Pack!
Thanks to all the parents who joined us for our certificate ceremony and well done and congratulation to our first team of Australian Alps Young Explorers!!
