11/03/2020
Last week, Year 8 students and teachers attended a 4-day camp at Camp Somerset near the Colo River. From extreme heat on the first day to relentless rain, the boys battled the elements all week. Despite the challenges presented by the weather, the boys engaged in every activity. They hiked up steep hills with rucksacks bigger than some of them, faced their fear of heights in abseiling or rock climbing, tested their upper body strength and teamwork canoeing great distances in pairs or conquered their fear of spiders and enclosed spaces as they burrowed through the wombat hole. It was a true test of resilience with most of the boys pushed to the limits of their comfort zones.
Each night the boys pitched their tents at a new campsite and shared the responsibilities of preparing meals, washing up and looking after the campfire. All groups participated in the ‘My Kampsite Rules’ competition, where each group had to prepare and cook an entire meal; some learning to cut an onion or wash a dish for the first time.
While the teachers and Camp Somerset staff did an outstanding job guiding and supporting the groups, the boys were fantastic in the way they supported each other. It was heartwarming to see them help each other up a mountain or provide some words of comfort to those feeling homesick. Multiple times throughout the week there were examples of boys living out the Year 8 theme for 2020: “We must build each other up so that we may never be broken down”.
