Below, we have entries from three of our Upper Thirds, Aarav A, Dhevan B. and Daniel Z.
Writes Aarav A.
Day 1:
The coach journey felt like it took forever, but the second we finally arrived in Wales, the trip officially started. We began things with an engaging treasure hunt around St Davids. We checked out the old chapel, but honestly, the best part was stopping to get some incredible ice cream.
Once it got dark, we sat around the campfire toasting marshmallows. By the time we got into our tents, no one could sleep because we were all way too excited for the rest of the trip.
Day 2:
Day Two was intense. We completed a challenging trek, scrambling over huge rocks before reaching the site where we were doing coasteering. Jumping off the cliffs into the freezing sea was both terrifying and exhilarating at the same time. The instructors were fantastic—they took us inside fascinating caves, helped us to improve our swimming skills, and gave us some unforgettable memories.
Later on, we had a workshop to design a sustainable project for the planet. After that, it was time for a plastic workshop and species ID. We went to a rocky beach first to see all the plastic humans leave behind and did a small clean-up there to leave the space in a better condition to how we found it. Then, we headed over to a sandy beach to hunt for different creatures and ended up playing a competitive game of football there. By the time we got back to the tents, we were completely knackered, but we ate some great food and rested for the next day.
Day 3:
This was a day that I had dreaded for a long time, but it was actually my favourite. We went to a bug farm and allowed cockroaches and other creepy insects to crawl across our hands! We learned about how the world is running out of traditional meat, like chicken, which led to us trying insect food. It sounded disgusting, but the insect chocolate chip cookies, pasta bolognese, and burgers were surprisingly tasty.
Next up was a boat tour. We went right through these dark caves, saw some seals and dolphins, and the guide told us some terrific old myths about the coast. We also learned about things like erosion and how the waves change the rocks.
After a fascinating day, we had a quick talk about seaweed and how it can help protect our planet in the future. To finish off the night, we had one last campfire and ran around playing football and cricket in the large field on our campsite.
Day 4: The Long Drive Home
On the last morning, we packed up our bags and finished off our sustainability presentations. We listened to many incredible ideas that sparked our curiosity and helped us to come to the realisation that humans can still save the planet and that not everything is as bad as it seems.
Then came the long journey back home. It was a trip full of incredible experiences, new friendships and memories, but we definitely earned a well-deserved half-term rest.
Writes Dhevan B.
After a 6-hour journey to Wales, St. Davids, we were desperate to get off the coach and explore our home for the next three nights. We visited St. David’s, the smallest city in Britain, and toasted marshmallows on a campfire.
The second day was much more thrilling. In the morning, we all had a tasty breakfast and walked along the coastal paths, picked up plastics from the beaches, identified species, and learnt about sustainability. We came back to have lunch and left again to go coasteering. Coasteering involves jumping off rocks into the ocean, and the highest we all got to was seven metres. Afterwards, we had to walk back to the town in drenched wetsuits, which was much less fun!
Later, we had dinner, played rounders, and went to bed. The third day was packed with adventure. First, we went to the bug farm, where we held bugs, looked close at bugs, learnt about bugs, and even ate bugs, which were surprisingly delicious. After lunch, we all went on a boat ride around Ramsey Island (which doesn’t belong to Gordan Ramsey) and learnt about many of its sights, such as the Chanter’s Cave, which monks used to go to and pray, and saw many seals and other species, such as oystercatchers, and a couple of rare puffins. My favourite part was when we dashed all the way back to the mainland at full speed. After a tiring day, everyone easily went to sleep.
On the last day, we had to present a business idea involving sustainability that we covered on the second day. After, we had to painfully say goodbye to St. Davids and left to come home. Thank you Ms. Lemoine, Ms. Scott, Ms. Park, Mr. Brennan, and Mr. Talboys for this amazing trip.
Writes Daniel Z.
Before the trip, the idea of having no phones felt daunting because we rely so heavily on our devices. However, I quickly came to appreciate the no-phones policy, as it encouraged everyone to be more sociable and get to know each other better.
My favourite activity was coasteering because it was exciting and thrilling to jump into the water. I also enjoyed the enterprise project, where we developed sustainable ideas inspired by the seaweed talk and enjoyed playing in the field in free time.
Looking back, the trip had a positive impact on me and was memorable. Overall, it made me reflect on how much I really need to use my phone and was both enjoyable and thought-provoking.
