Year 13 Camp was an interesting, and slightly surreal experience this year. We went away to camp, and came back to a changed (COVID) world and immediately went into lockdown the very next school day. It was like something out of “Tomorrow When the War Began”. Never before have we had to discuss on camp whether it was safe enough to go to the Tokaanu Hot Pools for a swim before (conclusion: it was 😃). It was a real blessing we managed to have our camp just before lockdown; praise the Lord we didn’t miss out!
This year, sadly, only one of our groups got to complete the whole Tongariro Crossing. The other group, however, got to find out why we make students take SO many warm clothes, and why we insist on really good rain and windproof jackets! It was very cold at the top of the Devil’s Staircase, where they had to turn back.
Caving, Rafting and team-building exercises were all attempted, some of which took a lot of bravery on the part of some students. The instructors were fantastic and really encouraging. Huge thanks to Blue Mountain Adventure Camp for hosting us!
Hopefully camp will be one of those memories that lasts a long time!
Talia Grayson, English Teacher
