In term 2 week 2, my outdoor education lock class along with the other two classes went on a day trip to Dwelling-Up. This trip served as an opportunity to utilise the skills that we had learnt in the past term. This included kayaking, bush cooking and how to create a campfire and climbing skills, along with our physical skills we also learnt about sustainability and the Leave No Trace concept to protect our environment.
Kayaking – Self Aware
The first activity we did when we got to Dwelling-Up was kayaking. One thing I did that I was proud of was having the courage to get pushed down from the middle of the stairs as a seal entry into the water, instead of going with the safer option of sliding in from the bottom. When entering the water it became very cold but later, I became used to it and the experience was very peaceful and beautiful. This experience taught me to be more self-aware. This is because after everyone entered the water, we all got instructed to be silent and it made me realise how much impact even one person has.
Bush Cooking – Collaborative
We were responsible for making our own lunch on an open fire for lunch. My goal for bush cooking was to make a successful fire and a delicious meal. I was in a group with Amelia and Alicia and we kind of created a successful fire. When cooking, my group and I worked much more collaboratively and effectively than I thought, which really helped us work efficiently and make a very successful meal.
TreeTop Adventure – Reslilence
The last activity we did was climb at the treetop adventure courses, this was my favourite activity. My goal for this activity was to complete the extreme black course as I have never fully done it before. This course made me realise I was much more resilient than I thought. When doing the extreme black course, I wanted to give up as my arms were getting tired, but, I pushed on and completed the course. In the end, I was very proud of myself, for pushing through.
The 7 Principles of Leave no trace
P1 – Plan Ahead & Prepare
Planning Ahead and preparing for a trip is very good for yourself and the environment. Not only does planning help protect our environment by leaving minimal waste, but it also makes the camping trip much safer and enjoyable. During our day trip, we demonstrated this during the bush cooking, by making sure we planned for our meal beforehand.
P3 – Dispose of waste properly
Disposing of waste properly is the third principle. It is important that we dispose of our waste correctly. our waste has a lot of negative impacts on the environment if not disposed of. During the Dwelling-up trip, we practised these principles by leaving nothing behind and leaving our space clean and tidy. Along with this, we also helped pick up litter that was polluting the space.
P4 – Leave what you find
The 4th principle is to leave what you find. This principle is all about leaving a site as you found it. By doing this, we can help minimise the negative impact we have as well as let others enjoy the natural environment. We tried out best to do this while bush cooking by not taking anything from the environment, and making sure we had made minimal site alterations.