Residential reflections

I've just returned from an outdoor activities residential at East Barnby Outdoor Education Centre near Whitby in North Yorkshire. There was Trevor (another member of staff at the college where I work) and 11 male youngsters aged between 16 and 19 as well as myself. All shapes and sizes and levels of ability.

The youngsters took part in night orienteering, open "Canadian" canoeing on the River Esk and an exciting night time beck scramble which ended with a slide and punge into a freezing pool. Everyone was a tremendous credit to themselves and made me even more certain that I'd like to spend more of my time making my living in outdoor activities.

The weather was typically April and we enjoyed the full range of conditions including a brief, but fierce, blizzard. By the time we departed however, it was clear that spring had sprung.