CAMPING
Wednesday the 14th could not have come any quicker. My nerves had been building up since the day I completed my last junior cert exam on June the 20th. I arrived into school at 8:50 in the morning and by the time 9:30 came i was no longer nervous to get my results but full of excitement! Mr Geraghty presented our results to us in the LRC and soon after everyone was full of joy and the feeling of utter relief! I remember so well running out to my mums car to show her that I did actually study !
Soon after everyone’s bags were packed onto the two buses, as we were not going out for results night but camping for two nights up in Lough Dan!! At first we were all annoyed we could not go out on results night but soon we all learned how much better the camping trip was compared to one night out. Being with each other other for two days was better than spending a night with each other.
On the bus to Lough Dan I was excited and nervous too see what was coming our way over the next three days. I was in a tent with Maisie, Jessica, Lois and Charlotte, we spent the first two hours trying to figure out how to put up our ten man tent! Of course we were the last to put up our tents and we needed help from the boys but that required bribery!
The campsite was spectacular and spotless. After we put up our tent we had a couple of hours to walk around and talk to everyone. Even after three single hours of being in Lough Dan I could see new relationships forming and everyone as a year group becoming closer as one.
On Wednesday afternoon we all headed on a short 6km hike. The views were beautiful and but unfortunately we were not blessed with the weather. At the end of the hike we had the opportunity to go swimming in a small river way, even though it was raining a little bit and many made the most of it. We arrived back to the campsite after a couple of hours and soon after some fun and games it was time to make dinner for ourselves. Jessica , one of the girls in my tent brought a gas cooker and all of us cooked our meals on it and cleaned up after. Of course we went for the easy option of cooking pasta on the first night. In the making of dinner and cleaning of dishes everyone become closer as it was a new experience to most of us and we worked nicely together.
That evening we all sat around the blazing fire. It was a fabulous experience and I got to have good conversations with those who I haven’t been close with in the past three years.
My tent woke up extremely early on Friday morning , and everyone else was awake around seven o'clock. My ears were freezing for the night and I ended up waking up with 5 jumpers on. We all made our breakfast in the barn as it was too wet to cook inside.. Soon we all headed off on a 22k hike around Lough Dan, come eleven o'clock the sun was out. On the hike it was a new experience for me and I really loved it, i loved the fact that we could walk with whoever we wanted and could get to know people better, especially the new exchange students. When we arrived back everyone was wrecked. I thoroughly enjoyed both of the hikes and they both helped immensely with building relationships and having fun! Day two soon ended with dinner and the gathering around the fire.
The next morning we all woke up early and freezing trying to make the most of our last day. At 10:30 we all began to pack up our things and disemble our tents. Before leaving we cleaned the campsite until it was spotless and left it the way we found it. We packed us the two buses with all of our bags, tents and various things and I have to say we were all sad to be leaving! When we arrived home I slept for hours I was truly exhausted.
I loved the camping trip for many reasons but the reason I loved it most was how we all had the opportunity and the ability to mix together as a year group and become closer as one. I can’t wait for more bonding trips in 4th year and for everybody to get even closer.