Resilient (continued)
really hard at this and built some very credible shelters that any mountain leader would be proud of! Their effort spent, we made our way gradually back down to pack up and prepare for home the following day.
Our second day was our best day, as a team we were now comfortable with snowshoes having undertaken our avalanche awareness training setting out with comfort about the expectations ahead. The terrain was perfect but also testing as the cadets completed a 15km day in an undulating environment. We set off from Le Boreon to Refuge La Courgounde, ascending 700m moving through farmland, pastures and woodland. We stopped for lunch at the refuge, which were surprised to find open before returning to Le Boreon after a tiring day.
Day 3 saw us take a break from snowshoeing and explore the medieval village of Utelle, this day actually turned into a summer hillwalking day where the cadets explored the ecology and history of the area. As this had not been anticipated as such a challenging day, the cadets were more fatigued than we had initially planned.
During day 4 the cadets quite exhausted from previous days, therefore we had to take the decision to provide them a rest to ensure another quality snowshoeing day could be achieved.
Day 5 we undertook our final snowshoe before returning home. We set off from Le Boreon once again travelling through the valley toward Lac de Cerise. Making good progress throughout the day, we stopped for a snow skills lesson. Where our guide taught the cadets how to build a snowhole, the cadets worked
We safely arrived back in the UK early Saturday 23rd February, very quickly experiencing expedition blues but feeling that our planned outcomes had been achieved! The cadets had enjoyed a world class experience, learning about the sensitivity of eco systems and the alpine environment. This has truly supported the development of Matravers CCF a new Cadet Expansion programme school and demonstrated that this initiative is truly making a difference to the lives of young people from all backgrounds. We thank the Ulysses trust for their generous support in making this expedition possible.
“Snow shoeing was an amazing and eye opening
experience. We walked for miles through the stunning mountains of the Mercantour National Park, eating lunch at a refuge that was kindly made by our
caterer; the food was outstanding. I can’t thank the staff enough for giving us the opportunity to go, the experience was unforgettable.”
S/Sgt Cannings
“I absolutely loved my time in France with the cadets, it was a once in a life time opportunity and it couldn’t have been better. It was one of the best experiences of my life, every day was a new exciting journey allowing me to not only form amazing friendships with my fellow cadets but also discover new strengths that I didn’t know I had. There were so many times that I thought I wouldn’t be able to complete an activity but each time I was shown to be wrong by the amazing instructors and teachers who made this trip happen. I will forever remember this week and cherish the memories and experience gained.”
Corporal D Veall
www.matravers.wilts.sch.uk
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