The Year 13 Outdoor Education class tramped the Around the Mountain Circuit in the Taranaki/Egmont National Park from 7-10 May.
This trip provided students with a real-life event to devise strategies for a physical activity outcome. They were tasked with planning their routes, finding out about the significance of the place they were visiting, creating a gear list, considering the environment they were entering and how they could care for it, planning their menu and identifying the likely risks and how to prevent these from occurring. As the class was split into small groups and because they were walking from dawn to dusk each day carrying 15-20kg packs, they could practice their leadership skills under very testing conditions.
The Around the Mountain Circuit goes through forest, rivers and spectacular alpine scenery. The walk varied through lush green goblin forest, and high alpine tussock grass with clear views of the summit above and farmland running to the coast below.
Mr Darren Whitehead, Head of Outdoor Education