After leaving school at 8:45, we arrived safely into Bryntysilio at around 11:30am. The children found their rooms, made their beds and had lunch. Afterwards, the children were introduced to their groups for the week (school teams) and went off with a centre leader for their activities . These activities included team building challenges, a visit to Horseshoe Falls (a local weir), rolling down a hill and exploring the local grounds. Once we were back, there was some free time - a chance for the children to chill, play games etc before dinner. After dinner, the 4 teams merged into 2 larger groups and the evening activity consisted of either a blindfolded trail or a low ropes course. Both of these were completed in the dark and rain which made it very exciting. The children have engaged brilliantly all day and we look forward to the rest of the week!

Today has been an active day for the children; exploring and sliding in gorges, scrambling up crags and practising their archery and den building skills in a “Wilderness Quest.” Every single child has engaged with all of the activities, even if they were unsure to start with. They have faced and overcome fears and come out the other side feeling proud of themselves! This evening, the groups swapped their activity from the one they didn’t do last night so either went on a low ropes course or completed a blindfolded night course. It is likely the children will sleep well tonight….or here’s hoping!

Well, day 3 is done and what another great day it was. Half of the children engaged in both canoeing and scrambling, whilst the other half climbed a mountain! The children who went canoeing were the first Underwood children this week to experience it and they had a a fabulous time going along the water and practising their teamwork. The groups who went scrambling had another great time, exploring some very tight spaces and finding different plants in the area. Finally, the two groups who headed up the mountain were faced with various challenges, including some scrambling parts and torrential rain! The children were amazing - demonstrating super resilience and determination. They all made it to the top and back to the bottom safely, taking care and supporting each other. What a fantastic day!

Today the other half of the children had the chance to climb a mountain. They took a different route to yesterday’s group but were faced with some difficult weather at the beginning and some tough inclines. All children successfully reached the summit and enjoyed competing against the wind to stay upright. Meanwhile, the other two groups had a day of canoeing and a “wilderness quest.” Canoeing was a pleasant and relaxing activity, travelling up the canal next to the River Dee. The children had to work well as a team, making sure that their paddles were in sync with each other. The wilderness quest involved archery, pond dipping, den building for one group and for the other group, toasting marshmallows. Again, a lovely way to end the week as a team. Finally, the evening activity tonight was a bonfire with marshmallows, songs and a time of reflection for the children. Wonderful!