Camping in Lough Dan
I was quite nervous on results morning.
When I received the envelope with my junior cert result I decided not to open it until my mum called me. I was satisfied with the results I received. Shortly after we loaded the bus with our luggage and bags. We definitely didn't need half of the equipment we were bringing.
When we arrived at the camp site we had settled down and almost forgotten already about the Junior Cert. We set up our tents and then I decided to make a big bowl of Carbonara. After this I was assigned to cooking for my tent for the next 2 days.
My tent had James, Oscar Punch, Aran Carlile and Arno. We all got on together very well and we did so but listening to music and talking to each other. At night, we would all talk our selves to sleep.
I definitely became better friends with everyone in that tent even after just one night of staying with them.
At the end of everyday the big fire was lit. Everyone huddled around the fire for warmth. I made tea for my tent which everyone thought was a good idea. The fire was the place where people who weren't in each others tent would talk. There was also always someone with a speaker playing music. My favourite part of the trip was probably the Bon fires.
I normally sleep till 10:00 am if I get the chance but for some reason the campsite was awake at 6:30. So every morning I woke up very tired and I cooked breakfast for myself and a few others. Breakfast on the first morning was scrambled eggs, beans, sausages, rashers, toast and tea. People mainly used the barn house at the top of the camp site for breakfast.
Soon after breakfast we were all called together and told what the rest of they day consisted of. The first day we went in a small 2 hour hike. I found this hike rewarding at the end when I could take off my boots and relax by my tent and eat some warm food. I also discovered that my boots would prove to be a problem on the Big Hike.
When we were called together for the Big Hike we weren't given much time to prepare food. This meant I would have to do this hike hungry. As predicted, my boots shortly became a problem. The leather on the sole began to distort and spike up into my heel. This felt like I had a constant big rock in my show that wasn't moving. On one of the brakes we had, (by the lake) I managed to find a knife and I was able to cut out exactly what was hurting my heel. This small change made all the difference on my trek through mud, rock and road.
That night we all slept extremely well. Everyone had a sense of self achievement. The 17 kilometre walk proved everyone that we are a very close and strong year group.
In conclusion, I believe the camping trip has been the best part of fourth year so far, everyone benefited from it, be it finding out a new strength or skill (mine was cooking) or even just getting to know people better and better. With the barn, the fire and the walk, everyone became better friends with each other and that's why camping, was a brilliant trip.