It feels like I’ve been working on this Silver DofE expedition with these four young men for years now. It’s only been 4 months, but we’ve come a long way in that time. Having done their training in April, and conducted a very successful practice expedition in May/June, it seems about time that Tom, Alfie, Jack and Jonathan should get their assessed expedition out of the way.

We met up on Tuesday morning, ran through a last minute kit check, issued a few stoves, tents, first aid kit and headed out to Llangynog in the Berwyns to meet up with their assessor. I’d brought in Chris Hughes, a fellow outdoor instructor and friend, to ensure that everything was being done properly and, after a quick chat with the group, we set them off on their 3 day expedition.

As we watched them head off into the distance, and Chris demanded his first cuppa, the reality of spending 3 days keeping out of the group’s way but close enough to dive in if something went wrong started to sink in as it always does – the dilemma of getting the right balance. However, this group have shown their abilities and maturity from the start, which is one reason why they were heading into wild country for 2 of their 3 day expedition.

They made good time, and actually arrived in their campsite at Hendwr about 40 minutes ahead of schedule, giving plenty of time for cooking and a good game of Roll Mat Rounders before bed.

On day 2, they made their way steadily back up onto the hill tops, over Moel Fferna and down to Carrog Station Campsite without any drama at all. In fact, they made the decision not to get ahead of the timings on their route card, choosing to make the most of their time on the hill. They even opted to get the stoves out at lunch time to brew up some hot chocolate – very civilised.

Day 3 started with a climb up through the woods towards Llantysilio Mountain. They didn’t manage to find one footpath marked on the map, but formed a good plan to work around it and kept on course and on time, arriving at the first checkpoint from an unexpected direction. Chris thought he’d raise the groups spirits (not that they needed raising) by offering them each a boiled sweet. Gratitude turned to wariness when they were told they had to put them in their mouths at the same time. It didn’t take long for the Sour Cherries to have their intended effect – much to Chris’ amusement, and the rest of his family I hear!

Having got away with avoiding the rain for the expedition, the group arrived at their planned finish point just as the heavens started to open. Debriefs took place under the shelter of a convenient tree before four happy young men boarded the car for the drive home.

Tom, Alfie, Jack and Jonathan have been great value throughout this process. They have shown themselves to be dependable and responsible and have been able to cope well with the extra demands of the environment they were in. Congratulations on a job well done!