Year 9 Outdoor Education Interest Elective

On Friday of Week 1 the Year 9 Outdoor Education students travelled to Wee Jasper, near Yass, for an adventure of a lifetime.

The interest elective students participated in Abseiling and Caving.

The abseil consisted of a 10 metre, 35 metre and 45 metre drop into Devils Punchbowl, an old collapsed cave. Most students attempting all three abseils and it was incredible to see students walk backwards off the cliff and down the steep drop. They displayed tremendous courage and a 'no fear' approach, which enabled them to achieve their goals and to face their fears.

We also went caving in the Signature Cave. With our trusty guides we ventured into pitch black caves with our helmets and head torches. We explored the caves, crawled through tiny holes big enough to just squeeze and wriggle our bodies through the limestone holes and got very muddy and dirty.

Once we settled into the cave it was easy to see the student’s confidence grow and their adventurous sides shine through.

Some of the students  comments were:

‘This is a once in a lifetime opportunity’

‘I can't believe I'm doing this’

 ‘This is so awesome’

‘Thanks so much for bringing us here’

‘Wow I did it’  

‘No I'm not doing that’

There was something for everyone on this trip and everyone had the opportunity to be challenged and to achieve.

A big thank you to the crew from ‘Out and About Adventures’ who made this trip 100% safe and achievable for all the students. You can view more photos on the Facebook page.

Thank you to Miss Courtney Langtry for her support on this trip and Mr Trevor Gyles for working with me over the past months to organise this trip. Some students may never have this opportunity again, so it was very rewarding as teachers to offer this adventure to our students and to see them take on the challenges head first.

Mrs Virginia Baggio