Grade 3 and 4 students had a blast at the CYC Cowes Camp, Phillip Island. They had fun and a fantastic experience.

Here are some recounts from the participants:

My First Day at Camp (Nathan Loo)

First of all, we gathered in our classes at the gymnasium at 8:45 with our suitcases and sleeping bags. Mr Guy, Mrs Pendala, Mrs Jacobs, Mrs Mathe, Mr Bunyon and Miss Driessen went as well. Then all our sleeping bags and suitcases were piled on the footpath before everything was loaded into the belly of the coach. We said goodbye to our parents in the gym before we got onto the bus. Some of the parents were even waving goodbye to their children from below the window of the coach.

We set off on our trip to Cowes, Philip Island, but we had to take two stops on the way (the first stop was the Cranbourne Botanic Gardens and the next was the Nobbies boardwalk on Philip Island). We stopped at the Cranbourne Botanic Gardens for morning tea. There was also a playground there! After that, we got back onto the bus and put on our seatbelts. Then, we set off for the Nobbies, we stopped there for lunch and I saw a penguin. We had to drive across the Philip Island bridge to get to the Nobbies. After lunch, we drove to the campsite. There, we unloaded all the suitcases, sleeping bags and medical stuff from under the bus. Then we all went to the dining room. A lady named Danielle came in and told us the rules. Mr Bunyon announced who was in each lodge and room. After that, we settled into our rooms in our lodges. This included choosing our beds, setting up all our toiletries and making the room neat and tidy.

I was in Lodge 2 Room 2, Vincent and Joel were my roommates. Later, we went back to the dining hall. Mr Bunyon announced the duty groups and activity groups. Then we did our very first activity. My group was Group 4 and I did archery with Miss Driessen. I missed the target a few times but, on my second turn, two of my arrows went onto another person's target! After the activities, we had dinner and went on a night walk to the beach. It was a great first day.

The Second Day (Kiara Barus)

Grade 3 and 4 students went to the beach on Thursday as the first activity. We built sand castles and played at the beach. Next, my group did flying fox. As I went on, it felt like flying in the sky. Also, the view was breathtaking since I was so high up. My group waved ecstatically as I passed by. Next, we did pedal racers, which was exhausting but fun since it was like driving a car. Our group timed ourselves, and I got fifty- seven seconds. Not bad if you ask me. Finally, our group did archery which is way harder than it looks. One of my friends almost got a bull’s eye. It was a bit trickier since my arrow kept dropping, but I still managed to get it on the target. Overall, Thursday was the best day on camp since I learned new things, made new friends, had remarkable experiences, and had fun.

The Last Day of Camp (Yalena Zhang)

On the last day of camp, I woke up feeling miserable, like l had time travelled from Wednesday all the way to Friday. Dragging my feet to the dining room, l ate my breakfast, one of my favourite cereals, cornflakes and toast, mmm… delicious! At least then l felt content and energised.

For our final day at the camp, two activities, Photo Hunt and Low Ropes were planned. Maddi, Declan, and I were in a group together. We started with Low Ropes and it was challenging! I was so exhilarated when it was my turn, but it was harder than it looked! On the other hand, the Photo Hunt activity was adventurous, but hard to locate the pictures and match them to the correct letter.

Soon the time for our departure drew close, I finished packing, my roommates and I then walked out of our cabin. We thanked the camp staff, said our goodbyes, and hopped on the bus as our teacher counted each one of us. On our return trip, we stopped at San Remo where we had sandwiches for lunch. After an hour or so, we reached HCC safely and were soon met by my beaming parents. I think the CYC camp was my favourite so far because I was with my friends and it was also the first ever without my family.

Grade 5 and 6 Bike Education