Unit 3/4 Outdoor & Environmental Studies Camp

Great Ocean Walk

Day one:

The Unit 3/4  Outdoor Ed classes arrived at the Girton Gymnasium at 6:30am before the 

4-hour bus ride to Apollo Bay. Once we arrived, students were able to get a bite to eat from the bakery and stock up on snacks before departing on their 5-day hike. 

Group One, led by Mr Furphy, started their hike from Apollo Bay, and Group Two, led by Mr McCarthy, started at Elliot Ridge which was Group One's first campsite. Mr Furphy’s group faced treacherous mountains and cliff faces. This led to their group being the best and they united to overcome the challenge of the first day.  Mr McCarthy’s group faced a fair few challenges including slipping tracks, hills, setting up tents, cooking and so much more. However, they overcame it as a group, and trekked on, with the help of Mr McCarthy’s terrible jokes to keep a laugh going. 

Day two:

Group One set off the next morning to conquer a 20km day. Trekking through mud and encountering wild deer, kangaroos, and penguins the group completed the day spurring each other on. Completing the day in record time, they set up camp on the edge of the beach. Exploring the rock pool, playing cards and making one litre of Nesquik milk the group ended the day, falling asleep to the sound of the waves crashing.

Day three:

Day three was the hardest day we faced. We needed to make up two days' worth of walking but the incentive was that we could camp as one big group at the end of the day. This was physically and mentally challenging and took every ounce of teamwork to get us there. We worked exceptionally well as a group and made sure to look after each other. We went up and down a number of big hills before finally making it to camp where Mr McCathy’s group had just returned from the beach, how lucky were they! As a group, we were able to complete some of our classwork where we looked at observable characteristics to determine if environments are healthy.

This was a wonderful trip - a big thank you to all our teachers for coming along with us for the week. It is something I’d love to go back and do again in a couple of years.

Charlie Smith (11 Frew)