On Friday 7th October, our 5 Silver DofE participants set off to the Peak District to complete their Silver Award Expedition of 3 days and 2 nights.

The boys experienced a tough first day, hiking 10 miles from Matlock to their destination, carrying a fully loaded rucksack and enduring many spells of heavy rain. The boys, however, persevered as a team completed their routes over seven hours.

After a good evenings rest, the boys then set of on their second days route. They navigated south following the River Derwent completing, in total, 15 miles over the course of the day. The weather was much kinder on them with beautiful sunshine and sights to take in. The Chatsworth Estate being one of the beautiful backdrops for them to take in.

For their final day of hiking their expedition route, the boys were taken up into the ‘Dark Peaks’, ascending Mam Tor to the height of 517 metres to take in the breath-taking scenery.  They then following the path along the ridgeline before descending towards the town of Castleton.

Their Silver expedition then cumulating in a further ascent of 250 metres from the town towards the waiting and welcoming view of the school mini bus.

The team did incredibly well over their expedition weekend, despite all the challenges they faced. They worked together and kept each other motivated to complete their routes. The boys should be very proud of their achievement and determination; truly living by the school motto “As much as I can”.

Both Mr Smith and Mr Wragg  were extremely proud of the boys and, have really enjoyed the overall experience of spending this time with them throughout this expedition as well as the previous practices and Bronze Expedition back in the summer. .