On Saturday, 15 March, we started our 12km day walk at Havant Thicket car park where we were split into smaller groups.  Overseen by an adult, we commenced the walk by crossing the Manor Lodge road; we used our road safety knowledge to cross this busy road safely.  We then went through the picturesque Rowlands Castle Golf Course which led to a bridge before our ascent up Bowes Hill.  As we descended we picked up a muddy track which skirted a field and farm, it was great to see some horses and have a short break. We continued our walk and battled the high winds.  A great point of interest was the top of Idsworth Down (after an extremely steep walk) where we observed an ancient burial site and admired the views of the Southdowns. We then stopped for an al fresco lunch outside the Red Lion pub in Charlton. We finished our walk at Queen Elizabeth Country Park Visitor Centre extremely tired but satisfied that we had completed the walk in great time.  This day walk was excellent training in resilience and orienteering as an opportunity to observe the countryside code and road safety.  It was a great team building experience where we talked, sang, danced and laughed our way through the kilometers. This trial-run will put us in good stead for our assessment expedition on 14 and 15 June.

Year 10 DofE Students