Dazzling Disco

Not surprisingly the children have been very focused on getting ready for and enjoying the disco this evening. A grand finale to a great week. Consequently they have not had the opportunity to tell you about the canoeing, all day hikes archery or biking. I'm sure they will provide you with a glowing report of the week tomorrow - the week has just flown.

Activities Today

The children have been very busy today. Unfortunately, it has been difficult to get access to update the blog with such a full schedule.

The children have managed to capture a few notes about the mountain walk and biking. They have also enjoyed gorge walking, canoeing, archery and climbing.

We have been blessed with some fabulous weather and just hope that tomorrow will be equally pleasant as a number of groups will be attempting a whole days hill walking.

Mountain Biking

Two groups enjoyed the delights of mountain biking today. A few notes made by the children this evening:

This morning we went mountain biking. We had to get all kitted up with bike, helmet and a rucksack. It was very hard work but it was rewarding. We went on a round trip with lovely scenery and huge mountains.Quite near the end we stopped for a snack in front of a beautiful loch. When we arrived back at Lagganlia we tucked into our well earned lunch.

The mountain biking was a hard challenge but fun at the same time!

Mountain Walk

Today my group went mountain walking. We got a mini-bus to the hill then took an hour to get up.
It was a great experience going up and being able to see all the different sights but we were all wiped out by the time we got there. When we got to the top we had lunch then my group came back down the hill.

I really liked seeing all the rivers and the view of the loch was just fab. It was also misty but I could see the mountains near by, they looked beautiful.

I've really enjoyed doing the hill walk and don't want to go home.

Terrific Tipi

We had a fantastic campfire tonight! It was amazing! We gathered round the fire and toasted marshmallows. Our teacher told us a legend about green fairy dogs. A man played the bagpipes it was cool! (but loud).

AWESOME ABSEILING from 20 metres in the air!!!

A few thoughts from the abseiling team:

THE PHENOMENAL ABSEILING ADVENTURE

"It was amazing!!! It was really scary but fun and exciting at the same time. When we saw the cliff we all felt apprehensive and nervous because it was massive!!!"

"Our group went abseiling off a 60ft cliff. It was scary in many different ways. We had to wear harnesses, helmets and boots. We were all standing anxiously near the cliff waiting for our turn. Most of our group got down but some us did not attempt the abseil. The best feeling was when we got down and we had all learnt something new as well as the people who didn't attempt it."

"Phenomenal! We drove from the Lagganlia Centre to Inshriach Forest. We walked up a very steep hill to get to the vertical cliff. We had to practise to get the feel of the ropes strength. Once the first person went down we were all really nervous. It was hardest stepping off the edge. After the step you had to horizontal walk down a vertical surface. We were attached to a harness which was attached to a rope. We had to wear helmets for protection."

"We are really pleased we did this activity - fab but not surprisingly scary."

THE GREAT CANOEING ADVENTURE TRIP !

Today we went conoeing on Loch Morlich. To prepare we put on red waterproofs and life jackets. We set off in the mini-bus with the canoes on a trailer behind the bus.

It was really exciting because for most of us it was the first time we have ever done it in our lives. On the way down the Loch the wind and current were pushing against our backs so it made us go faster.

We travelled down a stream for a bit then stopped for a lunch break. Unfortunately we sat on a bench under a tree and leaves kept on falling on us. Lunch was really nice because we got to make our own sandwiches.

At the end some of us jumped into the Loch - guess what - it was absolutely freezing! but it didn't take too long to warm up in the minibus afterwards.

Fab Food

The food is great. For our wonderful breakfast we had the options of cereal, square sausage on a roll, porridge and orange juice which was very nice!!!!. For lunch we made our own sandwiches and had crisps and biscuits. Finally for dinner we had spaghetti bolognaise with garlic bread.

But the best part must be the amazing dessert - The legendary Lagganlia sticky toffee pudding was most definitely the highlight, fantastic after a hard days exercise.

Mountain Biking

We all went mountain biking it was really hard but we did enjoy it. The bike chain came off one of the bikes - which gave us a chance to find out to fix it.

The bikes were very light and had 15 or 16 gears. Loads of people were very tired at the end, some of the group said their legs had been through torture and we were really glad to get back to the centre at the end of a fun filled day.

Gorge Walking.

Some quotes from the gorge walking groups.

"Wow! It was amazing , it was sooo cold at the start and the water just flooded into our boots but after a wee while you got used to it sloshing around in your boots. The slides were fabulous fun, sliding down a really slippery slope. We had to work together to get up to the top, some bits needed real skill and confidence. We had to wear red waterproofs and under that we had cuddly blue fleeces (they made you look like a blue snowman!)

Afterwards we had to sit in our damp, wet cold suits on the minibus - yes the seats got very wet! When we got in the shower we felt like we were in heaven, just the warm water running over our shoulders was amazing!"

"This morning we went on a Gorge walk. We found it really challenging because we kept slipping on the rocks. We also went under the waterfalls and slid down the rocks into the pools. It was very cold and tiring but all of us thought it was great fun, despite the cold. "

"We had to dress in a fluffy jumper and dungarees. We looked like sheep. BAAAAAAAAAAAAAA! We also had red waterproofs to help keep the water out. When we got into the water we looked like sumo wrestlers because the water puffed out our clothes.

First we climbed up the rocks of the falls. It was really slippy and some of us fell but everyone was OK. Then our instructor showed us that in some parts of the falls we could slide down on our bottoms. It was a bit scary at first because it seemed like a mad idea but it was fun although the water was freezing. Then we were introduced to another bonkers idea, we could jump in and swim. Even more cold. The last slide was amazing, we got to go right in, getting our faces under. Then we hiked back to the minibus and drove back to the centre. Our hot showers and hot chocolates awaited us. We felt proud but tired. It had been a great morning."

Evening Activity - Night Line

A few quotes made by the children after this evenings activity:

"What we did in the night lining was to follow a rope around a forest in the dark, wearing a blind fold. We faced many obstacles such as TREES,NETS AND DITCHES."

"We went night-lining in the woods. We had to follow a rope with a blindfold up hill, downhill round trees, under nets, over nets, through barrels and down ditches. Having a great time at Lagganlia."

"I loved the night lining. It was so much fun even though I went under the net when I was supposed to walk over it ( I wondered where it was taking me)... "

"We have been doing night lining !!! It was AMAZING."

The Food

The Lagganlia food is amazing. This evenings dinner was lentil soup and steak pie. I enjoyed the soup, the pie was ok.

Afternoon Activity

When we arrived at Lagganlia we were told which group we were in and shown our rooms. Our dorm is very nice.

All the groups did orienteering in the afternoon, it was really great fun but tiring. This activity allowed us to run around the woods as well as the centre. We really enjoyed it.

We have been working with our instructors, talking about the activities we will do this week and discussing what else we will learn. This includes working together, making new friends, teamwork and leadership.

We've all enjoyed it so far, it is great being here at Lagganlia and don't want to leave.

The Journey North

Our journey North took about 3 hours. This included a stop at Killiecrankie to stretch our legs. The journey was good because we were occupied singing songs, playing on our nintendoes and looking at the cool scenery wondering what Lagganlia would look like.

The newspaper worked really well - no one was ill.

Lagganlia looks different from what we imagined because of all the woods and hills - it looked magic in the sunshine.