A Snowy Weekend Away

Last weekend nearly 40 members of Wild Wolf ESU and 15th Wood Green Scout Group headed to the Peak District to take over a youth hostel and go hiking. The young people report:

On Friday we packed our stuff on the mini buses and started our trip. We arrived at the hostel that at first looked like a haunted mansion (like the one in the woman in black)…

On Saturday we got up around six, pretty confused about where we were, and eventually after working it out we got dressed and sorted our day bags with the stuff we needed for the hike. After a bit of banter and jokes we went downstairs for breakfast (coco-pops, toast and fruit), chatted and got into our walking groups…it was very weird because it was dark outside. Everyone got their stuff together, waterproofs on and each went their different ways…

The view from the minibus on the way to the hike was not promising!

Our group didn’t get off to a good start as we went the wrong way three times because the snow made us lose the path!!! After a slow start we finally got to our first stop, at which point we all decided to jump into a snow bank, which meant we were stuck for a while. After we removed ourselves and had a quick snack, we continued up the hill and ran into quick sand (best walk ever).

The 15th Wood Green with Leaders Annie (2nd from right) and Katie (behind camera!)

Eventually, we bumped into the other group and took some photos. It was really windy and we had to run down the other side of the hill we were on.

Learning about micro navigation on the hill

Getting down was a near-impossible task, as we kept sinking, then rising, then sinking again! We finally got into the woods at the bottom and had lunch.

Scouts Vs Explorers snowball fight!

After another long, steep and slippery walk down we had a break at the reservoir throwing snowballs into a whirlpool!!! At that point the cold had really started to set into our bones: so we half walked, half ran back to the youth hostel!!

The view of Rushup Edge – gorgeous!

One group of Explorers and (half) a group of Scouts at Hollin’s Cross.

Face planting into the snow and jumping/falling over gates ensued the whole way back, where we were eternally thankful for hot showers and warm clothes.

Some costumes were pretty good!

After a long period of down time, the instruction was given to change into our costumes for our Cowboys and Indians themed night. We ate burgers and chips for dinner, and then raced around the house on a scavenger hunt, frantically searching for clues in the form of riddles. Having been thoroughly exhausted by the day’s events, some people went to bed, whilst others played cards and listened to music downstairs. Overall, it was a very well planned out and relaxing evening. In the end, we all went to bed relatively early, spurred on by the prospect of a lie-in on Sunday.

Party Time!

Having eventually peeled ourselves away from the warmth of our sleeping bags, we set about on the momentous task of re-packing our bags. It is an unspoken rule that all your kit will never fit on your bag on the way back, no matter how neatly you pack it. Many people resorted to standing on it and then tightening the drawstring as quickly as possible. After that ordeal, we were called for an amazing breakfast of pancakes, bacon and maple syrup. After tasks were delegated, the group split in two, with the first half going abseiling off Millersdale viaduct, and the other staying at the hostel to help clean. We were swapped halfway through the day, so everyone had their fair share of fun. Cue photos of the abseiling – not for the faint hearted!