When our bungalows were ready, we unpacked and got changed. We met in the classroom and prepared for our river study after lunch. When we walked down to a meander (bend) in the river, we recorded the depth so that we could create a cross section of the river at the meander. We also measured pebbles taken from the inside and outside of the meander so we could compare them, we also collected data to find out the velocity of the river on the inside and outside of the meander. During the river study many people got wet and Tanya even fell in, fully dressed! The water was freezing. After dinner, the weather had become quite bad, there were grey clouds and every so often it rained. But we still went ahead with the bonfire we had planned as everyone spent their time collecting wood. When the bonfire was lit and everyone was stood around it, Joanne insisted on singing and telling ghost stories.

The next day we all had to wake up at 9 o’clock, and if that wasn’t bad enough, we all had to go on a long walk with a guide to Castellar de la Frontera, which is a small village within the walls of a very old castle. We had to walk there on a Roman road, uphill. It was so hot, but at least the view was nice, you could see for miles. We stopped near to the castle to sketch it and its surroundings. There were quite a few people who didn’t have actual homes and lived in their vans and we even saw a mattress in a cave. When we got to the village we went off in groups to find people to fill in our questionnaires and we had to walk around the whole village (which didn’t take very long) and collect data to show how the village had changed. We all wanted to finish quickly because it was cold and we wanted to go to this bar/restaurant where Miss Fitzsimmons and Mr. Morris were, but by the time we had finished it was time to go, and the village was almost deserted, there were no shops or anything.

After doing some more work, we had our dinner, then did this treasure hunt that Mr. Morris had set up. We had to find 17 letters written on paper which were hidden around the area. As well as a letter on the pieces of paper, there was also a clue leading to the next one. This was done in pitch black with torches, so it is amazing that no one actually broke their leg. But it was great fun. Whoever won would get breakfast in bed that would be brought to them by the losers. Joanne’s group won and James Perry and Barnaby lost, despite being the first group to start the hunt.

On the final day we went on yet another walk to a dam. We stopped every few metres though for the guide to tell us about the plants. Even though we walked through mud and damp grass it was quite a pleasant walk. We stopped to look at a cave painting, which was very small, but it was of some type of animal. We got to the dam, which had been covered in grass to make it look better and it had actually worked! The scenery was gorgeous. When we got back, everyone was tired and hot, so what did Miss Fitzsimmons decide to make us do? Clean and tidy our rooms. We were very enthusiastic about this!

After lunch it was time to go, we all got on the bus, wishing the trip was longer, because we all had double maths the next day. But everyone felt better about leaving when we stopped off for a McDonald's. However, we didn’t work as much as you might think. During the three days we went canoeing, where Joanne fell in, and did archery, where no one actually hit the bullseye and we all kept losing the arrows. Overall it was a great trip and everyone enjoyed it (apart from the walking).

Chrissie Gardner Year 10