FLIPPING BOOK CHRONICLE 2024

and warned us about the hectic rain that was expected. I did not love that statement, to say the least. After all the talking we finally set off on the walk to the Lapa, with spirits higher than the clouds and singing songs with our “incredible” voices. We got to the top of the hill and looked back to see the “red brick fortress” that we’d left behind. Our House doesn’t have the most athletic people, so we had to push each other to get to the top, hopefully in one piece and as a group. We set up our campsite and tried our best to make it pretty, every person adding value in their own way, which truly showed how diverse we are as a group. Max Johnson was very happy in getting mud from the stream for our campfire – as you’d imagine he got rather muddy. We were extremely chuffed with our campsite, and with only a few clouds in the sky we couldn’t possibly have imagined the heavy rain to come later in the evening, when it started bucketing down. We were caught very off guard and didn’t have enough dry wood to even think of a fire. Dry grass was our only hope of a flame. We knew we had no chance of starting a fire but persevered anyway. Not only did we get extremely wet, but we made memories that will last forever. After a night of very heavy rain and getting warm by other Houses’ fires, we were up and ready for another day of activities. Mr Olivier called us all down with a whistle that echoed throughout the reserve. He gave us our Futurelife and milk, which we rationed out between the 12 of us. Once we’d finished our “gourmet” breakfast we were briefed on the day’s activities, which didn’t land too well as they involved us walking 2km carrying barrels and logs just to swim in a freezing-cold dam. We got a cheeky gym session in on the walk down with all the logs and barrels on our backs. We got to the dam and received cookies bigger than my hand. Then we had to call on our inner engineers and craft a raft. We were very confident in our design until it came time to put it to work. It fell apart as soon as we put it in the water, and we just had to swim with floating barrels and logs. We made it back to camp alive and were tasked with making a winning potjie that we would have for dinner that night. We received our ingredients and started cooking up a storm. After a few hours we presented our masterpieces to the judges and ate what we had prepared. The rain pulled in with high intensity while we were being told about the infamous day of Inhlosane. We eventually got to our campsites and got ready for the day ahead. We awoke once again after a night of rain and thunder to damp ground. We began the packing up of our beautiful camp but were caught short by the whistle of Mr Olivier, who gave us our breakfast and a time limit for our campsite pack-up. We packed our bags and campsite and headed off on the great walk. This 26km walk built character, perseverance and, most of all, memories. After a long, hot morning of walking we arrived at the base of the mountain. We jumped straight into things by starting the summit immediately. I summited the mountain alongside my cop and some of my closest friends. After many steep climbs the face started to flatten out and we reached the top. This was a feeling of accomplishment I can’t explain. After a few photos and some time to admire the view we headed down towards our camp. We found our bags, set up camp and went for a very, very refreshing swim in the dam. We had our dinner and headed to bed. After an early wake-up, we packed up camp and got breakfast for the final time. We set off on the final push of the camp. Having a warm shower and clean clothes in mind, pushing through was not difficult. We walked as a group and passed through the

amazing chefs. While we were eating, it started raining heavily, so we stayed in the Lapa until it stopped, while Mr Olivier told us about Inhlosane the next day. Day 3 The third day began with my watch vibrating, and I knew this was the big day: we were climbing Inhlosane. After packing up our tent and gear, we gathered in the Lapa. Our group was us and Pascoe, along with Mr Mickleburgh and Mr Ngubane. The hike was long and tiring. Since we were the last group, we were always the last to reach the snack stops, so a few of us decided to walk ahead and join the front groups. It felt like the mountain was playing tricks on us. Every time we thought we were close, it seemed farther away. When we finally reached the base of Inhlosane, I felt exhausted, but seeing the gate gave me a burst of energy, and I sprinted the last bit and met my cop, Katleho. Once everyone in our group arrived, we climbed to the summit together. My legs were aching, and I had to stop a few times, but my friends encouraged me to keep going. Reaching the top was an incredible feeling, and we took a group photo to remember it. After a long descent, we arrived at our campsite for the night. We set up our tents, and a bunch of us cooled off with a swim in the dam. That night, I slept soundly, knowing the next day would take us back home. Day 4 I woke up stiff and sore from the hike, but I was excited to head back to Michaelhouse. After breakfast, we packed our bags and started the walk. This time, we were allowed to walk with the lead group, which made it feel much faster. Walking with Oli Pluke and Kyan, time flew by, and we reached the halfway point in just two hours – a big improvement from the day before. The hardest part was going down Griffin’s Hill. My knees hurt, but I managed to get down eventually. As we got closer to Michaelhouse, the anticipation built. Every turn looked the same, and it felt like we would never get there. But then we saw the dam gates, and we knew we were finally back. We sprinted through the gates, relieved and proud. Back at school I had the best shower of my life. E Block Camp was an unforgettable experience. It was tough at times, but it brought us closer together and created memories I’ll never forget. E BLOCK CAMP Block Camp. Wow, what an experience. A million ideas floated around in my head along with all the horror stories I’d been told by my D Blockers. I had no idea what was going to happen and if I was even going to get through it. I woke up early to finish packing my bag (which wasn’t looking too pretty) and headed to breakfast with a hungry stomach filled with butterflies. We walked to the amphitheatre in a group that looked like a swarm of bees and were all greeted by Mr Olivier. He talked to us about the challenges that we were about to face Written by Mark Benfield

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