2010

Well, as you can see it's been ages since I have wrote what I have been up to. So instead I will promise to update before Christmas. But for now it's some ironing and the Christmas shopping...

New page in the book of life...

6 months, been and gone, and that's the end of the World Challenge chapter in terms of full time work. Working over the winter as a centre assistant/trainee instructor flew past so quickly and though the main work included hanging up wet tents, folding dry tents, organising stores for the training expeditions, there were the perks towards the end that got me involved in the delivery of training. It was stressful and full on but after going out on the third one, I was running it all by myself with an instructor shadowing me incase I missed out anything. I came back in from that weekend on such a high as the group were really receptive to the training, really positive and I had great feedback including a thankyou card. The teachers had been made aware that I was in training but thought I did really well :-)

So before I knew it, I was moving out of Buxton and heading South East to a village outside of Derby called Spondon where I am now based. It was originally going to be a 'rent a room' situation but turned out to be the case of a relationship blossoming. That guy is none other than my 'boyfriend', Ned, someone who has helped me a lot over the past few months with my climbing, not only someone I have worked on and off with for the past year, but someone who has been a little less than totally amazing to me.

So I have found myself moved into a new house and this is coupled with a new full time job (until October) with the company that started off all of my work within the outdoor sector, Peak Pursuits. I had been pestered for the past few months about working full time for the company as they lack female full time members of staff within the Duke of Edinburgh department and so an agreement was proposed that I take the seasonal position with a month off in the summer to go to Malawi on expedition with World Challenge. It was a big decision as I had been totally convinced with the idea of going freelance with different companies but after a few weeks mulling over the pro's and con's I went with taking the job for some security and experience with the 'behind the scenes' side of DoE. It's not like it's a permanent job as it is only until October and I can reassess the situation when I get back from Malawi.

In terms of life, I'm really not sure what I want anymore. It's not like I'm bored with the outdoors or anything, but only being a ML (in terms of qualifications) there are not a huge amount of avenues to go down at the moment. I may be just blind, and stuck in my ways of DoE but I hope to find something new for this winter or 2011. I aim to get my SPA (climbing award) sorted by the end of the year which may open some doors and hope to start paddling this year which could mean I aim for some water qualifications as well but I'm at the stage where I feel I have had a none stop life for the past 4 years and want some time out.

Yeah ok I'm only 22 years old but I want to get out travelling without a group of kids tagging along/in front of me. My brother has just made the hard decision to defer University and go out to Australia for a year to travel and maybe work. A friend of mine has done the same thing, got a camper van and is travelling throughout New Zealand. That would be awesome, but I'm a sociable person (most of the time) and don't think I fancy doing things like that on my own. I like to talk to someone and share the experiences of travel. Even if I was to go out on my own, I could potentially meet people on my travels but who knows if they are idiots or want to do the same things as me. I can be a right grump at times and I do have ties to the UK now. Job, meh, I can quit that worst case scenerio, a house, I can leave that and dump things in my parents loft, a boyfriend, a little harder to 'deal' with. That sounds very negative, which I really am not about. I haven't been this happy in a long time, not that I have been unhappy or lonely, but I so enjoy spending time with Ned. I think it's merely the fact that I have completed University, where I had a lot of time to play around with and could work when and where I wanted, had some excitement with going to Bolivia and India then going straight into a 6 month placement/job for the winter and straight into another 6 month job interspersed with work in Africa. Non stop but I do get bored just on days off.

So for the next few months it's going to be preparation for Malawi, getting through all the DoE expeditions around the UK (and abroad now with the possibility of going to Spain in August) and job hunting for my next challenge. I could easily just continue with DoE but it's not challenging anymore (depending on the group of course). And with that, I will pack for a gold practice in Scotland :-)

Snow snow snow

When it first hit I was dead excited. We haven't had snow like this in ages, to then be told England hadn't had snow like this in over 20 years or so, I knew then that it was exciting! That was until every morning at the centre we would be clearing snow for over an hour and gritting half a football pitch. Some good snowmen, sledging and fights were some of the highs but now it's just getting riduculous.

Practically all the roads in and out of Buxton are closed because they are getting so dangerous. Thankfully I wasn't too bad getting into Buxton on Sunday night just gone but I doubt I'll be able to leave for at least a week. Bummer! So much for the climbing sessions on Tuesday evenings in Sheffield, not happy.

One good thing about being stuck in the centre though was I finally organised and booked some holiday that I was due. I had been wanting to go out to Switzerland for ages now to see my God Mother Gillian. Probably a couple of years ago now, she had her own house built with her husband Bart. I still haven't visited so it was a perfect opportunity to go out there. So 4th Feb, fly out to Zurich, spend a night in Luzern by the lake and then meet Gillian on the 5th. Spend a long weekend at her's and then fly back on the 8th. Exciting stuff. I hope to get out and do some walking in the weather is kind. They have been having lots of snow by the sounds of things but the trains are still running so will be able to get from the airport to near enough her house.
I also booked off the half term week in anticipation of something exciting to rear it's head. Will see what happens but it'll be a week off so can get away and do something either way.

Then it's going to be some busy weeks as the last of the kids will be coming through the Leadership and Development Centre for their overseas training. I believe I will be on a remote course in Hexham in February so that will be a nice break from the centre. Not to mention going out with the groups in Buxton as well! Hopefully the weather will have sorted itself out by then and I can get out climbing working on the log book for assessment. How frustrating it is when you have time off but can't get out and do the things you want. Welcome to the real world I guess. I will have to just try harder with things....

Happy New Year

A new year, a new start and a whirlwind of excitement to come...

Bringing in the new year with a trip to Lincoln cathedral, beautifully lit with bell ringing, crowds of people and tea lights floating into the sky where a full moon enlightened everything in sight. It was a truely beautiful evening in the crisp cold after an exciting day of Mountain Biking around Carsington Water. I was a little dubious about the idea of getting back on a bike, especially when it was freezing cold, icy though sunny but we went with the idea. I had done the low level routes with my parents when I on holiday years before (but this time it was with Ned Needham, who doesn't understand easy!).

Unfortunately I had been ill the previous two days which was ominous, with having only ate a tin of soup and some toast. My energy levels were low but we whizzed onto the trails and there were hills! I can say I only had to push on one of them from exhaustion, the other two where because it was icy and I had no purchase on the ground. On Ned peddled, thankfully waiting for me on the flat. A nice lunch stop by the dam where we were pestered by a family who had a puncture. Then an absolutely freezing sprint across the dam where I lost both hands and feet to the cold and we were back to the car. I made it but can't say my bottom agreed with it though....

Now my week had obviously started off badly due to being sick, though I managed to squeeze in a meal with some old school friends on the Monday night so once I was feeling better on the Wednesday I was back on the road and it was to stop at my friend Ned's house in Derby. Easing in gently to physical exertion I had a 'fresh' walk around Darley Park to be surprised by a random water buffalo called Oink sitting in a field, finished off with a wander around Derby old town for a taste of culture. It was bitter cold so we head home for tea, though the house was really no warmer! Ned doesn't seem to understand the word heating. The following day, the weather was fantastic so we had our ride around Carsington followed by an amazing dinner and trip to Lincoln, finally crawling into bed very late.

New Year's Day, another amazing day of weather that was dedicated to a trip to Harborough for some outdoor climbing. What a way to start the new year and though there was snow still on the ground, I was thrown into climbing on Limestone. Some amazing views looking over the Peak District, I got myself two leads ticked off for my logbook. If my log book continues in this way then I will be having all types of rock types logged soon enough. Ned tackled a particularly tricky looking climb that I seconded. That was when my hands completely froze, not to mention the non-existent feet on the end of my legs. Painful as it was, I got to the top and we bailed for the 'warmth' of home.

After I found my feet my again, I was shocked to find that the heating was actually working in the house which was blissful. A evening of food and films finished a day well. Very successful!

Now it can't all be fun fun so a morning of getting up to date with things and some work, we then spent the afternoon at Nottingham Climbing Centre where my comfort zone was well and truely stretched with the introduction of fighting over hangs plus a play with twin/double/half ropes (don't ask me to explain or work out the difference as it was a 2am conversation that was only half taken in when it was explained!). The bouldering was pretty good though and I tackled some interesting problems but the day took it's toll on me thankfully co-inciding with closing time at 5pm. Some sore hands and a bit of demoralisation, we skipped off back home for a couple of hours to then go to see the new Sherlock Holmes film at the cinema which was very good. Thoroughly recommended with the character of Holmes being portrayed in a very quirky manner. The night topped off with a monster game of Yahtzee and cheese on muffins!

So a very exciting week and now I prepare to head back to Buxton for work tomorrow. Back on duty so 7 days of early mornings and late evenings. Apparently the snow is still up there but the roads are ok which makes my travelling a little easier. Clearing drive ways for non-existent members of staff coming in makes in a bit demoralising but hey ho, work work work. Let's hope the weather stays sunny and fresh for some afternoon climbing outdoors. And with that I head to Buxton...

Life in Buxton

I have officially been living in Buxton for 6 weeks and it has been an exciting time of learning, meeting new people and opportunity. A time that has mainly consisted of running the Stores for the Overseas Training Expeditions at the Leadership and Development Centre in Buxton, it has also taken me to Pitlochry, Scotland twice with benefits of once the work is done your time is spent on personal development. So naturally I have been out climbing and pushing my grade to prepare for my SPA assessment.

It has been an exciting time, seeing and meeting Challengers due to depart for far-flung countries all over the globe next summer and unfortunately brings back the want to travel again. Only being back from Bolivia less than 3 months I'm already eeking to get away again, but where to....

On a safe arrival back to the centre 2 weeks ago from Scotland, I had had an eventful weekend in Pitlochry where beautiful weather graced our company and a school from Glasgow had their training for their trip to Malawi next June. It was at the same time that my leading aspirations were being contemplated by the techinal and HR team back in England. They wanted me to lead this coming summer and no better placement than with a team that requested me! Yes, this team from Glasgow were very happy with me and wanted me to be their leader.

Now to be honest if this had happened a couple of weeks before I think I would have cacked myself and said no, but after being questioned about what I wanted to do next summer I put some serious thought into it, talked to many leaders that I had recently worked with and then came to the conclusion that I was ready for the plunge. With the right group, the right destination and the right itinerary plus plenty of research and preparation I would be ready!

Even so, on getting back to Buxton, I had to wait for over 2 weeks, even with my training instructor Chris making phone calls and arrangements of Potential Leader paperwork to go in, until I finally got the all clear that it was going to be my expedition. With a mixture of nerves and excitement I now write my news and plan for the start of research and preparation.

So 324 days until action (the World Challenge members site tells me) :-)

Amongst the excitement, we have the return of Jo to the centre, one of the trainee instructors that live in the little attic flat of Oaklands Manor, Buxton. The other being Aaron, who has recently moved in this week. We are now the new instructors of the Manor and are ready for the onslaught on the training expeditions that run regularly amongst other such courses. Jo has been in Morocco on a development training week, the lucky thing. Looking forward to hearing all the stories and look through the photos! And then we have 4 days off until the next course after having back to backs running throughout October due to halfterms across the country. It will be nice for some quiet time and more time to get out climbing working towards my assessment which is penciled in for April time.

And with that, I return to looking out over the Peak District, waiting for the return of the groups tomorrow :-)

Good news!

As ever it has been hectic! I have officially zig zagged around the country about eight times in only 3 weeks or so. I have just finished a couple of expeditions for Duke of Edinburgh with work only down in the Chiltern Hills then around the Yorkshire Dales and the Peak District. Interspersed with that I have been to some job interviews and been working on the Adventure Quest work in Buxton and Bushey. Fun it has all been and with living out of my car for about 2 weeks since leaving home last, I have finally returned to Dunstable with the expeditions under my belt, being signed off to run high ropes courses around the country and.........a NEW JOB!

Yes I am finally sure on my movement and it will be to Buxton on either 20th or 21st September to take up the new trainee instructor position at the World Challenge Expeditions centre in the beautiful Peak District! I had been tipped off about the position opening up again this September so quickly threw a beautiful CV together, got my log books together then zoomed up to Buxton for the nerve-racking interview. It was pretty laid back but as usual I suffer under 'interview-pressure'. It all paid off though as after 2 weeks of waiting to hear back from them I was doing some shadowing at the centre for the week and was then told the good news. It was definitely a relief to finally know the outcome. I had been quite positive but then everyone else was telling me that I would no doubt get the job but then I thought I might be devastated if I didn't so went with the negative view. It all worked out though :-)

So the job is actually a 6 month placement where I will be 1 of 3 trainee instructors living in the centre with a small wage, helping to run the training expeditions for the groups going abroad in the summer, as well as running the stores, being on call if there are any problems, being the face of World Challenge, centre assistant, plus all the menial jobs like folding tents and pairing up boots. We also have a personal development programme where I will be able to finish my SPA climbing award and start working towards my kayaking qualifications. It's going to be an intense 6 months which I know is going to be hard work but it's an opportunity to be working over the quiet winter period and work towards further qualifications. It was even mentioned about possible trips to Northern Ireland, Scotland and Morocco! It boils down really to have dedicated you are to the work and what you put in reflects what you get out of it so I'm looking to be very busy. I can't wait :-)

It was the plan... opps!

Well the plan was to be able to log in and blog as much as possible but unfortunately, though it wasn't exactely hard to find the Internet, time was against me with the amount of work and how busy we were scrambling around Bolivia! I was so busy I even forgot it was Dad's birthday which I'm sure he wasn't happy about but it wasn't until I was camped on the Isla del Sol with my diary (which also suffered) that I realised that it was the 16th July and I wasn't going to be in a town for another week.

I did try to get to the Internet once back in the capital, La Paz but it was all action stations to organise everything for the main trek which was an epic 4 day trek across the Yungas Cruz high up in the Andes! The views were amazingly beautiful that even the photos can't show but the memories will be there forever.

Once back from the trek we then had the excitement of heading down to Rurrenbaque, the jungle which was the bit that most were looking forward to out of the whole trip. Also the one bit of the trip that went completely wrong. The flights down there were cancelled for 2 days and with much disappointment and upset we had to bail the idea and spent another day or so trying to claim money back for the flights and tour. We then were given an option to go down to a place called Corioco which was a nice change from La Paz. We then headed back to the capital (which also went badly) for a couple of day trips. We ended up getting stuck on a mountain pass 4000+ metres in tonnes of snow. The traffic jams were crazy but again the views were amazing. We managed to spend the day preparing for the project we were working on in a remote village then visited an Inca remains site before boarding a night bus down to the Uyuni Salt Plains.

The Uyuni tour was amazing, the one thing that I was seriously looking forward and it was mindboggling how vast it was! This huge lake that didn't exist anymore, just a huge salt plain with the random cactus islands then bordered with the Chilen mountains. Words again can't explain the sight but it was fantastic. There, of course, were the problems of communication which resulted in the night that could reach as low as -20C and our bags, sleeping bags and warm clothes didn't turn up. The group had to pair up and huddle all night, thankfully it didn't reach -20C, only around -5C or so but then a boy got really sick and we were really worried allnight. The leaders got no sleep as we nursed he through the cold. We were very lucky to have had a doctor staying in the same hacienda as us and helped us out. The next morning he was much better so no sleep for us helped alot. We were then off to the geyseurs, hot springs and finally onto the village of Santiago 'K' where we were to be based for 5 days working on our project/

The project consisted of re-painting the school theatre as well as replastering the walls and also digging a cess-pit due to their lack of a sewage system. It was quite hard labour but was such a beneficial phase of the expedition for the group, especially the interactions with the kids of the village. I think it was one of the best bits of the expedition minus (of course) the problems of the lack of food, communication and understanding between us and the locals and then the poor project organiser which I won't go into on here.

The trip, for me, unfortunately ended on a bummer for me as I got travel sick travelling back to the capital and then I went on to get sickness. I ended up missing the last dinner, along with the leader who got me strong enough to travel back to the UK. We did have the downer of one of the group members losing his passport on the last day so he had to stay out in country with the teacher. So we went from 17 to 15 for travelling home. Still waiting on news on whether they are home yet, fingers crossed! Even the travel through America was scarred with passport problems but eventually we arrived back at Heathrow VERY shattered. The M25 was the last straw not allowing Mum and Dad to get to the airport on time but by 3pm on the Saturday I was back in Dunstable.

The trip was probably the most amazing form of work experience. It was a bit of a bummer that so much went wrong but so much went right as well. If the situations every happened again I would have the knowledge and understanding to sort them out as best as possible which is great for if I end up leading a group next summer. Bolivia is such an amazing country and I can't wait to get out to South America again and to explore more countries. Role on the opportunity for Peru and Machu Picchu. But for now I will be content with the UK and getting on the road for work :-)