DUKE OF EDINBURGH GOLD AWARD
The Gold Award is increasingly popular at the College with a total of 60 participants in the Upper School. Two of our current participants, Oscar Kinirons (Year 12) and Oliver Godbee (Year 13), give accounts of the challenges involved in the Expedition
GOLD PRACTICE EXPEDITION 2023 THE PEAK DISTRICT OSCAR KINIRONS (YEAR 12)
Every year, many Dulwich boys from Year 12 commit to the challenge of the Duke of Edinburgh Gold Award. By far the most talked about section of the scheme is the expedition, where 16- or 17-year-olds throw themselves into the remote British countryside for up to a week to see if they can cope with the wilderness. Even though the Physical, Skill and Volunteering parts of the award scheme are arguably more helpful in the long run, it is without doubt the expedition which lives long in the memories of participants. During the October half term, seven groups of between five and seven boys embarked on their practice expedi- tion. Later this year the qualification expedition will take place in the Lake District. However, for the practice, we
endured seven days in the cold, rainy, windy climate of the Peak District. Some of us had already done the Silver or Bronze expeditions, whereas others had never travelled out of London, but we were all anxious yet excited for the challenge to come. On 29 October, we embarked on our journey up to the Peaks, where we met up with our instructors. We set up camp and (some) got an early night. Over the following two days, we worked collectively on our orienteering, cooking and camping skills. In the three days after that, we undertook an approximately 50km round trip across the Peak District. Despite the orienteering skills we had
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THE ALLEYNIAN 712
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