#Year 8 Camp!

After weeks and weeks of planning our year 8 camp. Mrs Nua must had been exhausted. We all said our goodbyes and were on our way. The year 8s all went to Marsden Bay Camp. My pockets were  bulging with lollies so as soon as we got in the bus I cracked them open. For the first 30 minutes we all sang songs, then we just zoned out.  

Nearly at our destination we stopped at a track and had lunch. It took us 1 hour and 30 minutes to complete the track. It was a unforgettable experience. I had never sweat so much in my life before. When I finally finished the bush walk we had to walk about 1 kilometre to where the bus was. Finally we see the bus knowing that we have reached civilisation.

When we arrived at our Camp base I was so excited to see that they had a Volleyball sand pit,  Basketball court, 60metre water slide, 70metre flying fox and lots of other cool fun activities. As soon as we were settled into our cabins we had a tour with a man named Michael (the manager of the camp). It was getting dark so we had dinner. Yummy potatoes, Peas and Corn and Beef. That surely filled my tummy.

Once our food was digested in our stomachs Mr Samuels (a parent helper) thaught that It would be a great time to play a game called spotlight. I found a great hiding spot underneath a truck. My friends came and hid next to me and made it obvious that we were hiding at that spot. Nice one. We then went to bed. Sweet dreams.

I woke up just before the teachers woke us up. Fed, Showered and ready for a fun exciting day everyone headed to their camp groups. I was in Mr Samuels group KawaKawa A. In my group were Martha, Ashlee, Levi, Sonny and Logan. Most of my friends. Our first two activities were the Confidence course and Archery. For the confidence course we basically climbed on the balancing board and played tag or tiggy. While Archery was a different story. Everyone got a chance to use the bow and arrow to aim at a target. When it was my turn Mr Samuels made a bet with me. Our bet was that if I hit the bullseye then Mr Samuels would have to do twenty push ups. As I was trying to focus at the target Levi and Mr Samuels were trying to put me off. They were saying things in my head oh it was just annoying but funny. You would had never guessed I hit the bullseye. Mr Samuels did twenty press ups. It was so funny.

My group also had a chance to go for a kayak. Knowing the safety rules and what to do if you fall out of the kayak we headed into the water. For the first 10 minutes or so we kayaked in circles just to get the hang of it. Unexpectedly the wind blew me and my kayak tipped over. So I basically fell out of my kayak and ended up in the water. I was a little bit scared because Logan said that there were Eels in the water. I was in shock. I hopped back on the kayak and thought I would be brave and go out further with Mrs Samuels. The kayak experience was accelerating. When we got back to the camp everyone was on the 70m water slide. I thought I might give it a go. Standing In line for about 5 minutes it’s finally my turn. Soaring through the air I landed on my stomach. As I zoomed down the slide all of my friends were cheering me on. At the end I laughed!

The next day we went to a place called “Surf Ed”. Everyone was so excited to hear that they were going to go surf but actually Surf Ed is not for surfing. It is lifeguard safety and what lifeguards do. First they introduced themselves NIck and Chris. Our group got split up into boys and girls. We had a tour around the surf ed place. It was so cool. Finally the moment has come. We got to swim in the water. We did activities in the water. The water was really cold as soon as we got out I had about 100 goosebumps. We said our thank yous and were on our way back to camp. As soon as I got back I raced others to the Bathrooms so I could have a nice hot shower.

My shower was so relaxing so after that we had dinner. “Whats on the menu” I asked Selwyn the chef. He replied with a grumble “Casserole”. My reactions to the word casserole were big. My mouth went up into a smile and I felt so happy. I love Casserole! In a few seconds my plate was empty. I demolished it all.

After that delightful feed we all collected our blankets and pillows and settled in a big room to watch a movie. With the boys on one side and the girls on the other we settled in for the movie “Here comes the BOOM!”. In the first half an hour I watched the movie then I fell asleep I was so tired. I woke up just as the movie finished. We then went to our cabins knowing that this would be the last night sleep.

I heard lots of snoring in the room I couldn’t get to sleep. Bright and early I had a shower and packed my bags ready for a day at the Waiwera Hot Pools. We cleaned the hall, the kitchen and the toilets. Once Marsden Bay Camp was nice and tidy we said “Thankyou” to our wonderful chef Selwyn.

We loaded the bus and were on our way to Waiwera. When we arrived there we were all excited. As quick as I could I got changed in to my swimwear. Me and Htawara raced to the water slide and there was no line. As we were nearly going down the slide we counted down 3, 2, 1 and we let go. Zooming down the slide I screamed. After hours and hours of fun at Waiwera we eventually had to leave.

On the bus it was really loud I just wanted to go to sleep. Finally we arrived at school. Seeing my mum was so excited. I missed her. Camp was an unforgettable experience that I would never forget!