Blog 61: The expedition: my first step to a lifetime of exploration (Part 1)

Regardless of where I am, I am certain that my love for adventure and variety will never diminish.

This is why I joined the Duke of Edinburgh Award, a program designed to help young individuals (like me) develop their skill sets and learn more about themselves and the scope of their abilities. It can also act as a great boost to your college applications.

It has three levels: Bronze, Silver and Gold.

I joined Silver directly. Along with adding logs in the three distinct sections of Physical(hiking), Skills(keyboard) and Volunteering( self-led clean-up campaigns), there is the Adventurous Journey section, where you are supposed to trek all day long and camp in a location for the rest of the day. There are two adventurous journeys we have to do: Practice and Qualifying.

The whole journey is divided into a series of checkpoints, which were distributed between all the three days we spent exploring,

I will divide my DofE expedition mini-blog series into two parts:

• the Practice journey

• the Qualifying journey.

We were 13 in total, of which 3 of us are girls.

Preparation And Training: Practice

When I first heard that going on an expedition is a part of the Award, I was thrilled! It was going to be a dream come true for me, as I had always dreamed of going on a full-fledged expedition, where I would be surrounded by nothing but the wilderness,

Wait! It wasn't just excitement that filled me... there was a tinge of nervousness as well. How was I going to manage for two whole nights camping in an unknown destination without my loved ones by my side? How would I keep up my morale while travelling on foot for a very long time? Questions kept flooding my mind, but I decided to see for myself what it would be like.

We were split into two teams, I was excited about travelling with a group of people I didn't know too well. I know that it sounds surprising, but trust me, there is a bit of thrill in being kind of anonymous.

Great expeditions require tremendous amounts of both physical and mental preparation. In school, we had team meetings during free lessons, where we were briefed on the formalities we had to do (e-consent forms, filling in details in the Preparation log) and given time to discuss details such as meal plans and estimated distances as well as the time of arrival at each checkpoint within our groups.

Simultaneously, I had to arrange a 65L trekking bag, which was supposed to carry all the stuff that would last us for three days. Since I go hiking every weekend, I used my usual hiking boots, as well as a water bladder, which is essentially a plastic bladder-like bag attached to a tube from which we can suck water (kinda like drinking from a straw).

Packing was an interesting process, as I just relied on my instinct when it came to what I wanted to keep in my bag: three fleeces, two sets of trekking clothes, two sets of nightwear, a huge towel, tons of food and other necessities, I was genuinely confused, as I had never ventured on an expedition and I also didn't know anyone who had gone on an actual expedition, I can say that I just dumped a bunch of things into my bag.

In addition, there were trekking poles. I packed four of them! It was a hassle to always make sure they were in place and in proper condition, as well as holding them all when no one needed them.

I had also packed the head torch and tent lights, which proved to be very useful.

Mental preparation wasn't all that difficult, as I did not know what to expect. All I did was remind myself that I needed to keep my mind open for any scenario that came my way.

Physical preparation wasn't too bad either, since I am an experienced hiker. I saw it this way: it's just going to be like a usual hike.. just a few hours longer... and having a heavier backpack... along with a reasonably heavy tent.

By the day before the expedition, thanks to good wishes from my closest friends and relatives, I was ready for any challenge that came my way.

The Practice Journey

I was unable to sleep the night before the big day, but I managed to get up before the sun did.

The car ride to the school felt so long. My heart was pounding with excitement and nervousness.

When I got to school, at last, my restlessness had subsided. We clicked group pictures and hopped on the bus. I bid goodbye to my parents, ready to venture out into the wild.

The beauty of the bus ride was that I could vividly see the transition from the urban sights that I took for granted to the rugged yet beautiful mountainside, which made me reminisce over all the times I had gone hiking. I was keenly observing the different locations, trying to recollect whether I had visited them or not. I happened to notice the place where I began my professional hiking journey around four years back: Mleiha.

When we had finally reached after a pretty long journey, we were briefed on what the days ahead would look like. We were also given necessary supplies such as gas stoves, fuel supply and tents. We girls were supposed to share a tent, so we took turns carrying the tent. We would give the tent to the other person at every checkpoint (a white truck which consists of essentials such as water and first aid supplies). I was the first one to carry the tent, which I didn't revolt against, as the beginning is when we have the most energy. I needed some help from the organiser who was in charge of our group to strap the tent on my bag; she was also of great help during other instances, such as when my shoulder straps were too loose or when my sleeping bag was positioned in a rather uncomfortable manner.

When we started walking, I could feel the weight on my back piercing my shoulders. It was at that moment I realised I made a mistake: I overpacked. Anyway, I was using my hiking poles, so I guess my situation would have been worse if I walked without it.

We saw camels on the way. I was scared that it would trample on me, but it didn't. Besides, it was quite exhilarating to see them up close.

Before I knew it, we reached the first checkpoint. I devoured my energy bars like anything, including a few snacks my other group members gave me.

For the rest of the day, we went through around five checkpoints, explored a lot and tread over a variety of terrains. I also got to climb a mountain during our trek – it felt amazing.

Eventually, we reached the campsite and set up our tents. Ours was the kind in which you had to connect small sticks to form a large pole. I had gone camping a few times before, so I had an idea of how to go about it. I'm not gonna lie, I felt so independent setting up the tent with minimal supervision.

I then had cup noodles for dinner, changed into my loungewear and decided to call it a day... until everyone decided to gather together in a tent and chill out. It was fun, but I still decided to sleep in a little early.

When I went to bed, it was quite warm in the tent and I didn't exactly cover my whole body with my sleeping bag. I didn't expect to wake up in the middle of the night and shiver. I reached a stage where I had to go inside my sleeping bag.

And, just like that, the night had gone by.

Day 2 was, of course, a lot of effort. Our route was actually past the mountains, so it put both our physical and mental abilities to the test.

Towards the end of the day, we set up camp in a completely different location. Just like the previous day, we hung out in the tent and slept super early.

The last day was quite eventful. I had brought a whistle along with a keychain that my uncle gifted me from Meghalaya in Northeastern India. It was actaully a miniature version of the conical baskets that the women in the matrilineal Khasi tribe used. I had kept it safe with me the whole expedition, but it must have fallen from my pocket. I felt really disappointed when I found out it was gone. Along with another group member, I had retraced my steps; alas, we couldn't find it. With a heavy heart, I continued my journey.

The last part of the expedition was filled with singing to lift the spirits, lunch breaks and that victorious feeling of reaching the final destination.

Then, we were given the debrief by the organiser supervising our group.

The bus ride was awfully long, but that meant I could get the mountainous view for longer.

After I reached the school, I snapped back to reality, and realised that life had to go the way it did before the expedition.

Warm regards,

Medha