I recently participated in SEDA’s three-day beach camp, and it was incredible. This was a great way to bring all the classes together to build connections and friendships, as well as learn as a collective unit. Located in the stunning seaside region of Victor Harbour with abundance of sunshine, warm water, and towering waves, we were in the ideal location for surfing served as the camp’s location. The camp’s also brought in Surfing teachers, who were expert surfers with years of experience, gave outstanding direction and teaching.

 

The surf camp kicked off with a lesson on the fundamentals of surfing, including safety precautions, board control, and balancing exercises. Before getting on the water, the instructors made sure that every participant grasped the fundamentals by being very detailed and patient in their lectures.

 

Following the introductory teaching, we began our in-water surfing classes. Each participant received individualised instruction from the experts, who assisted them in catching waves and honing their surfing skills.

 

We spent more time in the ocean and were able to catch more waves as the days went on. The teachers helped us advance and develop our surfing abilities by providing outstanding feedback and adjusting their lessons to each student’s ability level.

The camp’s entertaining activities, which also included beach cricket and spike ball, came on the beach in addition to the surfing instruction. The chance to unwind and form bonds with other participants during these activities made the whole trip even more delightful.

 

After surfing and playing on the beach we went back to the camp to get better set up in our tents or dorms. The camp location provided a beautiful food hall, multiple dorms with bunk beds and tents located in ideal locations, providing an amazing view over the trees through Victor Harbours valleys straight down to the water. The camp also had areas for the students to kick a football or soccer ball, as well as beach volleyball and basketball courts.

 

Lunch, Dinner, and Breakfast were all provided by the camp. Amazing sandwiches and fruits for lunch, cereal yogurt, and toast for breakfast, and either lasagne or a spicy rice dish for dinner. The real highlight, however, was desert. Two chocolate and sugar coated churros with a bowl of mousse, which multiple students described as their favourite meal through camp.

 

After eating, students had free time to do whatever they wanted. I personally enjoyed playing volleyball, as teams consisted of players from all different classes and created a genuinely fun way to get to know my peers. After running around and tiring ourselves out, students went back to their sleeping areas and fell asleep quickly after a day of exhausting themselves with friends.

 

I had a great and memorable experience competing in the school’s amazing race, the main challenge of the second day. The race consisted of a variety of physical and mental obstacles that put our ability to work together as a team, solve problems, and communicate to the test.

There were three-person teams throughout the competition. The first challenge, which entailed running to granite island, was revealed to the teams. The race was difficult but enjoyable, and collaboration and communication were essential for completing it.

 

The teams had to complete a series of puzzles and mental exercises along the racing course. These assignments included everything from item finding to puzzle solving. These puzzles included a blind taste test where the students had to guess what they were eating without seeing it, or having to do a scavenger hunt to find ‘SEDA Tokens’, which were different coloured circles with the SEDA logo on them. After the race the students made their way back to camp, taking in the view around them.

 

After the students were back to camp, it was free time again. Most students went to watch the basketball scratch match, where the players were throwing down some ferocious dunks. The match was ended after the first team scored 21 points, but due to some amazing defensive efforts by both teams, this match took close to half an hour. Students were then called over for dinner and an announcement from Dana regarding pack up, as we were leaving camp the next afternoon. This announcement got quickly side-tracked however, as Dana started a camp karaoke of the song Wonderwall by Oasis – a true camp classic.

 

After the announcement and dinner, students went back to playing basketball or footy, while the rest cleaned up and got prepared for the next day. Eventually all the students went to bed and had small conversations with their bunkmates until they fell asleep, well prepared for the final day of camp.

 

Students got up early to shower and have breakfast, wanting to make the most of their last day. The students of the soccer class connected a computer to the tv and put on the soccer match of the day – a thrilling matchup between Liverpool and Manchester United. After everyone had eaten and packed their stuff away, we walked back down to the beach for a day of life lessons and a walk around granite island.

 

Across the long bridge from the Harbour, there is a lovely and picturesque walking path called the Granite Island trek. The hike along the easy to moderate track offers breathtaking views of the ocean and granite cliff formations. The path leads to Granite Island after leaving the Victor Harbor Visitor Center and going across a causeway. Beautiful ocean vistas can be seen from the causeway, and the promenade itself is an excellent place to see marine animals like seals and dolphins. You can see the stunning granite rocks that give the island its name as you get closer to it. These rock formations are traversed by the walking path, and the rocks provide an eye-catching and distinctive scenery. The chance to view Little Penguins, which are unique to the island, is one of the walk’s attractions. One class had the good fortune to see several waddling their way along the shore, which everyone agreed to be the definitive highlight of the day.

After our short hike, we went to a park to learn life lessons from our teachers. These lessons ranged from investing and finance to meditation. My favourite lesson however, was the power of music, where each student pick a song that brings them positive feelings and put it in a SEDA playlist to listen to on the bus ride back and during lunch.

 

After these lessons the students took one last walk to Encounter Lakes, where the busses pick up the students and took them back to their designated drop off zones. After such an exciting and jam-packed few days of activities students were more then happy to make the trip back to Adelaide in a bus, especially after all their walking and running during camp. Some napped in the bus, some listened to music and relaxed, and others talked to one another excitedly, but everyone was happy to get home and sleep in their own beds.

 

Thanks to all the teachers and staff for setting up and running such an amazing camp. Furthermore I would like to thank the surfing instructors and camp staff for providing the activities they could and allowing the week run so smoothly. We all look forward to the next interclass event where we can meet up with our new friends and continue to build these key connections throughout the school.

 

Written by Alex Foster