Camp Journal

    Conyers School have arrived!

    17th June 2018

    Conyers woke up to a beautiful morning for their first full day in Switzerland. They set off for a four hour hike in the alps reaching camping in the late afternoon. At camping the hardier campers headed off for a further hike up to the French border, crossing into France while the others relaxed and played games in the camping lodge. Dinner was barbecue followed by Conyers talent show which saw CJ winning the title of talent show king with his incredible dancing skills. Afterwards campers played a game of werewolf followed by a spooky story told by activity leader Steve. Overall a great first day at Camp Suisse!

    Sophie, Group Leader

    Bienvenue à Camp Suisse, Conyers School!

    Things have started to get increasingly busy here in Torgon. Yesterday morning saw the departure of Port Regis School, and the arrival of Conyers and Culford Schools. Conyers MFL department have a particularly vibrant Twitter feed, which we think gives a great taster of their first 24 hours at Camp:

     

    LCIS Climb to New Heights!

    9th June 2018

    For La Cote International School’s final day, the Camp Suisse staff had a variety of activities planned. Despite the early start, the Year 4’s were in high spirits and ready to tackle our climbing wall. After a few games on the wall such as well such as “Shark Attack”, our intrepid young climbers donned harnesses and and chose the routes they wished to climb. Special mention should go to Jenna, Nico, Henry and Amia for completing some of the hardest sections our wall has to offer.

    With our session in the climbing wall successfully completed, it was soon time for our staff to say a fond farewell to the students from La Cote until next year!

    Anthony, Activities Leader

    LCIS find Mouflon!

    8th June 2018

    La Cote’s Year 4 had the great challenge of trying to find Mouflon in the upper reaches of the peaks of Torgon today with the help of Cyril, a local guide and expert Mouflon hunter. We began at the Plan de Croix area where we headed up through the fields of cows binoculars in hand. From there we headed through woodland and pasture up the mountain, stopping occasionally to be informed about the nature in this part of the world and how it has adapted to grow in the diverse environment. Just before reaching prime the Mouflon viewing location we stopped to make some observational drawings of wild flowers and try and come up with some inventive names for them. Within 4b there seemed to be a more pessimistic take on the local flora, with most plants being the bringers of DOOM for some reason, a personal highlight  being Nicky re-naming grass, ‘The Spikey Green Plant of DOOM!’. A short way higher Cyril set up his 20x magnifying telescope to be able to see in detail the Mouflon that could be seen meandering around the remaining snow from winter. Above these groups of females that could be seen by eye lower down Cyril managed to spot a horned male in the higher slopes which was by far the best part of everyone’s day.

    Toby, Activities Leader

    LCIS go Camping!

    7th June 2018

    After welcome drinks, a tour of camp, and a big lunch, Year 5 set off to hike to camping. On our way we passed fields of cows, made daisy chains and practiced campfire songs. Year 5 were absolutely awesome and everyone made the three hour hike look like a piece of cake. Only stopping once for afternoon tea and a water refill, we made it to the refuge on time at around 4pm, where everyone set up their beds and enjoyed the games room in free time. Before dinner, we competed in teams to build the tallest paper structure that would hold an egg, which everyone found lots of fun. Dinner was BBQ – hamburgers, sausages and roast potatoes with salad – which was so yum that most kids went back for seconds! The fun didn’t stop there as after things had been cleared away, we set off just up the hill to visit France! It was really cool being between two countries and the view was beautiful! We all came back down the hill for a campfire, a few songs and most importantly marshmallows before bed. Everyone slept well that night and the next morning, after a hearty breakfast of beans on toast, we trekked back down to camp just in time for lunch.

    Beth, Activities Leader

    La Côte International School have arrived!

    This morning camp Suisse staff greeted the excited year 4 group as the bus arrived.
    After some refreshments and the grand tour of Camp Suisse, the rooms were allocated and the group settled, whilst being informed of the day’s plan.
    The group enjoyed some lunch and then packed their bags ready for an afternoon of mountain biking in the alps. The children took part in various mountain biking games, routes and then began the descent down the mountain in small groups, introducing some new routes through the forests. Once returned to camp and showered, disco preparation began – the girls put on their nice dresses and the boys gelled up their hair. Year 4 enjoyed their evening meal, cookies and ice cream and then danced all night to a DJ, disco ball and glow in the dark balloons!

    Alicia

    Activities Leader

    Not Thursday already?

    31st May 2018

    Mountain Adventure Day saw the campers leave the bounds of the Camp with our instructors and take on the great outdoors! This was with their chosen charity in mind, Crisis Classroom, who teach refugees necessary skills to survive in harsh living conditions.

    We learned about first aid, water filtration with natural cleansers and using Trangia stoves to purify it. We also lit camp fires and learned how to navigate with a compass in limited visibility, before sitting down in our own makeshift camp and deciding what advice we would offer to a refugee in order to survive.

    A great day had by all – even before the start of the infamous Camp Suisse final night diiiisco!

    What a Wednesday!

    30th May 2018

    6A and 6D were up with the sun rise for a day filled with adventure at Glacier 3000. A chilly but beautiful gondola up to the glacier where the children were met by 13 excitable dogs. Plenty of snow balls were thrown and snow towers were made while we watched each group fly around the sled course.

    We headed back for a well-deserved lunch break and views across the Glacier 3000 viewing bridge – where plenty of fears of heights were conquered!! A truly fantastic morning. We were even lucky enough to share the gondala down with the very cute husky dogs!

    The afternoon was split between the roman ruins and the St Bernard museum. More impressive dogs for the kids to say hello to and lots of information around the museum. Rosie gave a fascinating tour of the roman ruins and there was even a real life (brilliantly acted) fight between two Romans in the old ampetheatre.

    Heading back to camp for an evening in the forest of BBQ and games, the kids were all super excited from the unforgettable day they had had.

    6B and 6C had an equally action-packed day! They learned how to mountain bike with our instructors, tackling the trails and rocky routes that encompass our mountain bike challenge area, and even took on some jumps!

    They also took part in an active sports session. We discussed the importance of hand-eye coordination, then put it to the test with some challenging juggling games with rugby balls, and practised switching between running and throwing tennis balls before a mega game of Capture the Flag! Some impressive agility and excellent teamwork was seen all round.

    Mountain biking and more…

    A fun filled day in camp for classes 6A and 6D. With the weather taking a turn for the cloudy, 6D took to the sports hall for a competitive morning of 1 wicket cricket, cone ball and, the newly named ultraball. Meanwhile 6A conquered their heights in the climbing wall with many of the kids racking up high scores on Emma’s newly installed climbing challenge. In the afternoon the groups swapped and with the sun out 6D headed up the mountain for an afternoon of cycling games and down hill mountain biking. 6A showed their competitive side in camp spending the afternoon learning how to juggle and playing their own ultraball tournament. After a busy day of fun and games 6A and D settled in for some camp fire songs or a film in the sofa room to round off a great day in camp. Bring on tomorrow!

    Tuesday at Camp Suisse….

    29th May 2018

    Yesterday was jam packed full of action. An early start at Camp Suisse meant that 6B and 6C were well on their way off the mountain before the rest of the camp were even awake!

    We arrived at Glacier 3000 just before 9am and headed up the lifts to meet the huskies. Our campers braved the bitter wind and difficult walking conditions up on the Glacier while we watched each other get towed along on the sled before heading back for lunch. The restaurant kindly freed up some of their tables for us to sit at instead of freezing outside, so thank you to them!

    After lunch we went to Martigny to learn all about St Bernard and his wonderful dogs. Native to the region, St Bernard used this breed to rescue explorers in peril on the mountain, who have been adored worldwide ever since. We even got to meet some of the dogs that live in the museum!

    The Romans colonised Martigny by coming over the same pass that St Bernard would operate on. We saw the ruins of the buildings they constructed and then saw a real life gladiator David and Goliath fight in the Ampitheatre!

    LGB are here!!!!

    28th May 2018

    At 10am Classes 6A and 6D set off from school bound for the Cailler Chocolate Factory at Broc.

    The excitment on the bus for the week ahead was palpable and we hadn’t even had any chocolate yet!!

    At the factory the students were broken up into smaller groups for the tour. Even though we couldn’t wait for the chocolate tasting as the grand finale, learning about the history of chocolate making in the famous region and the families behind the industry was well worth the trip alone.

    After the Cailler visit we had lunch in the beautiful surrounds of Gruyere and then it was back on the bus bound for Camp Suisse in Torgon.

    Upon arrival 6A and 6D were greeted by more of the Camp Suisse team for an orientation of the camp and a few ground rules for the week.

    Possibly even more anticpated than the chocolate tasting was the all important allocation of rooms. This is definitnely the most exciting part of the trip!

    With lots of time spent on buses today, the after dinner activity is games on football pitch… the perfect way to burn off some of that excess energy.

    Tomorrow Classes 6A and 6D are staying in Torgon for mountain biking and sports coaching and we can’t wait!

    **********************************************************************

    Classes 6B and 6C arrived at Camp Suisse in time for lunch. After being met by the Camp Suisse team and given a quick orientation of the camp it was time to get our teeth into some activities.

    6C headed to the archery range with Rosie and Drew to test their Robin Hood (or Katniss Everdeen depending on your age) skills whilst 6B lept onto the climbing wall with Steve and Emma.

    Delivering great fun, lively and interactive sessions is our main aim here at Camp Suisse and with the energy levels and raw enthusiasm that 6B and 6C showed this afternoon, the archery and climbing sessions were absolutely brilliant!

    With the excitment of the rooming allocation now behind us we foucs our attention to tonight’s evening activity which is a camp fire and songs in the forest! Good old fashioned camp fun!

    Tomorrow morning is an early start as 6B & 6C head to Glacier 3000 for the husky dog sledding and Martigny for Rosie’s <<now world famous tour>> of the Roman ruin sites!

    The weather forecast is looking better and better for the week ahead so stay tuned for more adventures!

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