A group of Year 12 pupils embarked on their Gold DofE practice expedition to the Lake District this half-term.

The practice expedition was a four-day adventure, where pupils walk a planned route consisting of four days of eight hour planned activity and three nights camping in tents.

The weather and erosion on the landscape made day one particularly hard going, but all groups made it safely to their first campsite.

Day two was a lovely trek up Cat Bells, with the sunshine making the steep walk up to the summit and onto Maiden Moor slightly more pleasurable than in previous years.

Hive Tove on day three did not disappoint, with the RAF carrying out some low level flying in the valleys and putting on quite a show to distract the pupils from the boggy marshland under foot and their soaking feet. The final stretch took the group up and over the Old Coach Road to the finish point.

All groups achieved their aim and passed the practice expedition. Pupils are now ready for their qualifying expeditions, some will attend the Easter trip to Wales and others are set to head to the Indian Himalayas for a greater challenge this summer.