Oliver and Robert went to two summer camps and Oliver kept a record of his impressions of the experience. We reveal his thoughts and what kids really think of their summer camp experience.
The two boys, aged 11 and 12, are friends from school (names have been changed to protect identities). Together, they travelled to the Isle of Wight on a multi-activity course and to Snowdonia National Park for an adventure week. Here, Oliver describes their experiences.
3D Summer Camp, Isle of Wight
Outward Bound
Day One
We met our escort at Reading Station. He had a clipboard and green t-shirt with 3D adventure on it and there was a massive crowd. The journey to Little Canada, Wootton Creek was easy. Our chalet is a log cabin, and it's very clean. There are six of us sleeping in two rooms with a loo and bathroom. At the Welcome Meeting, everyone was asked to put their money in the bank for safekeeping - you could take a certain amount out each day. I said I didn't have any money because I can look after it myself.
Day Two
There was a knock at 7.30am and we had half an hour to get ready for breakfast. There was plenty to eat and a good choice. After breakfast we had another half hour of free time. Then we were divided into small groups. Our team leader is called Dot and he's cool. The brochure said we could choose activities, but we couldn't. Instead, they were posted on the notice board. Some activities were really good, like quad biking, but others like beach walk were boring. The instructors for quad biking were funny. One was doing handstands on the bikes and so nobody was listening to what the other one was saying. We had quite a lot of free time today; we went back to our chalet and sat on our beds.
Day Three
By now we know our way around the camp and we are allowed to go wherever we want in free-time. Some people are visiting for their third year running and have met up with friends from previous years. Most people have mobile phones and their mums keep ringing them in the middle of activities. Two brothers went home early because the younger brother said he was being bullied, but he wasn't; he was whipping everyone with his scarf. We played basketball for too long and it got boring. One activity we did, called the Matrix, was amazing, but I can't tell you about it because it's a puzzle house, and if you know what to expect it spoils it. We stayed up late again. The evenings are fun because you can choose to join in activities or stay in your chalet.
Day Four
We walked to the beach, about 10 minutes away, where there are loads of canoes and kayaks. You had to have a second pair of shoes to do water sports, which I had forgotten. I said I was scared of water and the instructor said OK and went on to the next person. I stayed on the beach with others and watched. Rob did kayaking. In the afternoon we played areoball, which was wicked. The girls finished early to get ready for the disco - they all went to the Pink Pamper tent, which was a dorm with hundreds of lipsticks and stuff. The disco was good fun.
Day Five
The best activity today was abseiling. The instructor was good. Nobody was scared and everyone abseiled, although some of the girls took a long time. Rob spent quite a lot of time in the chalet because he didn't want to meet other kids. He had some naps during the day. Everyone had to do at least one evening activity.
Day Six
Dot had to leave to be a contestant on Blind Date. We were meant to go on a survival course that our mums had put us down for, but we wanted to stay with our group. Luckily, our leader said we didn't have to do the survival course if we didn't want to. I got extra money from Mum because I had spent too much on drinks and it was expensive to use the phone to call home. Our group did dragon boat racing. The boats were big, but they were not real dragon boats.
Day Seven
We travelled home with an escort and Rob's dad met us at Reading Station. I would like to go again for three weeks to see if it gets boring.
For more information, contact 3D Adventure
Day One
Our parents put us on the train at Birmingham. The centre is in Aberdovey, Snowdonia National Park, but we missed our station. We got off at the next station and crossed over to the other platform and caught a train back to where we should have been. There was no one to meet us (probably because we were about an hour late) so I legged it up the hill to a phone box and rang mum. Mum rang the centre and they came to pick us up straight away. We made it in time for the start of the course at 5.30pm. Our room was on the ground floor with the other boys. Girls were upstairs. Everyone was nice, except Anna, our dorm leader. Nobody liked her. The one big problem was the plumbing. The toilets were disgusting and we had to use the facilities in another chalet. I took a picture of a big dent in our bedroom door.
Day Two
We were told that some of the grounds were out of bounds because the lawns had been seeded. Rob said this was an outward-bound holiday, not an out of bounds holiday. We played games like 40-40 in the field and then did Jacob's ladder, which was difficult and I didn't manage to complete it. I climbed to the top of a really massive pole and then jumped down, using a trapeze. Rob didn't quite make it. He slipped and fell and got caught in his harness, which hurt. He decided that this week was the week he was scared of heights. The packed lunches were nice. Everyone in the group got to know each other because all of us did the activities together.
Day Three
Our mentor is Mike. He is ex-army and sometimes at night he goes on mountain rescues. I don't think he likes me. Anyway, today we went rock climbing. We walked to the coast where we could climb rocks and abseil with the sea below. It was more difficult than climbing a man-made wall. There were dolphins in the estuary. When we got back we went swimming. The pool was mancky and Rob's Calvin Klein watch, which doesn't fit him, was nicked. His mum will be really cross.
Day Four/Five
My necklace I bought from Legends was nicked from the windowsill by my bed, probably because there are no locks on the dorm doors. Also, a boy with that ADHD thingy was sent home. We thought it was unfair. He was really funny. We went into the hills on a hike. We were carrying everything, including teaspoons, but not tents for camping out. After about three hours we arrived at some cabins where we slept. It was cool. The next day we did orienteering, which I don't like. It was boring. We played games outside. I jumped over some barbed wire and got a massive cut on my leg.
Day Six
Mike had to leave to do something for the army. We were meant to go pier jumping but, because we took too long to get ready, there wasn't enough time. We went on a coastal walk instead, watched the dolphins and then built a raft and sailed on it. It was boring because the team leader gave us all the ideas and we got the barrels and ropes for building it out of a beach hut. When we got back, we sat on our bench. The centre was in a very, very beautiful place. My favourite thing from the holiday was sitting with our group watching the tide come in and out.
Day Seven
After breakfast the course finished. We were dropped off at the station to catch the train to Birmingham. Rob's mum collected us. She wanted to know why Rob was black and blue. We kept quiet about the watch.
For more information, contact Outward Bound Trust