The Adventure Begins

We met at Central Station and took the train to Ardrossan where we boarded the ferry. After spending time wandering about on deck we were greeted by the wonderful views of Arran and a porpoise (we think).

 

The Ferry Haiku

We took the ferry

'Twas a very good ferry

We saw a porpoise

We weren't abandoned by the bus driver, and after a short drive we arrived at Shore Lodge. At first we were surprised because we saw a small shed and thought that was where we were staying. As it turns out, the lodge was actually rather impressive and very nice, we found our rooms and settled in quickly.

The Lodge Haiku

Such a welcome sight

We're really glad that we're here

It's not just a shed

After chatting in the lounge, we brought out the cards while our enthusiastic chefs prepared dinner and had a riveting game of cheat, followed by some excellent charades.

The Cheat Haiku

 The tense game commenced

Alex picked up all the cards

Much banter was had

After much hard work, the dinner was prepared and we all sat down to eat a delicious meal of spaghetti bolognese followed by apple strudel. It's been a great day and we can't wait for tomorrow's activities.

Fin

(for today...)


 Anon

Exploring Brodick Country Park.

Hi- Lucy (Adventure Expeditions instructor)  here.  Yesterday the first 2015 Adventure Expeds Arran team enjoyed their final day of the residential.  They have worked incredibly hard during the week, so we eased off the pace, took a stroll around Brodick Castle country park, indulged in some tree hugging, explored the nature centre, squirrel cam, and of course the adventure playground (some big kids in the team!).

In the afternoon, it was time to say farewell. Sad times, but it has been a brilliant week, shared with motivated and friendly young people, who have all achieved their John Muir Discovery Award.  Thanks for all your hard work and of course #banter!

Banter on the Beach

Hi everyone,

Last night we enjoyed a delicious Thai chicken curry cooked by Pippa, Lazza and Hannah. It was so good that one member of the team felt the need to drink a cup full of the sauce to the amazement of some and the disgust of others! Later in the evening we enjoyed a quiz written by Rahul with intellectual questions followed by dancing and singing competitions. It certainly brought out the competitiveness of the group and the #banter was in full flow.

The morning started like every other, preparing our lunches and belongings for the day. Before we set off to Kildonan for the beach clean, we had a briefing with Lucy and Rick about dangers we could encounter, such as sharp objects, flares and needles. Fully prepared we then caught a bus to Kildonan. During the journey there was a fierce debate about the existence of ligers in the wild. The debate was coincidentally resolved a short while later, by a fact written on the front of someone's cereal bar!

At the beach we met Andy from the organisation COAST (Community of Arran Seabed Trust) and he explained to us the potential dangers to wildlife from rubbish on the beach. Armed with litter-pickers and gloves we set off along the beach. As well as the usual items such as bottles, rope and shards of glass, stranger items were also found such as a foam finger, vodka bottles and a playmobile figure. One group also came across a dead seal, whilst another picked up over 100 cotton buds. Cotton buds are a particular problem as many people flush them down the toilet, not realising that the plastic part can cause serious harm to sealife.

During the clean we also had a chance to see seals and otters up close. The team did a great job collecting 5 full bags of rubbish, as well as larger items such as a tyre, an oil container and a fish basket.

We walked to Kildonan hotel where some of the group enjoyed an ice-cream whilst we waited for the bus. James was delighted by the fact that on the route we passed some swings (see picture below). We got a bus back to Brodick, but unfortunately watched our connecting bus drive off without us, meaning we had to walk back to the lodge. However it did allow for a quick stop at the Co-Op to stock up on essential snack items.

A little later on tonight we'll be watching a film about the dangers of rubbish to sealife, as well as discussing plastic pollution to put our beach clean into context.

It's our last night on Arran tonight and it's safe to say the whole group has had a really great time. We'd like to thank Lucy and Rick for an amazing week - we've all learnt lots about conservation and wildlife, contributed back to the island itself, and of course the #banter has been legendary.

Your bloggers today have been Corinne (@corinnespiller), Sarah and Maddie xoxox

Rhodie Bashing Banter

Hey Guys,

Last night Evan, Lewis and Will treated us with a delicious chilli, enjoyed by all except for Lewis. Some minor tampering with chilli powder ended in excessive sweating, tears and for the first time our resident hoover was defeated. After dinner we tuned in for our regular 9 o'clock film with #banter spilled galore.

 

Todays task involved the clearance of the dreaded Rhododenron Ponticum. On our way to the clearance site we walked through the grounds of Brodick Castle, where we had chance to add to our bird record that has been accumalating throughout the residential. We spotted Ravens, Kestrels, Goldfinches and Swallows just to name a few. Alonside bird spotting we debated the moral intent of William Wallace, the origin of the monkey puzzle tree (Araucaria araucana) and quadbikes vs. mules. 

 

On arrival at the clearance site we met up with Jenny, a Ranger working for National Trust For Scotland. She explained the problem of the invasive Rhododendron Ponticum is that it's high density foliage blocks sunlight from reaching the forest floor, thus inhibiting other plants or shrubs from developing. Armed with bow saws and loppers we set out to reclaim the land. With each branch fall came a hey-hey, much to the leaders delight. However it was not all plain sailing today, monsoon-like weather drenched us through morning and afternoon but the sun came out in time to enjoy some marshmellows over the fire.

All in all we had great day, good upper body work out alongside some important local conservation work with a splash of #banter. Your bloggers today have been Simon and James.

Misty Mountains Cold

Hi everybody
In the dead of night, as Lazza surfed the internet, a bat swooped through the open window. Despite reeling from Spurs' defeat to Man Utd, he corralled the poor creature through the fire exit with the aid of a few members of the group. Thus began the morning of the third day on Arran.

Following breakfast, we had a few short presentations on aspects of our John Muir Award and stay on the island. Highlights of these events include Rowan's Storytime (Patent Pending) and a National Parks Quiz led by Simon and James. The day began in earnest with the bus to Corrie, the starting point for our day trip up Goatfell, Arran's highest summit at 874 metres above sea level.

The hike began on a narrow, twisting trail through dense forest and undergrowth, surrounded by the commercial logging industry and deer fencing. A few souvenirs were picked up along this first leg, mostly by Lewis' adornment of midge-repelling foliage upon his newly constructed hair bobble. Moving upwards, we passed the tree line and ascended into the mist along a stream, albeit the summit ridge still masked by cloud. Breaking for lunch at a ford, we consumed sandwiches and cereal bars while deftly avoiding a swarm of midges forming in proximity to the water body. Sighting a raven, we revelled in its display of inverted flight before descending to scavenge the crumbs we had left behind.

Moving onwards, the climb became increasingly steep as we prudently stuck to the path (some of us) in order to avoid contributing to erosion scars. Meandering onto the ridge, we reached a crossroads with the path from Brodick prior to embarking upon our final ascent of the Fell. By this point, the fog had enveloped us, soaking our clothes but not our spirits as we marched ever upward to the cloaked peak.

 

Reaching the summit, we partook in a photography session amidst "spectacular scenery" of mist, mist and yet more mist. The wind was strong and unfortunately dismantled Lewis' hair paraphernalia at some instance along the ridge. After a short break, we began our descent, a relatively uneventful procedure apart from a minor injury on the part of one of the mountaineers. Close to our home for the week, we witnessed tomorrows' enemy: Rhododenron Ponticum, an invasive and toxic plant species threatening the integrity of the endemic ecological environment. 

  

The curtain closed on our mountain day with an evening of TV and #banter. 

Tonight's Blogging Buddies: Annabel (@annie0398), Rahul and Rowan (@RowanVita).

xoxoxo

A day in Brodick

The second day began here on Arran at 10:00 with our visit to the beach across the road. We looked at differentiating between a Common Gull and Herring Gull, searching for other wildlife on the beach, stone skimming, playing a beach version of tag while learning about Arran and other interesting things, and finally putting our imaginations to use when sand-scaping! We decided on creating a mermaid, using a member of our team as a body to sculpt around. This ended in a sea-soaked mess!

We then returned to the lodge to have some lunch before embarking on a walking trip to the Brodick Highland Games. We saw caber-tossing, hammer-throwing, Highland dancing, pipe bands, traditional and non-traditional stores such as whiskey & cheese tasting stores, burger & chips stores and many other interesting events. We split into groups to look around and discover this event and eventually met back together to see the large pipe band march around the running track. Needless to say, it was "rad"!

As the day drew to a close, it began to drizzle. On the way back, we played with our winnings (bears and fluffy tigers and such) and continued to have some fun!

Let the epic John Muir journey continue again tomorrow... #banter

Your bloggers for this evening Pippa, Lazza et Hannah xoxo

Our First Encounter

After meeting in Glasgow Central, 14 of us embarked on our Arran adventure. A wonderful ferry ride later across the calm Firth of Clyde we all arrived into a bustling Brodick and headed along the beautiful coastline to our accommodation at Shore Lodge. After a tour of our accommodation we settled down to some icebreakers and team building activities. They worked- #banter is already flowing!

The purpose of our stay on Arran is to complete the John Muir award. This is an award based upon environmental conservation, set around four key strands- Explore, Discover, Conserve and Sharing. We also learnt about Muir's life and his actions relating to the world of conservation. Throughout the week, several skills have been allocated amongst the group. Plaudits must go to the kitchen team of James and Simon who cooked a wonderful dinner which was readily consumed, as you can see below! 

Tomorrow we start the award, exploring the diverse landscape found here on Arran looking for rare Whitebeam Trees only found on Arran. We also plan to visit the Brodick Highland Games in the afternoon and hope to see some fine caber tossing.

We are all settled down for the evening now, watching a film under our duvets! We all look forward to the next week on Arran and hope for some good weather.
-Your blogging team for tonight- Lewis, @willwhitehowe and @evaneurovision.