Between 14th and 16th June, a group of seven pupils from 2°EM (three boys and four girls) took part in their DofE Silver Practice Journey in Yerba Loca, accompanied by a guide from Latitud 90 and Mr Richard Quezada.
Despite very cold weather conditions throughout the expedition, the experience was a great success, with the group achieving the objectives set for the journey while demonstrating strong teamwork, resilience and thoughtful decision-making. Their enthusiasm and enjoyment of outdoor activities stood out and contributed to creating a very positive atmosphere throughout the expedition.
As part of the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award (DofE), the Practice Journey is an essential stage in preparing pupils for their qualifying Adventurous Journey later in the year. More than simply completing a route, it is an opportunity for pupils to apply expedition skills in a real environment, strengthen their ability to work as a team, manage challenges, and take increasing ownership of decisions and responsibilities. Experiences like these are at the heart of DofE, encouraging personal growth, confidence and leadership beyond the classroom.
This journey also allowed pupils to identify both strengths and areas for improvement from previous experiences while continuing to develop independence and leadership skills. Overall, the group demonstrated that they are progressing strongly within the programme and gained valuable learning to take into their final Adventurous Journey. Throughout the trip, they were recognised for being a highly pleasant group – respectful, empathetic and fully engaged with the experience.
Pupil’s Report (Rosario D. – Duke of Edinburgh’s International Award-Silver)
Our long yet exciting journey began in La Parva, to then put our bags on and head to Refugio Aleman, where we would enjoy a heart warming experience with our team, sharing lunch and snacks. After the mesmerizing view from Refugio Aleman, we headed to our camp site, Villa Paulina. Once settled in, although we were all exhausted from the previous trekking, we made the effort of planning our route card and walking a short trekking where our leader, Mr Richie Quezada, explained to us the challenge that awaited us the next day: walking over 10km to observe a beautiful frozen waterfall. When we came back we made dinner as a group and went to sleep to prepare and rest for the arduous trekking the next day, listening to the river right next to our tents.
At 4.30 AM we were all out of our tents, sleepy and freezing, but we managed to get up and make a delicious, warm breakfast to be ready for the expedition. We packed some snacks and water and finally took off at about 5:30, with all the stars still displayed in the sky and a clear objective in mind.
It was not easy, we were cold, sore and it was dark, but we all had the same goal and together we did not give up. A teammate got sick at the beginning of our journey, but he kept going and we all supported him, as we are a team, but sadly, despite his efforts he could not keep going. With a missing teammate, we kept going uphill through a rocky path and surrounded by imposing yet majestic mountains. Mr Richie kept telling us to never give up and to have a positive attitude, emphasizing how lucky we were to be able to move our bodies and reach our goals. After a tough final push we finally made it, there was snow everywhere and we were extremely proud of ourselves. After 10 long hours of hiking we made it back to camp, with full hearts and unforgettable memories. We had the amazing opportunity to watch multiple culpeo foxes, which was a fascinating experience. We also learned a lot about animal traces, which was part of our objective, and practiced our skills in map orientation.
On our final day, we did another hike, full of mountains and next to the river the whole time. We explored the valley and played in the river, full of curiosity. Following our little adventure, we came back to the camp, had lunch and prepared everything to leave.
We got home with a fulfilling sensation of accomplishment, as we got to learn so many incredible things about yerba loca and its history, but also because we learned how to work in teams and never leave anyone behind. We also learned how to be resilient and to never give up, with Mr Richie always pushing us to be a better version of ourselves. Finally, we also had an unbelievable time with our friends and laughed so much our stomachs hurt, and the final lesson we kept from this journey is that, alone we go faster but together we go further.
