The morning we left for Killary was dark and gloomy – which we all thought perfectly represented our moods as Ms. Quirke gathered our precious phones. Little did we know however, that having our phones taken off us would be the least of our problems as we took our first steps onto the mucky Connemara terrain for our 30 km hike as part of the adventure section of the Gaisce Award.

As we trudged through rocks and moss, knee high in mud – the only things that kept us going were our lively songs and chocolate chip cookies. With only a few bumps, trips and falls we managed to make it back safely to the centre.

In spite of the debilitating 30 km hike, nothing could prepare us for awaited us the next day: ‘The Turf Challenge’. With high spirits and great energy, we managed to complete this challenge. Sleep deprived, bruised and dishevelled we boarded the bus looking forward to eating some piping hot soup and having proper showers in the comfort of our own homes.

Overall, we really enjoyed ourselves and managed to bond as a group. Of course, we felt immensely proud of ourselves for completing the adventure.