27th April 2026 - Duke Of Edinburgh Award Expedition 1
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Once agin, I was out supervising teenagers completing their Duke of 
Edinburgh award expeditions. This time it was the Bronze level 
qualifier and Silver level practise. We were wandering around 
Cannock Chase, a lovely area in the West Midlands of England. It is 
a sort of moorland with lots of forest, low hills and walking paths. 

I was driving the same rubbish minibus as last year while supervising
a silver team as well as a bronze team. The minibus behaved and 
other than the whole having to rev it rather high to get shifitng, I
almost enjoyed it. The teams did really well and I did not have to 
chase them too much. There was a noticable difference between their 
navigation performance on the Saturday and Sunday. I also did not 
have to change kit around to help those struggling or ensure the kit 
did not all end up with one other. I also did not have to get anyone 
up or hurry them along to leave site on the Sunday. A first! The 
bronze team were 4 girls and they did so well. Always cheerful and 
seemingly having fun. They walked at a great pace and I had to 
encourage them to take more breaks and do project work. The Duke of 
Edinburgh award expedition rules are based on time out rather than 
distance. For Bronze, this is 6 hours and 7 hours for Silver. This 
lot were Vlogging their expedition. The silver were a team of 5 boys 
and a girl. I remain unsure of their project. However, as it is a 
practise, I do not have to care. I did manage to surprise this lot 
as they had lunch on the Sunday. They had not moved much and I wanted
to walk instead of sitting and waiting. When I came across them, they
were sitting below a large tree in an open area. Half of the team 
were climbing the tree while the rest were cooking lunch. It is always
nice to see some tree climbing.

One advantage of doing this year after year is seeing how some teams 
improve. Last year, I supervised a Bronze team who were a mixed group.
They were on the young end and you could tell. They took a long time 
to do anything. We expect teams to leave at 8 on the Sunday to keep to
planned timescales with a little margin. Well, this lot left at 0930 
after a lot of encouragement and then they kept getting lost. They 
also managed to take 4 hours to go a kilometer or 2. Turns out, they 
were exploring a tunnel, collecting rocks and jumping over streams. A
fun time but not when we need to get home. Well, this team were back 
for their Silver. Yet, they managed to arrive at the end points each 
day in a good time. There were some interesting navigational choices 
and a need to call them to ask if they realised where they were going.
However, this is normal and it did not feel excessive. They were also 
ready to leave site before 8 on the Sunday! It is great to see how 
some teams learn and improve as they progress. 

It was a fun weekend and the weather delightful. Sunny with 20 degrees
Celsius in the day and 5 degrees Celsius at night. It was a little 
chilly at night but nothing surprising for April. Over the weekend, my
sister in law's family were sending pictures of a snow dusting in 
central Finland. April can be a bit of a mad month in northern Europe.
I am looking forward to the next expedition in July. We are in the 
peak district again.