On Tuesday 9th June, the Gardening Club and the 50 Things to do before you turn 15 Club went up to Epping Forest. We were very lucky that the weather stayed bright with a few showers sprinkled in.
The students were led the way on a 2 hour walk, followed by lunch and games. The students were brilliant and very excited and happy to be jumping, hopping and skipping through the forest- there was a fair bit of searching for the BEST stick to aid them in their journey.
Some of the students used their iNature app to identify unknown plants, and I was introduced to the Merlin app to help identify birds from their song.
After lunch, we headed to the Queen Elizabeth Hunting lodge, where we were really fortunate to have a guided tour with the entire place to ourselves- that felt like a real treat and the history of both the building and the site kept us all captivated with the place. Who can also deny the fun of dressing up?
The journey home was predictably a little quieter than the journey out! Followed by spot of scones making in the school kitchen just to fill in any gaps.
All in all, our trip was a success, the club were able to enjoy some forest bathing, and hopefully really connect with our local forest and all that it offers.