Year 10 Outdoor Education Whenua Trip

Whenua Reflection

For Outdoor Education, we went on an educational hike through Hunua, completing the Massey-Cossey Track. The hike took us around three hours to complete, including the stops we made along the way for navigational activities. During the hike, we worked in pairs and took turns leading the group. Before each section, the pair leading had to navigate and give a brief description of the part of the track we were about to face. This helped us develop our navigation, communication and leadership skills. We had perfect weather on the day, which made the experience even more enjoyable, and we were able to take in the beautiful views throughout the walk. - Neeve Wharfe

On Tuesday the 25 of August 2026 term 3, Me and my class went on the Whenua Trip to Hunua Ranges. It was a very enjoyable hike/tramp up and around mountain 308, everyone was required to get a map and read out what our current coordinates were, and what coordinates we were going to, how long it would take, how many contour lines we would cross and tell how much time it would take to get to that specific point. Me and my partner Daniel Scott were up last, we were both very excited for our turn to arrive. Once it had, it took a bit of time to find our coordinates, but we did and It was thrilling. Being able to lead the way for the rest of the class and make sure we were all safe from the front. It was a first for me and definitely one that would last for a long time. I am very happy that I was able to join this trip. - Zinzan Johnston

Last week we went on the ‘Whenua trip’ to Hunua Falls as a part of our year 10 Outdoor Education assessment. During the trip, we took turns leading and briefing the group, which involved giving grid references, keeping track of time and distance, communicating with the rest of the group through radio and explaining any obstacles or features we came across. Being the leader meant we had to pay attention to where we were going and communicate clearly with the rest of the group. It was challenging at times, especially when we had to make decisions quickly, but it helped us become more confident with navigation and leadership. Overall, the trip was a good opportunity to put the skills we had learnt into practice while exploring Hunua Falls. - Sophie Wynne

Last week on Tuesday, our Outdoor Education class went on a field trip to Hunua Falls. We were just about to start the walk when it started raining, luckily the rain didn’t last long and the rest of the day was calm and clear. We started by splitting up into pairs, and each pair had a turn leading the group along the walk. When you were leading, you first had to tell the group where we were going to start, where we were going to end up, and how long it would take us to get there. To do this, we had to read out our starting grid reference and our ending grid reference. To calculate the time, we had to measure the distance we were going to travel and then add two minutes for each contour line we were going to cross. Once we got to our final destination, we had to point out three things that showed we were at the right place. This whole trip taught us communication and navigating skills, along with improving our wellbeing by being outdoors. - Kees Smith