Kithulgala Orientation

Our grade went on a three-day-long CAS/sciences trip to Kitulgala from the 24-26th of November.

Day 1

On the first day of the trip, we went white-water rafting and canyoning. It was my first time ever doing something like this and I was completely unprepared. I didn’t expect white water rafting to be as wet as it was and the shoes I picked also had no grip f

or the canyoning segment. The water was freezing, getting in felt like hopping in an ice bath, and the trek was long and grueling.  Despite this, I was surprised at how much fun it was. I’ve never been fond of heights, the fear of falling and getting hurt has always prevent

ed me from doing things and the segments that involved diving into water really challenged this. We capped the day off with a warm bowl of soup and conversation over the fireplace.

 

Day 2

On the second day of the trip we had work to do for our individual science class. The ESS group visited a nearby dam system and then later went on a hike to look at native wildlife with the rest of the group. Leeches were everywhere. Shreaks echoed throughout the forest.

 

 

 

Day 3

The day started with a quick swim in the freezing river water. After that, we capped the trip off with one final hike as an environmental sciences group. It was around a four hour long hike up one of the mountain trails to a waterfall/ancient temple.

 

 

 

Overall I’m glad I took part in this trip. It really showed me what some of my weaknesses were and forced me into putting myself out there and improving my skills. It was difficult at times but regardless, I perserveered and managed to survive…