Overseas Expeditions

Overseas Expeditions from Ockbrook School started in 2002 when students from Year 11 and the Sixth Form went to Belize, Central America. This was followed by equally successful expeditions to Uganda (2004), Ecuador (2006) and Botswana and Zambia (2008).

           

Each four week World Challenge expedition precedes an 18 months of preparation and planning by all team members, which involves raising funds to take part as well as researching and planning the itinerary. The expeditions involve several phases including a challenging trek and a conservation or community project. Whilst on the expedition, team members develop their leadership and teamwork skills by taking it in turns to lead the group, as well as rotating other roles, for example taking responsibility for organising the transport, food or accommodation.

In July 2008 sixteen students set off for Botswana and Zambia. The first phase was an acclimatisation trek over the magical Kalahari Desert where the local bushmen shared their skills and knowledge. The main trek was a challenging five days in the Tswapong Hills fighting their way through thorn forest. The trek finished in the project village where the team designed and painted a mural on a Day Care Centre for children and spruced up some toilets for senior citizens. In the Okavango Delta they saw elephant, hippos, giraffe, zebra and warthog and went on small dug out canoes. The last phase included a safari in the Chobe National Park, an incredible river cruise at dusk and a visit to Victoria Falls.