Rocky Mountain Cadet Exchange 2012
Over the summer holidays, I was lucky enough to be chosen to go on a 6 week leadership and challenge course in the Rocky Mountains. Only 12 cadets from the UK are chosen and we would be joining around 170 of Canada’s top cadets on the course.
After arrival, we were split into platoons, and told what ‘cycles’ we would be doing. The six weeks were split into six cycles which lasted one week each, and so each cycle we did a different adventurous training activity. These involved rock climbing, glacier mountaineering, mountain biking, canoeing and kayaking, alpine trekking and horseback riding and first aid. While doing these activities, we took it in turns to practise our leadership and following skills.
The opportunities were truly unique and once in a lifetime. Having gone to Canada with little to no experience in many of the training activities, I can safely say I have come out of Canada having greatly improved myself not only in these areas but also, as a leader and a person.
The highlights of the camp are many but some favourites were doing 40 press-ups at 10,200ft on top of Mt Olive (to check the adverse effects of altitude), canoeing down a fearsome rapid called Spatula, putting my foot in a crevasse, doing a 90m multi pitch rock climb, mountain biking up a 200m mountain, swimming down a glacier water rapid which was very, very cold, the first time I trotted on my horse, Yukon and laughing with a couple of friends while being somewhere spectacularly stunning (this was nearly always).
Unfortunately, I will never be able to look at maple syrup the same way again. For the first four weeks I must have had about six litres of it and I ate it with scrambled eggs and hash browns (every day!!!).
While in Canada I was also lucky enough to have some close encounters with some bears, the black and grizzlies; waking up in the morning and having a grizzly patrolling for food 20 metres away from my tent was very exhilarating… I also saw a moose and her calf as well as many deer and chipmunks.
Apart from offering the opportunity to do some of the best adventurous training you can find, the course is an awesome opportunity to make friends, I came out of Canada having met many Canadians and having learnt a lot about different cultures. I have also made many close friends who I hope to stay in touch with far into the future.
I realize how lucky I was to do Rocky Mountain and it is an experience I shall cherish forever.
I would like to thank Lt Col Rothwell for making this trip possible and I would also like to encourage people to join the cadets so that maybe one day they can enjoy an experience like mine because it has truly changed my life.
Kyran Young