Isle of Wight Trip 2025

UKSA Chronicles – Day Three: “Archers, Early-Birds & the Kayak Splash-Fest”

Yesterday’s post-supper carb-extravaganza (burger, chips and that unexpectedly brilliant pear cake) powered us into an evening of Recreation Games:

 • Indoor archery – fewer bullseyes, more arrows politely relocating themselves into the wall padding.

 • Traverse wall climbing – a side-to-side shuffle that quickly devolved into “Who can hang on while singing ABBA?”

 • Wide game – equal parts tag, hide-and-seek, and “Help, my legs no longer function.”

As bedtime crept closer, students peeled away like exhausted lemmings. We reached quarters by 19:45, lights-out decreed for 21:00. Between those times we enjoyed:

 • One (genuinely accidental) door-handle casualty.

 • A minor medical blip (think “mild scrape” rather than “A&E cameo”).

 • The blessed arrival of universal fatigue, which tucked everyone up by 20:45.

 

Dawn: The 06:15 “Door-Percussion & Tenor Solo” Alarm

At precisely 06:15 the corridor echoed to rhythmic door-banging bass and one enthusiastic boy providing the vocals. Beats any smartphone ringtone—though not necessarily in a good way.

 

By 07:00 I’d completed the traditional “teacher-knock conga” to ensure consciousness throughout the dorms, only to discover two of our students already in the canteen, queuing like Victorian orphans convinced they’d never see food again.

 

Morning Mission: Operation Kayak Dunk

We split into three kayak platoons. Learning objectives (as understood by the students):

 1. Paddle in a vaguely forward-ish direction.

 2. Re-create Niagara Falls directly over Mr Pitts.

 3. Observe whether Miss Jenkins can swim. (Credit—or blame—to Mr Bliss, whose “accidental nudge” produced a perfect splash-arc worthy of Olympic diving commentary.)

Despite saturation levels reaching “wring-out-your-socks” territory, the session was a blast—literally for those broadsided by surprise paddles.

 

The Great Clothes-Change Speedrun & Ferry Bonus

Motivated by visions of dry hoodies and homeward buses, the kids executed a record-breaking quick-change routine. Result: we strolled onto an earlier ferry, ETA Southampton 13:30 – meaning West Site school gates by roughly 15:45 (traffic gods willing).

 

Current Status

Writing this from the ferry lounge, still drying out and wondering if pear cake counts as one of my five-a-day. Spirits are high, energy is… well, somewhere beneath the puddle on deck—but everyone’s buzzing about retelling today’s “accidental” dips.

Stay tuned for the final instalment: The Return of the Sleep-Deprived Adventurers.

 

— Reporting once more from the high seas of door percussion and limitless enthusiasm