The morning of Saturday 26th February saw a group of students and staff gathering to set off to the airport on the biggest adventure Whinfell has seen in the last 2 years!
We arrived at the hotel in the resort of Borovets, Bulgaria late that night and headed straight to bed ready for the first day of skiing on Sunday morning.
Only one of the young people and three of the staff had skied before so the rest of the group were somewhat apprehensive of what lay ahead. They all listened extremely well through the process of collecting and sizing their boots & ski’s before heading out to the slopes for their first lesson.
As the days went on everyone progressed at their own rate and it was amazing to see all of our young people really gave it their all, some pushing themselves further out of their comfort zone than they believed possible.
There were some real achievements along the way, from mastering the button lifts to venturing to the top of the mountain in a gondola where after a spot of lunch at “Bonkers”, two students skied all the way down!
In the evenings we walked to the local town to spend our Lev on souvenirs and at the pancake/waffle stall which quickly became a regular of most of our young people.
Swimming, spa visits, bowling, pool and card games were all very popular with students before they settled in their rooms ready for the next day of skiing.
It really was a pleasure to see our young people thrive in a completely new environment, one where limits were pushed, both physically and mentally, with everyone finishing the trip with smiles on their faces and stories to tell.