Thursday 22nd October
9:00 p.m. Once again we've been incredibly lucky with the weather, as all three groups have enjoyed at least some sunshine during the course of the day. And, as ever, everyone has had another fantastic day dotted around the Lake District. The scenery at Coniston Water is amazing in the autumn sun, though the gusty wind made rowing our canoes a bit challenging at times as we had to paddle at full power to avoid going backwards. I can officially reveal that the water in the lake is definitely not heated, though that didn't stop most of the children from jumping in!
The Night-Line this evening was the only activity which was slightly spoiled by the weather, but only because the clear sky and bright moon meant that the woods were not as dark as they would have ideally been. However, it was still a lovely walk and a bit of a challenge for some.
The children are now packing up their wet and grey clothes and parents should be prepared for some heavy use of the washing machine over the next few days. Hopefully we can re-unite most of the clothing with the correct owners.
Just one more morning to go. I think everyone is looking forward to getting home, but would probably like to have another day or two more in this wonderful place.
6:55 a.m. It sounds like it's blowing a gale out there, but we've been incredibly lucky so far and fingers crossed that the wind will die down as it gets light. Otherwise it could be a touch choppy for the canoeists this morning. Talking of being incredibly lucky, last night's Bettle Drive (a high octate fun-fest, if ever there was one) produced one of the most amazing streaks of bad luck I've ever witnessed: just how many times can one person roll a die and NOT get a six? Whatever number you just thought I can pretty much guarantee than I beat it. The consolation being that by losing the entire competition I won a packet of Love Hearts, so it wasn't all bad.
Oh, and by the way, they're all still fast asleep and have had a good night.
Wednesday 21st October
7:00 p.m. How wrong can a weather forecast be? It was more like Here Comes The Sun today as the clouds lifted, broke and then we had another fantatsic sunny afternoon. We're on a rotating programme of activities, so today's activities were much the same as yesterday's but with different groups doing different things. It was the Wheatblogs turn to have a 'mountain day' today, which actually involved going underground rather than summitting peaks. The hardest challenge for many was walking along an old mine tunnel for a couple of hundred metres in the pitch dark. As you can imagine, the photographs of this were rather disappointing! Apart from that we walked for several miles in stunning scenery and managed to learn some fascinating facts along the way. The other two groups have had an equally good time canoeing, scrambling, abseiling and painting their faces with what looks like something found lurking in the depths of somebody's make-up bag (I'm assured it's natural, harmless and washes off easily).
Tea was a fabulously filling cottage pie (and we're still not sure if an actual cottage was harmed in making it), jelly and ice cream. Tonight is action-packed and potentially exhausting. I'd better sign off and get ready for the Beettle Drive! Sweet dreams.
7:00 a.m. The early morning playlist on Radio Humphrey Head consists entirely of 'What a Difference a Day Makes' by Esther Phillips, Bowie's 'Wild is the Wind' and the Eurythmics classic 'Here Comes the Rain Again', It's still dark, so we have no idea why.
Apart from that, we've had another good night and apart from the staff everyone is either asleep or doing a very good impression of being asleep. We'll let you know how the day goes later.
Tuesday 20th October
6:30 p.m. Wow, what a fantastic day! We've had perfect autumn weather, with warm sunshine and a clear blue sky. There are three groups here: the Wheatblogs, Severnistas and Smiffies and between us we have been climbing and abseiling, ghyll scrambling and having a day walk. All three groups have had a fantastic time, facing new challenges, overcoming them and mostly getting incredibly wet. As if that wasn't great in itself we came back to pizza and chips and apple crumble and custard. Good times!
This evening there is to be a mini dorm inspection followed by the traditional Humphrey Head Pub Quiz. The staff have got their fingers crossed for another early and wonderfully quiet night.
7:00 a.m. Seven o'clock and all's well. We've had a good night. No wailing and no gnashing of teeth. In fact, as far as we can tell we still have 32 sleeping children. But as it's breakfast time soon that'll have to change. More later...
Monday 19th October
We're here. Actually we've been here for quite a while but this is the first chance there's been to send out an update. We had a good journey up the A65 and arrived at Humphrey Head nicely in time for lunch. Bed making provided the usual feast of entertainment and photo opportunities as the dormitories were gradually filled with ghost-like figures wandering about covered in sheets.
In the afternoon we saw the unusual sight of the sea in Morecambe Bay, which unfortunately meant that the usual rock scrambling on the headland has had to be postponed. Instead we had a few lessons in bushcraft, and now everyone in Class 4 is able to start a fire with a handful of dried grass and a couple of sticks- you have been warned!
A delicious tea of spaghetti bolognese was followed by an excellent night walk through the woods on the headland, which in turn was followed by a lot of yawning and a host of tired children (and staff) ready for bed. So we did pretty well for Day 1, with lights out soon after 10.
Tomorrow is the first full day of activities, with everyone heading out up mountains, rock faces or ghylls. Should be good.
Sunday 18th October
Yes, it's that time of year again. Time to discover that your fleecy jumpers are too small, your Spongebob Squarepants onesie is maybe a little too embarrassing and the zip on your suitcase doesn't work properly. It's time to pack for Humphrey Head! Last year's Marrick Blog achieved cult status, so we'll try something similar this year. It will be an occasional blog of events at Humphrey Head which will be posted as and when time and a useable wireless connection allows. Early morning and late evening are the most likely times for updates, but if nothing appears then it is probably either due to us being too busy or being out of radio contact.
The weather forecast for the week is looking a bit like me: mostly grey, and wet on Wednesday. So, it could be a lot worse. And as we rugged outdoor types never tire of saying 'there's no such thing as bad weather, just inappropriate clothing'.
That's it for now. Roll on Monday! It'll soon be time to climb every mountain and ford every stream.