Page 170 - The Rifles Bugle Autumn 2019

Buckinghamshire Army Cadet Force
“FOR ME THIS HAS BEEN A 10/10 EXPERIENCE WITH GREAT PEOPLE AND A BEAUTIFUL ORCADIAN COUNTRYSIDE, AND I’LL HOPE TO COME BACK HERE SOMEDAY.”
Buckinghamshire Cadets have had a full calendar of overseas expeditions this year. Over 50 cadets participated in one of the three trips in 2019. The trips were mountaineering in Bavaria, Germany, a cultural exchange with Orkney ACF, a World War One Battlefield tour and a D Day Anniversary Trip to Normandy.
Orkney
During Easter break was the annual exchange with Orkney ACF, this year it was the turn of Bucks cadets to travel up to the Orkney Isles. 13 cadets and 4 adults made the long journey up to a beautiful, but wild part of the United Kingdom. Cadets were surprised at differences in the daily life of an Orcadian compared to their own, with different access to amenities and certainly no McDonalds! Cultural interest of the trip included the Ring of Brodgar, part of an enormous prehistoric ritual complex that incorporated the Stones o’ Stenness and Skara Brae, the remains of Orkney’s finest Neolithic settlement. Unusually for Orkney the weather was good and no rain was had throughout the trip! The exchange promotes friendships between cadets from extremely different backgrounds, encouraging tolerance and under- standing for others.
L/Cpl Hamish Fraser from Milton Keynes gives his account “I knew right off the bat that I would enjoy the exchange trip up here in Orkney right up until
the end. Now, at this moment, at the end of the trip, I can say with full confidence that all 13 of us have had an absolutely amazing time up here.
On Monday and Tuesday, we were looking at historical sites with the Orkney and Shetland cadets. We saw such places as Skara Brae, a Neolithic village dating back 4000 years, and block ships sunk back in WW1 to prevent German U boats from entering Scapa flow.
On the Wednesday we started off our Adventure Training with mountain biking, some enjoyed it more than other’s but I still loved it. The following day we started our expedition. It was a 2 day walk up and down the west coastline of Orkney and we set up camp on the beach right next-door to Skara Brae.
By the time we got back to the AR centre where we were staying, we were all tired and wanting a shower, although we all appreciated the barbecue dinner we had that night, which is a stark contrast from eating out of ration packs during the expedition.
For me this has been a 10/10 experience with great people and a beautiful Orcadian countryside, and I’ll hope to come back here someday.”
Bavaria
10 cadets from Bucks supported by four Adult Volunteers experienced on an amazing mountain walking week in the Bavarian Alps. The aim of Exercise TIGER BAVARIAN EXPLORER 3 was to
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