From June 10 to June 14 2025, we—four students from Q2 and Q4, under the supervision of Ms. Balsters and Mr. Goode—embarked on the Duke of Edinburgh Gold Expedition. Our journey took us to the Oberpfalz in Bavaria, where we hiked through the terrain for five days and four nights, carrying all our belongings and equipment on our backs.
Extensive preparation went into planning the expedition: coordinating meals, repeatedly weighing and repacking our bags, and carefully plotting the routes and campsites we would follow.
Upon arriving in Windischeschenbach, our adventure truly began. We quickly found ourselves immersed in nature, walking along streams and moss-covered hills, trying to decipher what qualified as a path and what would lead us completely astray. Our campsite for the evening was a small clearing in the middle of the forest, with not another soul in sight. We ended the evening by cooking dinner on our portable stoves and finalizing our route for the next day.
The following day’s journey led us further north, out of the woods and into a landscape dominated by agriculture. We enjoyed lunch by a lake and swam in a lake at sunset after arriving at our second campsite. That evening, we began working on our expedition project: cyanotypes—a photographic printing process that uses sunlight and iron salts to produce images in vivid blue tones. We gathered various plants and arranged them on light-sensitive paper. Once exposed to sunlight, the papers revealed artistic patterns that captured the organic shapes of our surroundings. We spent the rest of the evening by the lake, reflecting on the experiences we had gathered so far.
The third day proved to be the most challenging. Physical exhaustion had begun to set in, and the heat intensified, but we managed to persevere by focusing on what we needed to push through. Lucas typically led the way, map in hand, determined to keep us on the right trail. Ruby followed closely behind, listening to music and absorbed in her thoughts, while Max and I passed the time chatting away in the back. Each of us experienced highs and lows, but as a group, we learned to support one another—offering encouragement and energy whenever someone was struggling.
After a final night at our original campsite, we set out on our last official hike to meet our supervisors. As the journey came to a close, we gathered over an incredible meal prepared by Ms. Balsters and Mr. Goode, shared our reflections, and gazed at the starry night sky before returning to Berlin the following morning.
Overall, this expedition was a tremendous success and taught us valuable lessons. We learned to trust in ourselves, to persevere, and to recognise that our bodies are capable of much more than we often believe. Spending such an intense period in close proximity with a small group of people felt like living under a social microscope—it sharpened our sensitivity to group dynamics and taught us how to support each other thoughtfully and empathetically. Being so deeply immersed in nature was a stark contrast to our usual urban environment in Berlin and sparked meaningful conversations and emotions that have stayed with us. We all agreed that an occasional escape from the chaos of city life can be incredibly restorative.
We are deeply grateful to the Duke of Edinburgh Award for enabling this journey, and to our wonderful supervisors for making it possible—and for keeping us well supplied with water! We also wanted to thank the friends of nms for providing us with the gear that made the trip possible!
By Marlene, Q4