Kokoda challenge in sight

EIGHT students from Emerald Secondary College will complete the Kokoda Track next month as part of The Duke of Edinburgh’s International Award.
The teenagers will be undertaking the trip with students and teaching staff from Edenhope College from 14 to 23 September.
The two schools have recently taken part in a group training camp in the Grampians where they hiked a total of 34kms to the top of Mount William and from Boroka Lookout back to Halls Gap.
With terrain comparable to that in Papua New Guinea, it was also a chance for the groups to meet as well as to try out equipment they will use.
The eight students are Brad Francis, Chloe Robinett, Hamish Burnie, Kealy Jordan-Hill, Matilda Sinclair, Nathaniel Van Der Hulst, Ryan Hall and Tyler Willis.
Ryan Hall, 15, said he can’t wait for the Kokoda trip.
“It will teach me a lot of things, including how to cope with new mental and physical challenges and also improve my leadership skills,” he said.
Ryan said he was looking forward to learning the history of Kokoda and experiencing the hardships of the soldiers who experienced the terrain.
“It will be an eye opener and show how much we take for granted in Australia,” he said.
Through funding and support of The Flight Centre Foundation and On Track Expeditions, the eight participants, and their accompanying volunteers, are one of only four groups nationwide that are being funded to take on Kokoda.
The trek meets the requirements for the Adventurous Journey component of The Duke of Edinburgh’s International Award.
The support takes the form of airfares, accommodation, travel insurance and a cash allowance to assist with the purchase of equipment for the expedition.
The Emerald students are currently fund-raising to take sporting equipment (footballs, soccer balls and frisbees), as well as exercise books and pencils to give to kids and schools during the trip.