Members of the School’s Combined Cadet Force had the chance to put the skills they’ve been honing into practice during an action-packed Central Camp.
Joining contingents from other schools, over the course of 7 days the HSD cadets took on a host of challenging and rewarding activities, developing their focus, teamwork and camaraderie.
Here’s an account of the expedition from new RSM, Lyndsey, and platoon leader for HSD, Mariella:
“The cadets arrived at camp and settled into their accommodation and spent the night getting to know each other, ranging across the year groups while playing games. This night, the cadets were able to get a new RSM, Lyndsey.
They woke up the next morning for an early fire drill and set out for shakeout day where they would learn different battle drills to make themselves more comfortable when doing them for blank firing in the coming days.
The next day the cadets set off with the company of other schools to do their overnight exercise. The company as a whole split into three platoon, HSD CCF being 1 Platoon, headed by Mariella as platoon commander. The cadets went out on multiple patrols over the course of the day including a fighting patrol where the cadets fired blank rounds, some for the first time. They also got the chance to go on reconnaissance patrols where the cadets had to complete tasks to collect information. All of the cadets got to experience sleeping under a basher and eating ration food, which was a new experience for many of the younger cadets. I believe they all found it a thoroughly novel experience. The next day, all cadets completed a successful section attack, ‘neutralising’ the enemy. That evening, HSD hosted a quiz night, an excellent way to boost morale after the tiring exercise.
The cadets then set off to Arbroath for an adventure training day. Some took the chance to experience supervised coasteering; they all raved about being able to jump off the cliffs into the water. Others took a drier approach, taking a coastal “walk” where they strapped in to walk, jump and climb cliff edges. Everyone also had the chance to team up and challenge each other to Highland games contests, giving everyone a well-earned laugh.
Range day came about and the cadets took turns firing at targets, with the best HSD shot going to Paul.
The last day was Round Robin, where the cadets got the chance to compete at different stands, including First Aid, Signalling, Antennae, Escape Room, Stalk and a Team Race. A cadet favourite was definitely the First Aid stand, where there was a simulated car crash and the cadets had to help the victims. The other favourites were definitely the signals and escape room stands, as both were new stands for the cadets to experience. The cadets also enjoyed being mixed up with other schools for this day.
Also on the final day was the disco, a great chance for all the cadets to mix and let off steam after an exhausting but fun week!
Overall, CCF camp 2025 was an amazing camp, both from a training and social point of view!”