Moreton Adventures for Year 8s

Our Year 8 camp to Moreton Island was an exciting and adventurous experience that will not be forgotten. Moreton is a beautiful island situated one and a half hours away from Brisbane, with calm, clean beaches, beautiful wildlife, and many activities to immerse yourself in. The sandboarding experience was a student favourite, with all of us going out to the Moreton Island desert, and then shooting down the tall dunes on wooden planks. The snorkelling was just as amazing, letting us experience the amazing marine life up close. Some groups were even lucky enough to see turtles! This camp helped us create new friendships and improve on others. Overall, our Year 8 camp let us step out of our comfort zone, expand on our relationships, and make memories that will stay with us for life.

We started off the camp with an hour-long drive to the ferry taking us to Moreton Island. The ferry took 90 minutes, from the Port of Brisbane to the sandy beaches of Tangalooma. Once we arrived, we separated into our groups and took a bus straight to our campsite. After we unpacked, our groups moved straight to the first activity; the lighthouse walk. This short trek was enjoyable, with all students being able to swim and play, along with walking up to the beautiful Cape Moreton lighthouse. By the time we were finished, it was time to continue to unpack and eat dinner. Groups 3 and 4 also got to experience night kayaking.  The first day of camp was great.

As we woke up the next morning, all tired from the day before, we went straight into our second set of activities. My group and I started with the hike, which was a short climb up the summit of Mount Tempest, the third highest sand dune in the world, where we experienced an astonishing view across Moreton Island. After this hot and tiring hike, we then went to the Blue Lagoon to cool off. Here, we played a variety of games, and enjoyed ourselves in the cold water. After these two sensational activities, Groups 1 and 2 went night kayaking. This activity was beautiful with my peers seeing a variety of marine wildlife throughout the artificial reefs on Moreton’s beaches.

The next day was my personal favorite, with breathtaking sandboarding and snorkelling. We first had to make the short drive out to the Moreton Island desert, a small desert with tall dunes. As we arrived, we were given long wooden planks that we would be using as our boards. We then had to climb to the top of the dunes, where we set up a boards for the ride down. This was absolutely thrilling, with sand hitting your face and wind rushing through your ears. After this amazing activity, we ate lunch and then went snorkelling.  The sheer number and diversity of fish that we saw was astonishing. Along with this, some groups’ members were even lucky enough to see more exotic marine life, such as dugongs and turtles. These two activities were an incredible part of our Year 8 camp.

On the final day, we had breakfast and started the cleanup of our campsite. This camp gave us many opportunities to build and shape our leadership skills, along with expanding upon friendships and even making new ones. Year 8 Camp to Moreton Island is one of our memories that will last us a lifetime.