After the celebrations of the Royal Wedding and our street party that followed, we set off for an exciting weekend in the beautiful Derbyshire Peak District. We had a trouble free journey from West Sussex and arrived to be welcomed by friendly familiar faces from previous visits to Dukes Barn and a delicious hot meal. Then followed a talk from Colin our friendly instructor on the forthcoming weekend activities. It was to the games room that my lads headed next, along with new friends in the making, to indulge in some pool and table tennis. By now friendships were being forged and this was to become the main theme of the weekend, while taking on the challenges and excitement of the activities. They included a sponsored stream walk, canoeing, bouldering and weaseling, as well as abseiling, caving and rock climbing. There was something for everyone. If you preferred you could sit and relax in the comfortable and charming surroundings of Dukes Barn.
A cooked breakfast gave us a good start to the activities on Saturday morning. I chose the stream walk while the boys chose their activities. We had such fun. I always did enjoy splashing about in water as a child and I certainly managed to get quite wet clambering from rock to rock in the stream, then I slipped and down I went! First with water cascading over my wellies, then soon it was up to my waist as I tried to limbo under a fallen branch! Fortunately with all the glorious weather we have had of late, the water was not as cold as expected and by now I really did not care about being wet any more. The child within me had been released and it was not long before I was re-arranging rocks and stones, trying to build my own dams! We pulled and heaved each other up the stream over the boulders and stopping occasionally to drain our boots which proved futile. If you do not mind getting wet and enjoy a bit of a challenge, then this is definitely an activity not to be missed. It was one of the highlights of my weekend. Similarly my sons relished their chosen activities of the day.
After supper we headed to the local pub for a pint and shared stories of the fun and action of the day. It was also very reassuring - being able to share our own feelings and experiences of KS, with others who understood. Meaningful friendships have certainly been made during the course of the weekend, amongst parents, sons and siblings alike. My youngest son in particular found listening to other men with KS very moving and helped to increase his compassion for understanding and supporting his older brother’s needs.
Sunday was another beautiful sunny day although very windy, so it was decided the archery activity would be given a miss. However the ropes course proved very entertaining and was a wonderful way to conclude a most enjoyable weekend.
After a flurry of contact details being exchanged and farewells all round, we headed back south to Sussex and my two exhausted lads were already asleep before we could even reach Matlock!
Thank you Alison for organising these wonderful weekends, which have now become our annual pilgrimage.
Nicola Holden (KSA member)
If you would like to join in the fun next year then contact Alison on 01629 534402 or email Alison on: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
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