YEP 10 USA CAMP – Day 9

By Theresa and Greg

Day 9 in Chateaux-d’Oex began without morning exercise for once – the legendary Pangaea Raid began today! Early in the morning, the names for the 2 teams were released. After breakfast, everyone started packing our equipment for the Raid! Nervousness and excitement filled the dining room as 12 o’clock approached.

Once it was 12 pm, each team was given our maps and coordinates for the next 2 days! Both teams started plotting out their route, and within half an hour, both teams were out on their bikes. We had to meet our mountain guide before setting off to the first point, which just needed us to pass through.

At the second point, we had to drop off our mountain bikes and start our hike up a mountain, where the third point, the Via Ferrata activity, waited for us. Many of us were doing via ferrata for the first time – it took some time before they got used to it. The view from the peak of the mountain was simply breathtaking!

After the activity was completed, both teams had to head back down to pick up our bikes. Team Supertramps was ahead of Team RADLLAG at this point. We had to carry our bikes up a narrow and very steep path. After that, we had to bike down to another team challenge – the Big Wall. Working in a team, we had to transport everyone from one wall to another using a plank.

We had short snack time after this activity, before we proceeded to the next team challenge – the Tree Bridge. This activity involves a team member moving across two mobile planks 5 metres above the ground. The other team members have to secure ropes dangling from the planks, to ensure that they would be stable enough for the team member up there to walk across. For this challenge, it was important to have good communication within the team, and for the team member up there to have trust in his teammates. The next point was one of the greatest highlights for most of us – the Flying Fox. Ziplining in complete darkness, under a blanket of stars, was simply thrilling.

After walking to where our bikes were deposited, we biked about 5km to the campsite. It was mostly uphill and was definitely challenging for some of us. By then, it was already past midnight, so some of us were also getting a little sleepy. Nevertheless, both teams managed to get to the campsite by 3am. We quickly put up our tents, and were lucky enough to have a hot meal waiting for us.

All of us fell into deep sleep for the next 3-4 hours, still thinking about what else was to come for Day 2 of the Raid…