At the end of July 2015, I once again accompanied the Norton School’s Sixth Form on their D of E Gold Assessment and adventure trip. This time we went to the Vercors for the first time. The Vercors is a limestone plateau in the Pre Alps south of Grenoble and a stunning location. The area is a mixture of gently sloping forests and precipitous escarpments, ideal for cross country skiiing in winter and walking in summer. It certainly lends itself to D of E expeditions as there are also some excellent campsites in the valleys surrounding it. We were lucky to have some cool but sunny weather – perfect for expeditioning. All the teams were successful and thoroughly enjoyed their experience.

The days before the expedition were used for some adventurous activities including a via corda -a mix between a via ferrata and alpine rope technique, one of the best canyons I have ever descended and a high ropes course which is the cross between Go Ape and Ninja Warrior.