Over the February Half Term,  thirty Junior School girls from Year 5 and Year 6 enjoyed a week like no other when they took part in our first Junior School Ski and Outdoor Education Trip to Upper Austria. As part of this week long trip to the beautiful resort of Wuzeralm, the girls participated in a bespoke programme of skiing, skidoo riding, night walking and igloo building. The programme combined personalised ski tuition at beginner, intermediate and advanced level, with immersion in the natural beauty of the Austrian alps. For many of of the girls the trip represented the first time they experienced mountain life and they relished the opportunity to spot mountain goats, sample Austrian culinary delicacies and enjoy the wonder of the night sky constellations away from the city lights of London. Time away from ski school was spent enjoying snow play in the thick layers of fresh powder and exploring the resort via T-Bar and Chair Lift.

As the week progressed, each ski group had the opportunity to develop, hone and perfect their skiing prowess and by the end of the week everyone had made impressive progress. Our beginner groups confidently tackled blue runs with controlled turns, whilst our intermediate group made light work of parallel turns on the red pistes and our advanced groups not only took on a short black but embraced a beautiful stretch of off-piste skiing known as the Romantic. By the time Race Day arrived at the end of the week, each girl did herself proud in a timed descent of the slalom track. It was a brilliant celebration of careful practice throughout the week. At the Presentation Evening later that day, the Head of the Ski School praised the girls for their spirit and energy as he presented each skier with a certificate and medal.

In Junior School we are proud to call ourselves Giraffe Girls who always stand tall, stick our necks out and always try new things and this was never more the case than during our half term adventure to Austria.