When I told my friends that I would be volunteering in Snowdonia for two weeks, the responses I received could be put into two categories. The majority of people were impressed and some even asked to join me for a few days to help out, the other group friends all said something along the lines of “What?! You’re doing work for nothing? Why?”
I think it seems obvious if you ask a question like that, volunteering is not for you! Regardless, I set off to Snowdon and stayed at Graig Wen for two week at the start of August. Upon arrival, I was greeted with friendly faces and shown to the spot I would occupy for the next two weeks.
At the campsite, I was given plenty of jobs over the two weeks. Quite often, you will find that volunteering is all about lending your skills where you can. With my main skills centering around computers, it was not surprising to find I could help out in the office.
I didn’t, however find myself stuck indoors for two weeks. In such a lovely setting, it was nice to find I could lend help doing some ground work, so also had a go at some lawn mowing, weeding and helping campers find their way around the campsite. (initially, I was unable to help many people with this last task, but I soon learnt enough about the place to be the friendly face on the lower fields!!)
The things you help out on can stick with the campsite longer than you do, which is the nice bit about volunteering - you get to leave your mark on the place you work and the people you work with.
I’ve been back home for about two weeks now and I already miss the place, having being thrust back into the real, fast pace world of work which is seemingly light-years away from the tranquil settings of Graig Wen, where lending a helping hand felt like a holiday in itself! If you have ever considered volunteering and are in two minds about it, I would definitely give it a go, and Team Graig Wen are a great bunch of people to work with.
I’d like to thank Sarah and John for being so welcoming and I look forward to returning to the campsite in the future as a guest!
….if you don’t count the three essential hitches (knots) you need to master in order to keep a roof over your head as you blissfully sleep the night away in a hammock in the woods. With a mixture of trepidation and awe, a small group of us marched off to polish our wilderness skills and learn how to make our own ‘Elven hotel’ under the expert guidance of our Bushcraft instructor, Heath Dawson from ‘Firefox’. Heath promptly impressed us by putting up a Basha (the roof of your hotel) and Hammock (your bed for the night) in no time and on a very steep incline and demonstrated how with only three relatively simple hitches, one could put up a very stable shelter.
Heath’s skills as a teacher were proved as after having found suitable locations (2 trees approximately 2 metres apart) we all successfully managed to string up our hotels for the night and tentatively put all our weight on the hammocks, waiting for the inevitable crash that fortunately never followed! More magic was to follow as we returned to ‘base camp’ to find a traditional Welsh vegetable stew bubbling away on the camp fire and Heath busy rolling out chappatis. Delicious…..and especially good eaten with twig ‘chop sticks’ (forks were also supplied in the shape of twigs, the end whittled and split in two). The rest of the evening was spent huddled around the fire listening to tales of Heath’s ‘wildest’ outdoors escapades, learning the ‘ghost walk’ (no, it’s not a homage to M.J) and preparing ourselves mentally for the night to come.
Eventually the moment of truth arrived and we all went our separate ways, attempting to wriggle ourselves into our sleeping bags without flipping out of the hammocks. As Heath had predicted, sleep came easily after this Houdini style exertion and in the morning we had all managed to sleep quite well, albeit on and off having been awoken occasionally by the strange cries of an owl or the gurgling of the stream. On return to base camp we found Heath making cups of tea and looking very refreshed after a night in the wild. For a brief second I did wonder if he’d sneakily spent the night in the B& B but I soon realised that anyone who could put up a Basha and Hammock in the dark (as Heath professed) was much more at home in the woods than sleeping under a duvet in a comfy bed.
Having spent an uneventful night in a bed last night I am looking forward to the next opportunity to tie those hitches and have a little adventure… if nothing more, the next time I put up a washing line I know my ‘running hitch’ will come in useful! Thanks Heath for a brilliant ‘Wild Night Out’ and to all the others in the Elven Hotel who made it such a great experience.
Ali - Guest at the B&B
