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10 May 2010
Last weekend was the one the group had all been waiting for. Grace and Kirsty picked up the hired minibus at 2pm, all set to pick up the kids and head to Stranraer for the ferry. After having to go back for team helmets the kids had manage to leave in the house, pick up the box of food and get through the even busier that usual bank holiday traffic hopes of making the ferry seemed to be slipping away. Kirsty realising how stressed Grace was getting and made her way to the back of the minibus, well out of sight. Anyway, managed to change to later ferry and got to Island of Roy cottages, Donegal where we were staying by 6am. Quickly got all the bags off however Aoife managed to pull one of the ‘apparently heavy’ bags off the bus(obviously not Grace’s as she always travels light) and managed to fall with it hitting the door on the way to the ground. Luckily she seemed unhurt and showed the kids what not to do!!
After a few hours sleep the team was up again as due to meet up with Letterkenny Gaels for a coaching session and friendly against them. The Gaels were very welcoming and very organised. The kids were shown a variety of drills and then a friendly match was organised by mixing the teams. This was a great experience and the kids/coaches couldn’t have been more helpful. We would also like to thank them for their hospitality of food which team all enjoyed after this session. In the afternoon we headed up to the Friel farm where the kids were given the opportunity to feed the lambs and also get a shot on the quad bike expertly driven by Maurice’s sister. Also thanks to his sister for the snacks and the chocolates which went down very well despite the amount of fruit we had on the bus!! Rest of day; team were left to relax back at the house and in the surrounding area after a busy day.
Next day team were up again sharp as we were heading to the stables. This was a very enjoyable experience for the group as some had never been that close to a horse never mind on a trek. After this we headed straight to Dunlewy as no time to lose. As the sun was shining the kids were able to enjoy the playpark before our guided tour of the old cottages, including the history of the Ferry family and a weaving demonstration. After this we enjoyed the climbing wall, bucking bronco and the pedaloes for the next few hours. That evening we took a trip down to Downings beach. Even though it was the warmest everyone was happy to go into the water. By this time it was getting dark so we headed back to the cottage to allow everyone to relax.
The last morning was as busy as the rest. The remainder of the group who hadn’t time for the trek the day before went out on their horse riding trek while the others got ready to leave for the ferry. By 1pm everyone was in the minibus so Grace was feeling pretty relaxed that we would make the ferry in plenty of time! Anyway the side door seemed to jam again as it had done on several occasions over the weekend. As Aoife couldn’t get it she asked for some assistance. Can’t name names but one of the stronger female coaches offered to help out (check out guestbook for clues). As she tried to close the door it seemed to come off the runner so as Grace turned round to set off the door was held by 2 of the adults. As you can imagine pretty stressful having a door that didn’t close, so called one of the locals who appeared on the scene within a few minutes. With the help of his son and various tools he was able to help the damsels in distress. After that we managed to narrowly make the ferry and not suffer any more mishaps.
Despite these few mishaps the trip was very enjoyable for all and the team are already wanting to know date of next trip!
Photos:
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