DEAMS Trekking Expedtion to Bhutan
From 5th - 22nd December 2009, 16 pupils (aged 15-18), three members of staff and one parent had the great fortune to visit the remote Himalayan kingdom of Bhutan on a trekking expedition organised by DEAMS (Dauntsey's Expedition and Mountaineering Society). They have now gone down in history as the second ever UK school expedition to visit the Land of the Thunder Dragon - the first being another Dauntsey's group which visited in 2005!
The first week was spent exploring the country's cultural heritage and meeting local people. The group learned much about Buddhism, visited beautifully decorated and remotely located Dzongs (monasteries), attended religious ceremonies and received a warm welcome wherever they went. There were great opportunities for inter-cultural exchanges, especially at Gaselo School where our pupils participated in an archery competition and dances with their Bhutanese counterparts - as well as swapping advice and notes on GCSE revision!
Accompanied by three guides, five cooks, five pony handlers and 30 ponies, the second week was spent on a spectacular 6-day trek in Jigme Dorji National Park, crossing hazardous terrain, reaching altitudes of nearly 4,500 metres and sleeping in temperatures which plummeted as low as -10°C. On reaching Jumolhrai base camp on the third day, they were rewarded with magnificent views of Jumolhari (7,590m) and its glaciers. On the way home, the expedition travelled via New Delhi where the group had the opportunity to do some sightseeing, including a visit to see the Taj Mahal in Agra.
Independent travel to Bhutan is not permitted, and visitor numbers are strictly limited and indeed the group did not come across a single tourist or westerner during their entire visit. The 2005 Dauntsey's trip was commemorated by the Bhutanese who produced a national postage stamp featuring a photograph of the pupils - as Dauntsey's remains the only UK school to have visited Bhutan, who knows whether a second stamp will be designed to celebrate this visit?