DofE expedition kit - help!

They are definitely going to a campsite (st least, I thought they were, but perhaps I'd better check that!)

ds's group were in the middle of nowhere. They were told to bring toilet roll/tissues and given a shovel and told to dig a hole if they needed to go!

ds just did his bronze, one night camping and two days walking in constant and very heavy rain.

He has a north face jacket already and school provided waterproof trousers. Also goretex walking boots (£120 they cost me!). He was soaked through from his head down to his toes when he got home yesterday, it was as though someone dropped him in a pool! He insisted on taking a sweatshirt instead of a fleece which was a huge mistake as really heavy when wet. Not sure what he could have done to stay dry in such heavy rain without spending a fortune.

He had the wayfarer boil in the bag all day breakfast for a hot dinner which he said was ok, but portion wise he could have eaten two, with the rain others found it really difficult to cook anything that wasn't in a bag (and the pots were not particularly clean well seasoned). Lunch on first day he had chilled/partially frozen chicken salad wraps. Second day he had nutella (could be jam) bagels. He also took a few dense flapjacks, nuts, dried fruit, haribo and energy sweets. Not sure what he would have done for day 3.

After the last two days he has said he will finish his bronze, but there is no way he is doing silver!!!!! Hope the rain stays off for your ds!

A pair of sliders/converse type shoes and clean, spare socks to put on at camp each day. We do a lot of hiking, camping and festivals as a family and one thing I am adamant on is that at the end of each day we remove our socks, wash and dry our feet (just wipes and air if necessary), check for and cover any blisters and put on clean dry socks. May seem a little over zealous but an acquaintance developed trench foot after five days in muddy socks at Glastonbury 97

think dd brought slides/flipflops so they could take boots off around campfire.

I agree re getting boots fitted. DD has very flat feet and size so different when walking-We did Cotswold Outdoors. they also offer a discount for DofE.

Re showering probably won't happen but mine all took body wipes and loo wipes.

Not sure if anyone mentioned those tuna sachets that you can just rip open and eat-don't need refrigerated.

Def gummy bears or haribo for sugar boost!

He won't shower. He will stink when he gets home!

I don't remember DD taking more than a small microfibre towel.. there isn't room for a big one. And the gold DofE was 3 nights wild camping, no showers at all.

Yes to jogging bottoms and a tee shirt - girls mostly took leggings I think - for wearing in camp and as nightclothes. Also a pair of flip flops or crocs.

Babybels, primula/dairylea, also Pepperamis - none of these need refrigeration. Also sachets (not tins - weight) of tuna - you can get flavoured ones to make it tastier. Eat with Ryvita-type things (bit more durable than crackers/crispbreads).

A few sweets/choc bars/Kendal mint cake for instant enegy boost, but cereal bars, dried fruit, nuts and seeds will give more usuable energy and less of a drop from all the sugar.

Definitely take waterproof trousers. If it rains it will be awful without them. Make sure to get ones with zips/poppers up the side so that they can go on and off over boots. (The alternative if it's not too cold is shorts, as bare legs dry quicker than trousers).

Take plenty of spare socks, and one full change of clothes in case things get drenched.

Go to a builders merchants/B&Q and get some rubble sacks. These make great waterproof rucksack liners for very little money. Wrap the sleeping bag in an extra one - a wet sleeping bag will make for a hellish trip.

Make sure him and his team have practiced putting their tent up in advance. The first time to put it up is not night one in the pissing rain!

Ideally wear the boots in before the expedition, so if you can get them this weekend for next, go for it, and make him wear them, even if it's just round the house (while they're clean).

Cannot survive a weekend of other people’s teenagers without good coffee!

My ds is going this weekend! Boots, coat and trousers are from mountain warehouse who give 10% off. He's worn the boots to do a big walk and they were fine. I don't think he'll need the trousers but they are just pacamac ones. The coat we had already for walking and camping as a family. If he ever stops growing I'd consider more expensive ones then. I'm sending premade bagel with houmous in it for lunch. The group have arranged pasta with stir in sauce and cheese and are each bringing a bit. One person is bringing brioche for breakfast. He's got nut bars, protein flapjack and a packet of sweets for energy boosts. The rucksack is one I took interailing over 20 years ago but still going strong

Trained boot fitters will look at foot shape as well as size, abs use insoles, socks and lacing patterns to get a good fit

And also they should make him walk up and down a slope in them - good boot shops always have a ramp. Boots that feel fine on the flat or on steps can be painful esp downhill if they're a tad too small.
Though as he's presumably growing, while oversized boots are a bad idea too, buy them big enough to wear with 2 pairs of socks now.

Primula is a great idea, why have I never thought of that! I’m going to add that to our info pack for parents.

Also individual options sachets are good, as are the Nescafé 3 in 1 sachets if you drink coffee that way. Hot drinks are a great morale booster when it’s cold and chilly!

For sitting on the wet ground an extra binbag or a folder up bag for life is perfect, they can stuff it in the bottom pocket of their bag if it has one.

Individual sticks of hot choc can be a real treat to look forward to too.

One of DDs team took some coffee bags for proper coffee.

Lunch - bagels and a tube of primula will last a few days. Or peanut butter, you can get sachets on Amazon. Or value brands tend to be in plastic jars, or decant into a little Tupperware type box.

Clothing - DOE have recommended kit that sells through Blacks. It’s a good balance or price/quality herez it’s is well, well worth having boots fitted. Trained boot fitters will look at foot shape as well as size, abs use insoles, socks and lacing patterns to get a good fit. No fun if you get blisters in the first half hour.

Energy food - mix of flapjack and trail mix for sustained energy and maybe Haribo, sweets abs chocolate for an instant hit.

Individual sticks of hot choc can be a real treat to look forward to too.

Sweets are good for morale as well as energy! Granola a breakfast/snack alternative?

Please check the D of E website re kit. When DD did her silver practice expedition in the summer the instructor told her that her waterproof trousers and coat were not good enough, she needed to have taped seams (and not having either of those items is not an option). Personally I don’t rate Mountain Warehouse. The rucksack we got her for bronze broke on its first outing. We went to Blacks after thats. Pack
more snacks than you think they’ll need. I sent DD with brioche, pitta breads (she won’t eat tuna or anything basically that doesn’t need to be kept in a fridge), so I bought some Nutella sachets off Amazon to put in the Pitta bread for lunch). A woolly hat for night time. It can be colder than you might think. Bags of sweets to share is always a good idea.

Doubling down on PP who said wear the new boots in before the expedition - when my DS did DofE most of the kids were hobbling around in agony with blisters from new walking boots!

Yy to baby bel or cheese strings and instant porridge.

There wasn't room for a cool bag and that wouldn't really work well for more than a day trip would it?

DDs school provided sleeping bags, liners, and dry bags of various sizes as well as the tents and stoves.