After months of planning, fifteen members of the unit were ready to head off down to a property near Bridgetown for a weekend of training and fun. Those that were not working on the Friday were able to set off just after lunch in a convoy of 3x Fire & Rescue Fast Attack 4WDs, a Troopie (borrowed from the Wanneroo SES unit) and the Northshore Ute.   Two of these vehicles were towing trailers, and a second team left in the Northshore Troopie later in the day.

With progress hampered by the occasional downpour and having to travel at the speed of the slowest vehicle, we arrived at the 200 acre property owned by Ian Lush (former Northshore Local Manager) and Steve Ward (former Northshore volunteer) just after 6pm .   With an uphill entrance to the field we were to be camping in, 4WD was engaged before we even made it to the campsite, and just as it was getting dark....

Thankfully the rain held off whilst we set up camp. One team pitched the tents (after using shovels to clear the area of cow dung....) whilst another chopped-up half a dead tree to make a fire.   Once the campsite was established (2x communal tents, 3x private tents, a kitchen area and a che mi cal toilet in a nearby shed) the barbecue was fired up for dinner. Not long after that, the second team arrived and a party was soon in the making. It was a late night for most, although all made it into the tents unscathed. Thankfully for everyone, Todd managed to get his head out of the tent again before indulging in a "technicolour yawn" all over the place.....!

The cold night affected some more than others, and for a variety of potential reasons, most of the team were somewhat bleary eyed when dawn broke the next morning.   A hearty breakfast next to the campfire seemed to wake everyone up, and soon we were divided into two teams to take part in either four wheel driving or the chainsaw course.

Team 1 took the 3x Fast Attacks and the Northshore Troopie and had soon created some nice boggy patches around the campsite.   Having exhausted the possibilities within that field with mi xed success (one of the Fast Attacks was deduced to have less power and / or worse tyres than the others) Team 1 then took on some of the nearby forest tracks. All went well until a brief shower caused the tracks to get increasingly greasy, and inevitably the "dud" Fast Attack got stuck trying to go up a hill.   The driver Carlo "Super-Mario" Restifo took all the blame, even though Matt also failed to get it up the hill.   Bringing the Troopie in from the other end, and using the winch whilst butting it against a tree, soon fixed the problem, although Thommo then elected to negotiate a tight 3 point turn and drive back down the hill.

Meanwhile Team 2 were busy practicing their newly learnt chainsaw skills and dealing with the remainder of the dead tree that the firewood had come from the previous night.   Michael demonstrated perfectly why you need to establish an escape route before commencing your cut, when it was suddenly revealed that the tree was riddled with white ants and it started to move before anyone was ready.   Luckily the rest of team were already outside the cordended-off area, and on flinging his chainsaw in the air, Michael gave a perfect demonstration of speed, sprinting past Jim who had been standing behind him, well out of the way of the fast moving tree.

Team 1 returned from their 4WD (recovery) exercise in the Wanneroo Troopie, when Super-Mario decided on one last hurrah ... this time taking it through the now well churned up road, and bogging the vehicle right up to the axle.  Well done Super..!  The decision was made to abandon it, in case Team 2 needed to practice recovery techniques, so Team 1 then went to a nearby wooded area where each member choose their own dead tree to practice their bucking and limbing prowess.    Selina's was the last cut of the day, and gave a textbook demonstration on how it should be done.

As it turned out, Team 2 did not need to use the bogged Troopie to practice their recovery techniques, since Michael "Chain-bar" Wood successfully bogged one of the Fast Attacks, which was subsequently extracted using a winch. Then both teams joined together to extract Supers bogged Troopie, and then .. almost unbelievably, another Fast Attack got bogged, this time when "Vomit" Todd decided it would be fine to drive through the coned off area - he was wrong..... duuh!

The mornings activities complete (having taken a little longer than expected) it was time for a mi d afternoon lunch and then a late to start on the planned afternoon exercises.   With time not on our side, Eno devised a series of activities which tested teamwork, communication and problem solving - but in reality bore a remarkable resemblance to party games.  Although the rain had been on and off all day, our wet weather gear enabled us to carry on regardless, and apart from adding to the mud, the rain certainly did not dampen our enthusiasm.

As the evening set-in, everyone changed into dark clothing for a game of "Lantern Stalk".   Admittedly, this mi ght have been more successful with a little less moisture in the air and slightly less mud on the ground, but by the time it was compelte dinner was ready. It did ot take long for the warmth of the fire to bring out everyone's social side, although everyone was in bed slightly earlier than the previous night..!  

An even colder night than before was punctuated by a variety of snorers, most memorably "Vomit" Todd who was woken up at regular intervals by Jim's walking pole over the head.   Eventually Jim could not take the snoring anymore and went and slept in the Ute, fearful that he was actually going to cause some serious injury with his walking pole before the night was out.   New recruit Ashley woke up to find he was sharing his bed with a beautiful (but slightly well built) rescue dummy (later christened Jasmine ) - "Jasmine" actually had the last laugh... by somehow ending up tucked-up inside Ashleys bed, whilst poor Ashely himself ended up outside the tent. Work that one out..?