5/7/10

It was the final day of program and Susan and I were off to the Woodcarvers for the morning and then in the afternoon we were going to repel down a gorge. I have not been to the woodcarvers since training so I had to challenge myself and lead the hike by memory. I luckily knew where I was going…for the most part. The hike is a lot easier now than it was for the first time. It takes about 2 hours to get to the woodcarvers, it is downhill then across the road and then uphill. After the downhill portion, it took about 30 solid minutes to climb stairs and very steep hills, but once we got to the end, it was a flat walk to the woodcarvers, thank goodness. After the guests had time to browse and buy some wood items, we went next door to the Café to enjoy some Lemon cake. It was delicious, but it did ruin my appetite for lunch. After our mid-morning snack, we walked to go eat lunch at picnic tables by the river. It was very sunny and the weather felt great. After lunch, it was time for repelling down the gorge, horray. I went first so I had to go all the way to the bottom by myself. I was not nervous although some girls are scared to get to the bottom platform. I stayed at the bottom for about two and a half hours until all the guests finished repelling. I was wearing my rain pants and still managed to get them very muddy. Although it is bright and sunny outside, it feels like it is raining inside the gorge, especially at the bottom. After everyone was done, the staff allowed Susan and I to have a candy bar! I had peanut M&Ms. We walked back to the chalet, I did some laundry before dinner and then it was campfire for the evening program. The Australian guides gave me their sunhat; it has the Australian flag on it, I was very excited to receive their gift!! It was a very good day and I am very excited to go to Montreux for the Jazz Festival tomorrow!!