Louise Gabriel checked out the thrills (and spills) of coasteering for herself:

My brother is the type of guy whose own exuberant optimism (or natural stupidity) gets him into all sorts of scrapes. He’s the type that is surprised that it hurts when he falls off 2^nd-storey loose roof guttering, and thinks ‘having a go’ on a kid’s pogo stick after a cheeky lemonade will turn out well. It didn’t turn out well.

Suffice to say as his younger sister, my own sense of physical self-preservation is far stronger. I grew up watching his antics, with a mixture of awe, horror and hilarity.

So surprisingly, when I learned of his love for extreme sport of coasteering, I was still intrigued. I’d seen the huge grins in photos of these cliff jumpers and the impressive air acrobatics, against the stunning backdrop of Channel Islands’ scenery. In short, it looked brilliant and being always up for trying something new, I thought I’d give coasteering a go with Outdoor Guernsey.

No longer only for the risk-taker, companies like Outdoor Guernsey and Absolute Jersey and Adventure Sark are bringing the thrills of cliff jumping to a mainstream audience. Fortunately, Outdoor Guernsey founder and leader of the Channel Islands coasteering group, Ant Ford-Parker, is the kind of safety-conscious professional who is setting new standards for the sport. Ant comes across as a laid-back, fun-loving person who makes stuff look effortless. His easy manner actually belies his solid business instinct, that’s evident in the booming success of his outdoor sports company in Guernsey, Herm and Sark.

So after a quick reassuring explanation from Ant, of what coasteering is all about, I signed up for a Sunday morning coasteer. I wasn’t quite sure what to expect from this new sea-based sport – but essentially it’s traversing coastal cliffs at sea-level, without ropes. What I got was an exhilarating, exciting way to spend a morning and access-all-areas to the most wonderfully remote places in the islands.

A bright, clear day and a light swell made for superb conditions. Starting at mid-tide at Jerbourg, on the furthest Southwest tip of Guernsey, looking out across to Jersey’s Five Mile Bay and the French coast, we togged up. The loaned thermals, helmets, thick winter wet suits, buoyancy aids are all designed for jumping in and out of the water. I was thankful for the thermals, under the wetsuit – it meant I mostly felt warm, even in the refreshing spring coastal waters.

Specialist coasteering 5-10 boots, with hard rubber soles are perfect for a limpet-like grip on uneven slippery wet rocks. Ant says that ‘people’s comfort is important to keep them both safe and let them enjoy themselves’. OG is fairly unusual among British companies in currently supplying all necessary gear. He’s set up the trips so that anyone can go on them, and is flexible for any level of adventurousness. ‘Obviously you’ve got to be water-confident to join in, but I’ve taken groups of tourists who can’t even swim.’ Absolute Jersey’s Chester Mackley adds that it’s often the kids that will jump off anything and it can be the visiting Army lads (and supposed hard-men) who bottle the highest jumps if one group member gets fearful. So the whole group has to climb back down.

On our adventure, the sun was shining and excitement and apprehension were high. Out of a group of two beginners and 3 regulars, including my adrenaline-junkie brother, with one lead instructor, I was pleased to see that half the group were females and our ages ranged from 25 to 45.

Matt Ferguson was the group instructor, who was ‘on a mission’ in his own words, that is, training for a two-day non-stop round Guernsey coaster. The rest of the group were experienced coasteerers who caught the bug so much that they are training to become instructors.

We were to spend two hours climbing, swimming and jumping round to the stunning Pea Stack rocks, famously painted by Renoir. Gear on, we made our way down the cliff path, with a cheery ‘hello’ to the dog walkers giving us envious / quizzical looks. I needn’t have worried, as the loaned thermals and thick wetsuits kept the 12-degree waters from chilling me. For winter days, extra neoprene gloves and hats will keep most people comfortable.

Us two rookie coasteerers were given a quick one-to-one safety briefing and advice on how to jump: step out off the rock, holding onto the BA not your nose, with knees slightly bent. Before you could say ‘freezing waters’, we quickly dived into the calmest spot.

Roo, in her twenties and already an accomplished kayak instructor with OG, gave me a great tip – ‘just trust the boots’. While the pros got stuck into the smaller jumps, I was tentative on my first gulley jump rock-to-rock, but then got a bit brave and eventually developed a liking of falling. It’s a pretty big kick feeling the leaving land behind for a few seconds, and plunging into fresh waters.

After a swim across the bay, we headed through a small cave under a rock with a beautiful underside smoothed by the waves. I was hooked after five short elated minutes.

Heading round the bay, we timed the wave sets just right to catch some swell and had a giggle-fit of body-surfing in and out.

Traversing across jump by jump, we worked our way up to the bigger cliff. After conquering the nerves of the first jump, the bigboy of the day seemed no sweat. I did notice it took a fair few seconds to hit the water – and that we dropped in deep. Happily, the BA meant even after the biggest jumps of the day, we popped right back up. Roo had the camera and was taking pretty cool photos of the mid-air acrobatics.

Matt made sure we had a lot of variety with plenty of adventure swimming with what-it-says-on-tin names like ‘washing machine’ and ‘toilet flush’.

Mid-way round after too many jumps where I dropped off the cliff like a iron pole, a couple of feet too close, I was coached on the art of stepping off / half walking to get a couple of metres clearance between me and the hard, jagged rock face. I eventually got it and was impressed with the way the whole group looked after each other.

Gully swimming in the swell was the most fun for me. In the narrow gulleys, the combination of tidal swell and the fact you are always floating means you can rise and fall vertically by up to 3m at a time. That’s such a squeal-inducing buzz!

A break is more a chance to look out over the seascape – at an angle only coasteerers can see. ‘Guernsey has such an interesting and beautiful coastline – it has to be up there amongst the best in the British Isles to go exploring’, said Ant.

If the scenery isn’t enough, the flora and fauna is far more abundant than UK waters – you’ll see glossy burgundy-red sea anemones, many different coloured spring seaweeds – not just brown Vraic, but black, green, purple, yellow, white and even red. The variety of wild sea-birds close-up includes gannets, cormorants, oystercatchers and the prolific gulls. Early summer is a great time for puffin–watching and the group often see seals.

The steep climb back up past sea bird nests was tough, so I took my chance to catch my breath and view the amazing sights from halfway up the cliff, before the climb back. I realised we’d been where only the seagulls can get to.

To Channel Islanders’ I’d say – if you think you’ve seen all of your island – think again -  as coasteering gives a whole new perspective on our coast and an access-all-areas pass. Jump right in….

Read more from Jonathan Watson……

Corporate Social Responsibility opportunities on Herm Island

Herm Island is a public place during daylight hours, and as such, is open to community projects to keep it in the best possible shape for all of its visitors from the Bailiwick of Guernsey, and further afield.

If your company would like to get involved in Herm’s community projects as part of their CSR policy, we would be delighted to hear from you.

Here are a few ideas that we have available for CSR projects:

Adopt a beach – Beach watch programme
There are 4 main beaches on Herm being Shell, Belvoir, Harbour and Fisherman’s. The proposal is a weekly womble through the summer months for collection of litter and all other debris. The results to be collected and passed onto Lesley Bailey to be registered as part of the beach watch programme. This would take 4 people 4 hours a week between April and September.

Painting the Valley (Woodland walk) – Britain in Bloom community awards. Herm entrant in finals for coastal area with less than 12k population.
The fencing needs a recoat before the Britain in Bloom community judging in August. 4 people 4 hours this will smarten up the overall look of the valley walk .

Tree planting – Britain in Bloom and Tree planting projects.
This is clearing the existing tree area around the established trees. Then digging out 70 more 1 metre circles ready for new tree planting and staking plus rabbit protection and weed suppressant matting being laid down. 8 people 1 day.

Tree whip planting – Britain in Bloom and sustainability projects.
Working alongside the woodland trust we have 480 wood burning trees coming and need planting in an area to create new woodland on Herm. 12people
1day

Herms High Five Garden – Britain in Bloom and educational project.
The pre-school children have a new garden and need some help digging out a shape of a hand to represent the 5 senses and to plant it up. 5 people 1 day. This will benefit the children and help them learn about everyday life and what is around them.

For further information, please contact jonathanwatson@herm.com

If your group are looking for an entertaining activity for a couple of hours or you fancy getting active for a while to work up a thirst then Outdoor Guernsey have a range of fun activity options that can complement your visit to Herm.

Explore the Island using our Activiquiz, have fun competing against your colleagues with one of our Team challenges, hold an  Archery tournament, Block book our Kayaks for your exclusive use or even go on a guided kayak Puffin Patrol. Whatever you choose to do we will work to make your visit as memorable and easy going as possible.

A visit to Herm is always a winner!

The Outdoor Guernsey activity schedule is now available on the calendar page (click to access).  There are a number of changes for this year that we hope will help you enjoy our activities even further.  For example all regular daily kayak and coasteering sessions will now last for two and a half hours with a morning session at 10am and an afternoon session at 1:30pm everyday. Weekdays there will be an evening session for those after-work social activities that have become so popular.

The ever popular Kayak hire in Herm will be available from Easter and we will be starting our guided ‘Puffin patrols’ at the same time.  We have a one hundred per cent success record in spotting puffins on these trips and you will be amazed at how close our tiny friends will come to the kayaks.  For the second year we will be running special request Herm circumnavigation trips for small groups.  The Archery range is also available to groups from Easter.

This year we will be offering outdoor climbing as a regular activity in Guernsey.  The sessions will last 3 hours so that you can fully enjoy the experience and start to develop and practice proper skills in this totally absorbing sport.

Self Kayak hire was very popular last year so we will be expanding our kayak fleet to allow more kayaks to go on hire. Kayaks can be hired from any of the locations we are running explorations from or, if booked in advance, can be delivered to you.

As well as our regular activities our staff are also able to provide many bespoke activities as well as group and corporate activities on all the Islands just give us a call, we love to help out!

Your group will be split into a number of smaller teams of 8 to 12 and compete against each other in a number of fun group tasks and puzzles.

The activities selected will be appropriate to your group but will be suitable for all abilities as each activity is designed to encourage participation on many different levels.

All events are scored and we will declare a winning team at the end of the event.

This events generally lasts 2 or 3 hours and costs £28 to £38 per person.

We have other options available and can custom design your event for you, if you would like to more information on the available options please email: bookings@outdoorguernsey.co.uk   or call Ant on 07781 130403

It is a quiet time for us, but we are still going out (Check out our facebook page for pictures). When conditions are suitable we would like to encourage you to join us, so we have decided that all our regular activities will be available as normal but you can bring someone along for free! Effectively half price activities if you share the cost.  There is no restriction on quantity so if you book for 4 people you get 4 free places.

The winter days are colder but all we need to do is wear the proper kit.  We will advise you what to bring and we have lots of kit available.  For the kayaking we use the sit in kayaks which keep you warm and dry.  A great opportunity for sit 0n top paddlers to try it out.  For the coasteering we have thermal layers and use helmet liners and gloves..simple.

Our open sessions will only go ahead in conditions appropriate to the groups experience. There are some beautiful winter days ahead and what better way to get some exercise, fresh air and experience the beauty and wilderness of Guernsey in the winter..I am feeling better already.

The ‘Bring a friend’ deal runs for over 16’s till April. Our regular sessions run on Saturdays and Sundays but if you have time during the week and would like to go out just give us a call (01481 267627, face book or email) Any excuse!

Our Autumn coasteering trips kicked off with a cracking weather day on Saturday!  We were joined by Liz and Martin from the UK who flew in especially for this trip and arrived at the Sark ferry just as we were boarding!  Introductions to the Guernsey contingent were completed on the pleasant ‘cruise’ over to Sark on the Sark Belle.

We were met by Leah and the Sark adventurers Sheila, Graham, Chris and Mark as we got off the ‘toast rack’ at the top of the hill.  First job was to put our order for food in with Kristina at the Petit Poule.  She was just taking delivery of two huge Seabass caught that morning so it was an easy decision!

After kitting up  in 5mm wetsuits and after finishing the introductions and briefings, we chose the Derrible head cavern route as our days adventure. After a quick stop at the shop to load up with snickers and bottles of water in our buoyancy aids and then a very warm walk to Derrible bay, The guys were ready to get straight into the water.

The next hour was spent in Derrible bay exploring the Geo’s and playing in the swell in some of the cave’s filled with water.  We timed our approach to the Derrible head cavern entrance so that we would be there as it opened.  Always great fun and a little scary as you pop under the water to reappear into a previously unseen chamber.

We explored the Caverns and tested our nerve on some fantastic jumps around the headland.  Everyone eventually tried the jumps, even those with shaking legs! then continued our journey on to Petit Derrible and eventually to Creux harbour with everyone now confident to pick their own routes over the rocks and gullies. Our good humoured group finished the trip passing through the harbour mouth much to the bewilderment of a few folk.

The walk up the hill soon had us looking forward to our meal at Petit Poule so a quick change was in order and we were soon reliving some of the highlights of the day around the courtyard table with a cold beer and fresh seabass, heaven!

Outdoor Guernsey will be running weekly coasteering trips to Sark on Saturdays until December.  We will normally catch the 10am ferry out from Guernsey and return on the 5pm from Sark.  Cost per person £80 includes ferry, harbour transport, meal at Petit Poule and a 3-4 hours coasteering according to the route.

Trip stats:  Start 7:45 from Portelet harbour wind SE F 2-3 and slight swell. Good conditions all the way, The South coast was completed in 2hrs 39 minutes, East coast St Martins point to Bordeaux in 60 minutes. After a short lunch stop the final 11.3 miles of the North and West coast were completed in just under 3 hours.  Our top speed was 5.6 mph with tide and wind assistance in the little Russel just before passing St Sampsons harbour. We managed to cross Lihou causeway with 10 minutes to spare which enabled us to break the 7 hour time. 24.2 miles in total.

That means that 24 of us (excl the Outdoor Guernsey team) conquered this challenge in total  with commitment, determination and……………patience !

Whilst we have raised the profile of Crimestoppers and its confidential telephone No 0800 555 111, the primary motive of this challenge was to raise money for charity.

I am delighted to confirm that the total sum raised will be £20,000

• Ministers dispel health and safety school trip myths

Teachers must no longer be discouraged from taking children on school trips because of misplaced health and safety concerns, Education Secretary Michael Gove and Employment Minister Chris Grayling have said.

A myth-busting statement, prepared by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE), has been published for schools and local authorities – explaining what teachers should consider when organising trips. The statement dispels myths about legal action and encourages all schools to ditch unnecessary paperwork, ensuring that precautions are proportionate to the risks involved.

Newly revised health and safety guidance for schools has also been published by the Department for Education, summarising how the existing health and safety law affects schools, local authorities, governing bodies, and staff – particularly in relation to school trips. This advice has been slashed from 150 pages of unduly complex information to just eight pages.

At the moment, many wrongly schools believe that:

• written risk assessments -  some totalling up to 100 pages – must be completed for every activity that takes place outside of school, such as visits to museums
• teachers must ask parents to complete written consent forms for every school trip or visit.

The new guidance clarifies these myths and urges a common sense approach, making it easier for schools to give pupils more opportunities to learn outside of the classroom.

Education Secretary Michael Gove said:

Children should be able to go on exciting school trips that broaden their horizons. That is why we are cutting unnecessary red tape in schools and putting teachers back in charge.

This new, slimmer advice means a more common sense approach to health and safety. It will make it easier for schools to make lessons more inspiring and fun.

Employment Minister Chris Grayling said:

Memories of our school trips stay with us. Learning outside the classroom brings the curriculum to life and is essential to our children’s development. We cannot let confusion over health and safety requirements deprive them of the opportunities we had.

I want to dispel the myths and remind schools, teachers and local authorities that a disproportionate fear of prosecution should not get in the way of common sense.

The revised guidance:

• summarises the legal duties of head teachers, governing bodies and local authorities on health and safety, and covers activities that take place on and off school premises
• makes clear that a written risk assessment does not need to be carried out every time a school takes pupils on a regular, routine local visit, for example to a swimming pool or museum.
• tackles myths and teachers’ fears about being prosecuted by making the law clearer
• clarifies that parental consent is not necessary for pupils to take part in the majority of off-site activities organised by a school, as most of these activities take place during school hours and are a normal part of a child’s education.

The fear of prosecution is often cited as an obstacle to arranging school trips, but action is rare. In the past five years, only two cases have been brought by the HSE for breaches of health and safety law in relation to school visits and this was where there was evidence of recklessness or a clear failure to follow sensible precautions.

To help schools further, the Department for Education has also developed a ‘one-off’ parental consent form, which covers activities outside the normal school day. These include residential visits in school holidays and at weekends, adventure activities, off-site sporting fixtures outside the school day, and all off-site activities for nursery schools which take place at any time. The consent form will cover all activities and will only need to be signed once, when a child enrols at the school.

Schools will then only need to inform parents in advance of each activity and give them the opportunity to withdraw their child from the activity if they wish, rather than conducting bureaucratic form-filling exercises for every school trip.

http://www.education.gov.uk/inthenews/inthenews/a00191772/150-pages-of-unduly-complex-guidance-slashed-to-just-eight