Cath, 55, completed her first Raleigh Expedition in 1987, but returned to Raleigh in September 2021 as a Re:Green Volunteer Manager.
28th April 2022
Cath, 55, is a former teacher. She completed her first Raleigh Expedition in 1987 in Tasmania. Cath joined the four-week Re:Green programme as a Volunteer Manager in September 2021, spending time on an 11-day trek, and working on project sites at Kintail and Glen Affric in Scotland’s Western Highlands.
Before coming on Re:Green, I was teaching economics and business enterprise, as well as being head of careers, at a school in Dorset. I’d been doing that role for the last 14 years and had decided to take voluntary redundancy.
I also liked the idea of a four-week programme that would give me a chance to learn some new conservation skills and challenge myself on the trek. The first part of the project was the two-week trek from Fort William through to Kintail. I’ll be honest, I was quite nervous to take a backpack and wild camp, which I’ve not done for a very long time.
Completing the trek gave me a real sense of achievement and I don’t think I will properly appreciate it until I look back on it after a few months. I think we walked 158km in total – maybe more. It was a long way and very hilly.
I didn’t know what was natural forest and what was planted by someone else, like rhododendrons. That knowledge is all new. I like the idea of rewilding and it’s something I’m really interested in.
It’s been great to learn about Scotland’s rainforest and spread the word about why we need to protect it. Re:Green is so important in terms of the positive impact on the environment and the education that spreads out from us, the local community, to people walking through the area.
When I applied to do Raleigh way back in 1985, I was a 6th form student. In December of 1986 I flew to Hobart, Tasmania for three months. The first phase involved repairing and trekking the Overland Track. The second phase was mammalian studies. We spent three and a half weeks, looking for the Tasmanian tiger, watching wombats (who have square poos!), quolls, and all these amazing nocturnal marsupials. The final phase was the adventure phase where you could go white water rafting down the Franklin River, or hiking in Fraser national park. It was a real adventure.
I knew I had another adventure in me, so when I left my role at the school, it felt like a good time to complete the circle through Re:Green, revisit some of the things that I’d done and see how things had changed.
I think when you get to my age, you pretty much know who you are, but you can still have aims. I’ve done some big challenges – but this is the biggest one I’ve done, for a long time. I’ve got to that point in my life where I do have more choices than I ever did. And not many people would choose to come and do this. So, I’m quite proud of myself but sometimes I think I’m slightly mad – and probably am!
I’m still developing who I am and it’s really important that you never stop doing that. What I’ve learned about myself on Re:Green is that I can still do it. Age is no barrier, it’s only in your head, although it is harder – my knees hurt!
For a young person that volunteers, anything that challenges them, changes their perceptions, and stretches them in any way, is going to be good. And it looks great on your CV from a careers point of view.
Volunteer in Scotland on a 3-week Re:Green programme
Re:Green is an opportunity to take part in an immersive 3, 5 or 6 week programme in the Western Highlands of Scotland. You will lead our teams of young volunteers on a conservation and/or youth leadership trek project, or ensure the safe completion of these projects from our remote office with the support of Raleigh International’s UK staff.
Find out more about our Volunteer Manager roles