– Thanks to funds obtained from the Bolesławiec County Office, we were able to present the young people with an unusual form of physical activity: a 12-kilometre walk with poles, during which all the muscles work – explains Rafał Kotlarski, the rally coordinator and Nordic walking instructor. – To make our event even more attractive, we decided to prepare tasks along the entire route, with a chest full of treasures as the reward for completing them.
Walking with poles may seem easy, but practising Nordic walking correctly requires training. The first challenge for the rally participants was therefore learning the proper stride and maintaining an upright posture. It was difficult, but exercises with vivid names such as “the stick and the lame old man” helped the students remember the most important principles.
At the edge of Bukowy Las, the participants split into competing groups and set off to look for signs left on the trees. It was a real race—who would spot a sign first and then solve a rhyming riddle and find the hidden package. The “blue” group found a supply of water for the entire group, while the “white” group located provisions. Walking with poles became fantastic fun and, at the same time, made things easier, because it allowed them to walk faster.
When the participants reached the bridge over the motorway, three mysterious keys were waiting for them, enabling them to obtain an “old” map showing the route to the treasure. The map did its job: after just a few moments, the participants hauled a large metal chest out of a pile of leaves and carried it by its handles—on a long pine pole, like pirates—all the way to the rally finish.
The event culminated in a shared barbecue of sausages at a hunting lodge made available by the Military Hunting Association. After a quick meal, the chest full of... delicious sweets was officially opened, and the treats, together with certificates, were handed out to the students.
A photographic report from the rally can be found on www.trek.org.pl.
(information: TREK Social Activity Association)