Waitawheta is a great place for an outdoor adventure like this. Easily accessible from the Auckland area where most of the kids come from. Rich in history with plenty of relics of the gold mining days. A beautiful bush draped river for kayaking and eeling. Tramping in the Kaimai Ranges at the doorstep.
Rock faces aplenty to learn abseiling skills.
The camp we stay at is an old school complex with ample playing area around it. A good kitchen and almost enough hot water makes it a haven at the end of a winters day on the river or in the bush. Kids in the ten to thirteen age range who could benefit from a few days of this life are identified to clubs by schools, church groups and other community organizations. We have managed to hold costs to this level for the past five years by getting more outside sponsors of food and transport as time goes by. We target 32 kids, which falls nicely into four teams of eight, with a ratio of two kids to one adult helper.