Ever wondered what kayaking is like? On the first day of our Rugged Outdoor Camp, I got to fulfil that dream! We started our day early in the morning at school, where Trainer Aloysius introduced himself to the class. He would be our guide for the next three days. After a short briefing on the day's plan, we boarded the bus to Kallang Water Sports Centre to start on our journey.

Onboard the bus, there was much chatter — after all, how could one not be thrilled to be out as a class since the pandemic had started? Unsurprisingly, time flew by, and we soon reached our destination.

We were in for a rude shock when we alighted. Trainer Aloysius informed us that instead of Kallang Water Sports Centre, the bus driver had mistakenly dropped us off at the wrong destination. Unfortunately, it was too late,as the bus had already left. Our only option was to walk. To make matters worse, 2-1 and 2-2 had already reached the place! Trainer Aloysius periodically scrutinised the map on his phone, leading the path while the entire class trailed behind under the hot sun. “It’s good that you get to exercise your legs,” Mr Hafiz quipped, “after all, you’ll only be using your hands for kayaking later.”

Soon enough, we reached Kallang Water Sports Centre. However, I did a double-take — my image of a "sports centre" did not match what I saw as a “sprawling patch of grass”, “ramshackle shelters”, and “poorly-conditioned neon-coloured kayaks”. Before I could draft a poorly rated Google Review in my head, a bellowing voice broke my train of thought. “Come here boys!” the low male voice said. We turned to see a man wearing a thick pink coloured life jacket and colourful polarised sunglasses standing under a shelter. “Come, quickly sit down,” he repeated. A hulking young woman stood beside him. “Yeah, the longer you guys take, the less time you would have to kayak later,” she said in her high-pitched, nonchalant voice. I groaned but told myself that the nagging would be worth it.

After a short safety briefing by the male instructor, we put on our dusty life jackets and stuffed our backpacks into a locker that looked so rusty and dented it looked like it belonged in a museum exhibition on ancient relics. We then shoved our kayaks out of the storage rack — something requiring more strength than I had anticipated. Thankfully, with the help of other classmates, including Xavier, my partner, we managed to lug the kayaks onto the shoreline.

The instructors gave us a short Kayaking 101 crash course, where we learnt how to grip the paddle, how to move the kayak, and how to stop it. The movements felt unnatural to me, and I started to panic. However, I reassured myself that I would slowly get better once we got into the water.

“Time to go in, boys!” the male instructor shouted. A shiver tingled down my spine. One by one, we pushed our kayaks into the water. Sploosh! Xavier got onto the kayak first since he was heavier than I. That meant that I had to take the front seat which was fully immersed in water. A nightmare struck me: How could I get onto the kayak without getting entirely wet in the knee-deep water? Others faced the same predicament, and I saw an instructor yelling at them for being afraid to step into the water. Not wanting to get scolded, I bit the bullet and hastily put my feet into the murky water, where I then lunged my body onto the kayak. After a little bit of wobbling initially, our kayak stabilised. We did it! We were in the water! We didn’t turn turtle!

Our job was to follow the lead instructor to different checkpoints. It took me some time to get used to the rowing technique, but once we felt comfortable enough, we managed to kayak our way from the Kallang Basin to Marina Barrage for the next hour. We kayaked by landmarks, such as the Singapore Stadium, Esplanade Theatre, and Marina Barrage. Seeing these engineering marvels from the river was a mind-blowing experience. We even kayaked under an expressway bridge, where we got much-needed respite from the blistering sun. Looking up at the structural magnificence of the gargantuan bridge was indeed a sight out of this world. The sheer scale of the bridge was simply phenomenal - its bare concrete pillars rooted deeply into the clear water, its mighty concrete foundation bearing the weight of hundreds of heavy vehicles.

After an hour, we finished our journey at the other end of the Kallang River. Fully soaked, we got off the kayaks, before proceeding to collect our lunch, which were stored in plastic bags at the foot of a tree. Some ate under the shade to escape the unforgiving heat, while others stood under the sun, hoping to dry themselves. We had an hour to tuck into our meals and to also engage in banter with each other.

Once we were done eating, we went back to our kayaks fully re-energised. The female instructor informed us that we would now embark on a more intensive route where we would kayak all the way to Marina Barrage, to the deep end of the Kallang Basin, and then kayak back to our starting point. I was plagued with fear, as I was not sure if I could handle such a long route. Nonetheless, with Xavier and I encouraging each other along the way, I mentally prepared myself for kayaking under the heat for two hours straight.

Halfway through the two hour journey, I began to feel tired. My hand had minor cuts from the paddle and blisters were starting to form around my fingers. My legs ached from the lack of movement in the kayak. Because of this, Xavier and I played safe and conserved energy for the later stretch of our journey. Suddenly, the female instructor made us gather at the far end of Marina Barrage and announced: “Since we have some time on our hands, we will be playing a fun little game! A water splashing game!” Some classmates started cheering, and suddenly, water splashed onto our shirts! I looked up drearily, and to my horror, people were all splashing water at us! “Argh!” I screeched and started splashing water at others too. It was a fun albeit messy experience.

As we continued, things started to get r-ough. By then, Xavier and I had already used up all our energy. My arms simply could not keep up with any more kayaking. As such, we took turns to kayak every few minutes — much like an aeroplane flying only on one functional engine. I turned around, and miraculously, saw that we weren’t the last in the race! Motivated by this new revelation, I started to paddle harder in a valiant effort to not fall behind.

Before we knew it, our arduous journey had finally come to a stop. We had reached the Kallang Water Sports Centre, where we had started more than four hours ago. An immense sense of pride filled my heart. “Finally!” I exclaimed. We lifted up our kayaks and placed them back on the rack. We changed out of our wet clothes, and headed back into the bus.

It had been a long day. I was glad to be back in school and then finally home.