The nine pupils returned to school yesterday after their ''trip of a lifetime'' spending 17 days in Nepal. This month is the 60th anniversary of Sir Edmund and Sherpa Tensing Norgay's ascent of Everest.
Six of the pupils were completing the trip as a qualifying expedition for their gold Duke of Edinburgh Hillary award, while the remaining three were working towards their silver Duke of Edinburgh awards. The trip was the culmination of more than a year of planning and fundraising of about $71,000.
The pupils - Dave Borrie, Bryn Gibson, Leroy Bird, Liam Crum, Will Douglas, Jonathan Streeter, Will Harrison, Elsa Mannering and Hugh Cocks - were accompanied by principal Mason Stretch, parent Pauline Murphy and team manager and guide, mountaineer Kim Logan.
''I'm very proud of them all, they were well-prepared and fit, open to new experiences, and they handled the trip with aplomb,'' Mr Stretch said.
''They'll be different people as a result of the experience and what they've done is amazing.''
Dave, Hugh and Jonathan (all 17) said meeting and getting to know the Sherpa people was one of the highlights. The group was assisted by three Sherpas and four porters.
''They were amazing people - they'd make good Kiwis,'' Dave said.
''We really got to know them well, which wasn't the case with some of the other groups they worked with, and our group mixed in with them, '' Mr Stretch said.
''We played card games with them and they taught us a few Nepalese card games and we learnt all about their families.''
Visiting a primary school in the small village of Phorste, a Hillary Himalayan Trust school, was another highlight.
The pupils raised $2000 for the 35-pupil school and delivered gifts of donated merino woollen singlets, skipping ropes, rugby and soccer balls and books.
''It was like the whole village turned out to meet us - Mums and grandmas and babies, as all the men were away with groups attempting to climb Everest,'' Hugh said. Dave said the village residents were ''pretty chuffed'' with the gifts.
The school was off the beaten track so did not usually attract the attention of visitors. Sharing a meal with Peter Hillary in Namche and listening to him reading his father's account of the first ascent of Everest, in a letter he sent to the New Zealand Alpine Club three days after his climb was inspirational, the Cromwell pupils said.
''He was such a good orator and it was really amazing to interact with him on his way to Everest,'' Jonathan said.
Visiting base camp was a ''surreal'' experience, with 2500 people camped there ''waiting for the weather to clear so they can go up the mountain,'' he said. lynda.van.kempen@odt.co.nz
