Our mark-makers* got their sea (well, river) legs out recently. In what some might describe as the Chipping Norton Armada, our 2024 Summer Social was meant to be spent meandering down the River Wye. A few of us had other, more competitive ideas – yes, we’re looking at you here, Ali.

We descended on the Saracens Head, Symonds Yat, for a delicious lunch. Of course, there was the pre-boarding banter. And a ‘boat draw’ to see who would get what canoe.

Then we embarked on our trip with the weather in fine fettle. Here are some of our highlights:

The scenery 

Few words do the banks of the River Wye justice. Even our copywriters are struggling. Imagine Middle Earth (Lord of the Rings) meets Isla Nublar (Jurassic Park) without the hobbits and the velociraptors, and you’re there. We saw cows bathing, kingfishers darting, and sheep grazing. We even found a client services director stranded on a rock.

The competition

There were certain members who, of course, couldn’t resist a bit of good ‘ol competition – flat-out sprints, low-hanging tree limbos, and dominating bridge slaloms – everything was on the table, which meant a challenge every 500 metres. After careful consideration, we think the honours over the day – ahem, event – were even.

The fun 

Where do we start with this? While one team bottomed out on the shallow rapids, others were a gnat’s wing width from capsizing. Then there were those endless challenges – one of which saw our dynamic duo of Mike and Hannah go headlong into a bridge pier. Fortunately, no one was injured. There may have been a few painful bellies from all the laughter.

In summary, it was nine miles of relaxation, guffaw and adventure. Pretty great combination in our experience. We may have been a little sore the next day – but that did not detract from the memories made.

Thank you to the Scaracens Head for our incredible lunch and the Wyedean Canoe and Adventure Centre for pushing us off and welcoming us back. Some of us have eyes firmly set on the 2028 LA Olympic rowing events.