In that area of mid-Wales there are spectacular walks and one of the distinguishing features of DWS was the freedom we had to wander over the countryside at will.

Every Saturday afternoon we were summoned to the gym where two senior girls were assigned four juniors to take for a walk. The seniors signed a book stating which juniors they were taking and in which direction they were going but beyond that there were no restrictions.

The three favourite walks were Torrent Walk, which meandered through woods skirting a tributary of the River Wnion, the Cader walk which went over the moors and foothills of the Cader range and Precipice Walk which took us in a circle on the north side of the main Bala to Barmouth road.

The moorland was carpeted with bilberries. They were small and sweet: our hands were soon dyed a dark purplish blue, I can still conjure the taste of those delicious sweet berries.