Kilmarnock teen on trip to South America

Jul 25 2008 by Lizzie Struthers, Kilmarnock Standard

TEENAGER Katie Barclay braved the high seas for a children’s television show.

The 13-year-old from Kilmarnock sailed the coast of South America as part of CBBC’s adventure show called Serious Ocean.

She was one of eight teenagers who navigated the rough waters of Chile and Cape Horn on the cramped conditions of the ship Valhalla for a month.

The team, which was nicknamed ‘Ocean’s Eight,’ also carried out environmental work including counting Magellanic penguins and watching black-browed albatross nests, as well as placing a satellite tracking beacon on an elephant seal.

The teenage adventurers also climbed a glacier to bore measuring holes for future research and spent a night in a snow hole.

Katie, a pupil at Grange Academy, beat 16,000 kids to win a place on the adventure show.

She said: “It was a dream come true to be selected to take part in this expedition.

“It was hard work to sail the boat in the cold winds, and being with people every moment of every day was a struggle, but to get so close to beautiful animals like elephant seals was fantastic.

“I missed my friends and home but I would have stayed twice as long if I could. The scenery was amazing and it’s hard to believe that I was able to get this opportunity to see such an unspoilt wilderness.”

To watch Katie’s adventures, the Serious Ocean series is being shown on BBC One at 4.35pm on Wednesdays and on Saturdays.