After some frantic last minute running around collecting the bus Hathi and Rich, putting ALL the equipment and Cub's bags into a trailer borrowed from the 107th (Akela and Alison), rushing into Bristol to get a last minute blue woggle for a Cub that will remain nameless. You know who you are Ryan. We managed to meet at the HQ at about 15:30 ready for a 16:15 departure. Camp rules were explained again and Cubs were assigned vehicles. The lucky ones being placed in Hathi's brand new company car.
At about 16:30 we set off and through Bristol the convoy was broken up. Steve was pulling the trailer and missed the bus going into a garage to fuel-up. So Hathi followed Rich who was driving the bus onto the M32 and then the M4 and watched as Rich tried to wrest the title of "Mr. Wrong-Way" from Hathi as he only just managed to get onto the M48 for the old Severn Crossing. However on the Welsh side he managed to take the title from Hathi by missing the turn-off for Chepstow, we drove up onto the roundabout over the M48 and watched the bus disappear into the sunshine. The Cubs were most impressed by this and some may mention it in their journals.
Akela had got the keys for Beaver Lodge and was waiting for us as we arrived, his question of "Where's Rich?" was met by a chorus of "Rich is still on the Motorway!" We started to unload the trailer and after a short while Rich turned up with some very relieved Cub, they thought that they might not get back in time for the activities.
The Camp tee shirts were handed out and the tents were put up, the girls had their tent up before the boys had finished discussing who was going to hold the mallets! The Leaders relented and helped the boys out, but the Leaders tents were left for later as it was getting late.
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The Cub's packed tea was taken out and eaten. It was getting late and the Cubs were getting hungry and restless. So we started the night hike just as dusk was falling, the late start changed the route slightly making it shorter. Something the Cubs were grateful for. Akela had been winding the Cubs up with stories of the 'lesser known Forest of Doom giant ant' and how we would be going very close to one of it's nests. By the time we had got to the 'ant hill' a small mound in a flat glade several of the Cubs were very worried indeed, they were not helped by Hathi going onto the 'ant hill' and stamping on it to wake them up so that the Cubs could see them. The worried Cubs were now very concerned and took some reassuring that it had all been a wind-up. Some of them are still convinced that the ants exist.
The long drag down through the forest past the graveyard was endured by the Cubs as it meant that we were going back for some more food. The fussy Cubs that did not like veggie soup were given minestrone, or veggie soup that had been put through a colander. There were no complains so we had got away with it.
Bed time with dire warnings about mid-night feasts being forbidden came around quickly, and the Leaders settled down to make the sandwiches for the next day. After this they sat out side to look at the stars, we recognised The Great Bear, The Plough, Ursa Major and lots of others that we did not know. At 01:30 two girls were awake, or talking in their sleep so they were threatened with not being allowed to canoe if they were too tired.
Leaders to bed 02:00