Survival Camp

Oct 6th - 7th   

In Memory of Doris who was a supporter of the Scout Group and in celebration of the Scouting Spirit we, that is, the Cub Scout Leaders from Tuesday and Friday Cubs, decided to have an annual camping competition. Doris had supplied us with a trophy and so all we needed was to organise a camp.

On Friday 5th we all gathered at the Scutt to load the Cubs kit and all that we would need to make the weekend work into the trailer and Akela's cars and prepare ourselves for the forthcoming ordeal.

The Cubs on the camp were, Sophie, Chelsea, Lily, Ben, Emaline, Kelsy, Matthew. Dan, Bradley, Sam F( Friday Cubs) Sam F (Tuesday Cubs), Holly, Ollie, Harry, Alex, Megan, James B, James K, Euan, Jack, Josh, Lucy and Kyle, Leaders included, Akela (x 2), Hathi (x1), Sheena (Beaver Leader), Jane and Carol (Parents) and Gemma, daughter of one of the Cooks Team.

The Camp started with a little walk, we were dropped of at The Rising Sun at Pensford and walked on the pavement to our off-road starting point.

The Akela's got out and applied the camo-cream to those Cubs that needed it. Akela (Andy) got out some maps and would not move on until someone had pointed to our location on the map and which direction we should be setting off in. The older Friday Cubs remembered from last year so were excluded from this little exercise. The fact that sweeties were on offer for correct answers meant that this was a lot more interesting for the Cubs. Tuesday Cubs led off, in the right direction, and up our first slope we went. Across a large field to a stile over a raging piranha infested torrent, or as the Cubs called it a puddle.

More Cubs earned sweeties as they correctly pointed to our location on the map and gave us a new direction. Akela (Andy) wondered if the leading Cubs would walk past the stile into the next field but they were too wise and we stopped again to check location and direction. Through to the next field and the Cubs ran down the slope into a thicket as there was an opportunity for Akela (Andy) to play pooh sticks. Fmuck (used cow food) flew everywhere as Akela tried out his golf swing.

Through the thicket (on the map marked as a green patch with tree symbol) across another stream, another slope to climb and it was here that three deer were seen bounding across the field, startled no doubt by the loudness of the Cubs chattering. At the end of this field was the entrance to Lords Wood, we had made really good time, but decided to break for an early lunch anyway.

We tried a different route into the woods and Friday Cubs were unable to use their prior knowledge of the route and had to work for their sweeties. Our new route took us past a large pond / small lake with plastic duck decoys on it. This was explained to the Cubs and nobody seemed upset by the situation. Onward further into the woods, we found a couple of lean-to structures. This it was pointed out to the Cubs was where some game birds gained shelter and food from the feeders. At each branch of the road the maps came out and sweeties changed hands as the Cubs learned about maps and following a route.

Eventually we found the path to the camp site across the stream via a small 'Troll-Free' bridge, up a steep bank to the camping field. We had arrived! Ian had arrived earlier and put the Mess tent up so a brew was on, the Cubs had a drink and cake before getting the tents out of the trailer and in two teams of boys and two teams of girls put up the tents. The adult Leaders watched and when forced to, helped. We had a lot of things that we had planned to do and taking all day to put the tents up was not one of them.

We had three bases, Backwoods cooking with Akela (Andy), dam building with Akela (Rich) and bivvy building with Hathi. The Cubs seemed to enjoy these activities, some of the bivvys looked good enough to sleep in. Sam's one person wigwam made of bamboo canes was very impressive, it fitted him like a glove. Matthew and a Tuesday Cub whose name I've forgotten was the bivvy that the older Cubs decided to sleep in. The two designed by Hathi were overlooked    (but at least they stayed up overnight though).

The Backwoods cooking was popular, eating and watching food cook on a real live fire is normally high on the list of good things to do on camp. James K got to kiss another fish, (A tradition that goes back to his first camp when he was a little wobbly with home-sickness and after kissing a fish everything just got better.) Foil baked stew, baked fruit with chocolate, and other mouth watering dishes were cooked. An egg cooked in a scooped out orange was cooked for Hathi as it is his favourite.( Thank you who ever it was that cooked it)

The Dam building involved the other great treat for Cubs, the chance to get muddy and wet without having anyone shouting at them. Strangely the Cubs really enjoyed this activity as well. Just how deep the dammed water became has not been reported but it was deep and wet and that's what is important

We celebrated Sophie's Birthday by toasting her with water. Happy Birthday Sophie!!

Tea was "Spag-Bol" or "Spag" or "Bol" this added to the backwoods cooking was enough to keep the Cubs going for hours.

After tea, while the Cooks Team cleared up the remains, The Cubs were entertained by some Wide Games, while it was still fairly light Akela (Rich) went out into the camp site with a load of letters on laminated paper and placed them carefully in selected places. The Cubs were given a map of the camp site and had to mark where they had found each letter and what the letter was. Once all the letters had been found they would spell out a word or words relevant to the camp. In groups of two or three the Cubs set of, some of the letters were easy to find and some were not, the Cubs soon realised that the words were survival camp but had to find and mark the locations on the map to have finished the game. This was made more difficult as it started to get dark but it added to the fun.

Once it was dark enough Akela (Rich) went off and hid. After a loud count of fifty the Cubs set of after him. This took a while as he kept moving and ended up sat with the Leaders near the fire. Once found the Cubs decided that it would nice if they went out and hide and the Leaders searched for them. The obvious flaw in this plan that the Leaders might not bother to rush out but instead have a nice cup of tea before wandering out did not seem to occur to the Cubs. Akela (Andy) had a secret weapon, a couple of Firework rockets were sent up with a most satisfyingly loud boom that echoed around the area, Cubs heads popped up all over the place to find out what the noise was all about and were found, Hathi when out looking had the fright of his life as he almost stepped on a Cub, that much adrenalin in his poor old body was definitely not what he needed. Several more rockets and another chance to wander around a huge field looking for hidden Cubs was next. The grass had been recently cut which made it a lot easier, if we had tried this at the District Sixers Camp the long grass would have made it almost impossible. I would like to note that this was the quietest the Cubs were on the entire camp, shame it didn't last!

It was now long enough after tea that more cooking was a good idea, while Akela (Rich) amused the Cubs with his campfire songs Akela (Andy) and Hathi were slaving over some extremely hot coals in the Bar-B-Q pit. What wasn't consumed on the night would be kept for the morning. Once the Cubs were fed and watered (hot-chocolated?) they were ready for bed.

The older Cubs Ollie, Alex, Dan and Matthew (Harry should have been with them but had to be medi-vaced by his Dad as he had developed a nasty migraine) chose their bivvy and were given survival sacks in a fetching orange shade, they settled down nicely, as did all the rest of the Cubs and after what seemed the twinkling of an eye or, rather, several hours later they all fell quiet. Well nearly everybody went quiet, the Bivvy collapsed as the main support was knocked over by a Cub rolling over in his sleep. Repair was out of the question as it was too dark so the Cubs spent part of the night under the stars, which sadly were hidden behind some high clouds.

Sunday. . .

. . .dawned with blue sky and warm sunshine, thanks sun-god!! It was cover to cover blue sky lovely!

Breakfast was cooked while the cubs laid in their tents talking 'quietly' to each other and after a visit to the ablution block to wash and freshen up the Cubs sat down to cereal and then a cooked breakfast, a few sausages and burgers from last night were on the menu as was eggy-bread and beans, some of us would be in good voice for later in the day.

Akela (Rich) went of and set up the long slide. A high point of the Cubs weekend. A short safety talk from the Leaders and after a short game of guess the number Akela (Andy) was thinking of - this involved being sprayed with water if the wrong answer was given - the first of the Cubs ran and slide down the plastic sheets lubricated with an environmentally friendly washing up liquid, most of the Cubs gave a squeal of delight as their bodies touched the water, which had been cooling all night in the underground pipes. As the Cubs ran out of enthusiasm they were rinsed off and sent to change into dry warm clothes.

All to soon it was time to take the tents down, they had dried really well in the warm sunshine, the Cubs kit was packed into Akela's (Both) cars and almost everything else into the trailer. Once back at the Scutt the trailer was unloaded and everything put into a tidy pile. The Cubs were reunited with their parents, certificates were handed out to everybody and the winners of the camp competition announced - It was a tie - both Packs had been excellent, well behaved, with one or two small exceptions, they know who they are because Akela (Andy) shouted at them!

Thanks to:- Akela x 2 for organising and running the camp, for Carol and Jane foe walking, cooking and making the camp look wonderful. Thanks to Sandra for helping to pre-prepare the tea on Friday night, thanks to Ian and Dave for the cooking and help in setting up and taking down the camp and bringing the news that we had stuffed the Aussies in the Rugby World Cup! To Sheena and Hathi for being there and doing the things that no-one else wanted to do. A really big thank you to the Parent that could be bothered to provide transport to and from the camp it would not have happened without your support.

The result being a tie could be seen as a cop-out but it really was impossible to choose between the two Packs. I'm sure that Doris would have approved.