My First Troop Camp

Details

Written by Ursula Wilbraham

Published: 08 January 2020

WRITTEN BY DANIEL WILBRAHAM

As the sun rose on 16 December, I felt a wave of exhilaration… I was about to go on my first five-day troop camp!

We all arrived at the scout hall to help pack the gear that had to go with us to Vogelvlei. Once all the tents, poles, ropes, food, sup boards, kayaks and other gear had been loaded, we departed at 12h00 and arrived at our destination just after 13h00.

It was very hot when we arrived, but despite the heat we pitched tents and built a gateway. After all that hard work we dashed off for a swim and wallowed in the tepid dam water until sunset. The six sup boards and kayaks as well as the Saldanha were launched with great enthusiasm! What a privilege to have had access to all the awesome water sports equipment.

One of the highlights of troop camp was the banquet which was held on our last evening. The theme was “Gaming” and we were all given the names of “gaming” characters which we had to stick to throughout the banquet. Whenever we wanted to ask or say something, we had to use “gamer” lingo and anyone who didn’t do so had to participate in a skit from a computer game with other scouts who had also broken the rules.

Dean van Schoor organized a wide game which involved collecting a number of picture squares which made up a complete picture of Dora the Explorer. The first patrol to complete the picture won the game and the losing patrol had to cook dinner. The winners were allowed to eat first.

Another fun game was run by Hannah Murphy. It involved throwing a raw egg from one person to the next without breaking it. You can imagine how that went! Shortly afterwards, Guppie appeared with a bucketful of water balloons and then it was war!

Several of us participated in building a gladiator platform on the water using poles and ropes. The greatest fun was had when we had to try and knock each other off it.

All too soon the final day of camp arrived and after breakfast we started packing up. After the closing parade our parents arrived and we flopped into cars for the long drive back home. Despite our exhaustion, we all pitched in with the unpacking when we reached the scout hall and then said our goodbyes.

Thank you Ray, Nick and Guppie for an AWESOME troop camp!

My First Troop Camp Back in SA

Details

Written by Ursula Wilbraham

Published: 08 January 2020

WRITTEN BY SHETH ASHLEY COOPER

On 16 December we all arrived at the scout hall to help with the packing for troop camp. Fitting in with the troop was effortless as it seemed as though I had never left and it was amazing to see old friends once again.

We departed at around 12h00 and arrived at Vogelvlei just after 13h00. Then it was the pitching of tents and building a gateway. It was extremely hot and no one needed a second invitation to go for a swim in the dam. We were fortunate enough to have six sup boards and six kayaks at our disposal as well as the Saldanha. To me this was a very different troop camp as I had never been to Vogelvlei before and the water sports made the whole experience even better!

On one of the days we participated in a wide game which was run by Dean van Schoor. The game involved collecting a series of picture squares which made up a complete picture of Dora the Explorer. The first patrol to complete the picture won and the losing patrol had to cook dinner for everyone. The winners ate first.

We also played a game whereby you had to throw a raw egg from one person to the next without breaking it. The egg didn’t make it…

Another fun activity was building a gladiator platform on the water using poles and ropes. The aim was to try and knock each other off it. Several of us got very wet.

On our last evening we held a banquet. The theme was “Gaming” and it was very cool even though I didn’t know many of the characters. Any request had to be said in “gamer” language and anyone who didn’t comply had to participate in a “gaming” skit with other scouts who had also failed to comply. We were all given names of “gaming” characters and we had to stick to those names during the entire banquet.

The next day was the final day of the camp and we started packing up fairly early. Then our parents arrived and it was the closing parade and the long drive back to Durbanville. However, all was not over because when we arrived back at the scout hall, we had to unpack everything neatly.

A BIG thank you to everyone who helped to make this five-day camp fun!