1st Durbanville Scout Group

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Springbok Camp

WRITTEN BY NINA AGUSTIN

I was recently invited to help at Hendré’s Springbok camp, which took place at Hawequas from 24 to 26 June. We all arrived at Hawequas at around 11h00 on the Monday and spent the next few hours setting up camp.

Staffing at a Springbok Camp

WRITTEN BY OLIVER MURPHY

Having attended many Scout camps over the last 5 years or so - including 2 Springbok camps, 5 first class camps and countless other overnight camps run by the Scouts - I have a good idea of what makes a successful camp. In most cases I have enjoyed all of them, so I was rather pleased to be invited to Hendré's Springbok camp this holiday. There were 23 Scouts on this camp including myself.

I was asked to help as “staff” along with Tara and Nina. We left 1^st Durbanville Scout hall in a convoy at about 09h00 on 24 June for the Hawequas Scout Ranch in Wellington. Everyone helped to transport the equipment. Campsites were allocated at the “terraces” and the scouts were divided into three patrols of 6 each. The patrols set up their tents and campsites, while I and the other staffers set up our own tents and camp. After Hendré had briefed the patrols, we ate our packed lunches and commenced with base rotations that consisted of basic first aid knowledge and knots.

After base rotations, we did campsite developments where scouts were given a certain amount of time to build tables, bins, a border, a gateway and wash-ups. So far so good. However, the wind started to pick up just as we were preparing dinner (at around 17h00) and that made the working conditions rather unpleasant. The menu for the first night's dinner was “beef stew potjie“. There were a variety of special dietary needs among the 23 of us and all were catered for. Maybe not gourmet food for the vegetarians... but the beef stew was a success. We settled down in our tents after dinner, as the wind had worsened. The wind raged on throughout the night and our staff tent lost its tent poles, which meant an early morning start for us!

The new day started at 7am (for everyone else) just before sunrise. However, the fierce wind forced us to have breakfast at the wooden lodge. The day consisted of base rotations, a wide game and alien vegetation clearing near the river. The black wattle which we removed, was used for building the backwoods shelters. Unfortunately, we could not use the shelters as the wind was just too strong. Dinner was backwoods cooking for the patrols and the staff had a vegetarian potjie that was enjoyed by all. We used the leftover black wattle to build a small wind break around the campfire and most of us sat around the small fire during the evening. We all enjoyed bread with a bit of sugar on it as a snack (simple pleasures!) and then settled in for another windy night.

The next day consisted of playing Kim’s game and after a lunch of bacon and egg rolls, we deconstructed the camp and prepared for departure. The patrol headed by Zoe Le Roux (PL) and Matthew Stead (APL) with patrol members Reece, Stephen, Hannah and Luca, was declared the winning patrol of the camp. We arrived back at the Scout hall at around 14h30 and everyone helped to unpack. We headed home for that all-important hot shower.

Another successful camp completed! I wish Hendré all the best in his Springbok journey.

A Midsummer's Day in Cape Town

Wrtitten by Hendré Barnard

Wellington is not a place known for comfortable temperatures at any time of the year; today was no different. It was the day of my camp and I was ready! So was the colossal ball of conflagration known as the sun. Instantly, upon leaving the cool comfort of an air-conditioned car, I was slammed by a wall of stifling heat, void of any humidity. Like a child having to leave for school in the morning, I trudged over the crunchy sand to heave the many well-worn bags into a fleeting spot of blissful shade, taking each chance to drown my rapidly parching throat in horrifyingly lukewarm water. By the time we had finished unpacking the sweat was gleaming off me like a mirror in the sun, soaking into my shirt in a similar fashion to how my eyes were absorbing the unspoiled landscape placed before me. Vast stretches of verdant trees on one side, the charcoal skeletons of their unfortunate brethren on the other. It was a quiet bliss, only spoiled by the crunching of boots on the hard-baked ground beneath me.

Birds chattered in the distance as a light breeze picked up, gracing us with a gentle touch laced with a cloud of fine dust which adhered to our gooey skin. Aromas of sand invaded our nostrils, reminding us of just how barren our campsite was. A rocky patch nestled between several rugged pine trees was the location for a pioneering table to be built. Lashings were made and tightened to the point of gruesome cracking noises from the smooth wooden staves and grunts of pain from the raw rope burn on my hands. The completed frame looked wonderful, but it still needed a table on top! Heaving with my upper body I lugged the scorching grey metal table with its creaky legs onto the frame and viola, our workspace was finished and the reflection glared in the waning summer sun.

Orange light spilt through the skies as the sun plunged below the wooded horizon and the air settled down allowing the gentle scent of pine trees to fill the air. The comfort of sagging temperatures was almost immediate, sighs of relief were released all around. A vote was held about swimming, and a unanimous result led to us trekking up the hill towards the dam. Clapping flip-flops followed us up the steep slopes which exerted some strain on our weary legs. But it was all so worth it because nestled between emerald green trees, was our rounded reprieve. A grey cement dam illuminated by the filtered sunlight of dusk. Kaploosh! The sound of a tremendous splash filled the air when we all barrelled into the murky water. Every inch of skin enveloped in a cool watery blanket in which we couldn’t see a thing but could feel the coarse cement bottom under our toes. Sweaty slime was purged from our bodies in the aqueous abyss in which we were immersed, gentle ripples lapped against our sun-kissed shoulders and echoed against the low walls of the pond.

Once the sun had all but disappeared beyond the trees it was time to get out. A whispering breeze rustled the trees and sent icy shivers racing down our spines. In the empty darkness of dusk, we wrapped woollen towels around our dripping bodies as we quietly chattered on the slow walk back to camp over the parched ground. You could never ask for a more perfect day in Cape town, shrouded between aromatic pine trees that danced in the wind to the lively symphonies of crickets. That was the last thing I could think of before I gave in to the cosy comfort of my sleeping bag…

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Welcome to 1st Durbanville Scouts

The 1st Durbanville Scout Group is part of the Kanonkop District in Cape Town, Cape Western, South Africa. Scouting is a worldwide youth development organisation. It develops young people socially, gets them involved in the community, and teaches them many life and leadership skills. Our troop is over 50 years old and has both boy and girl scouts. The Durbanville Scouts are a very strong team and feature well in most of the Scout competitions. Please sign our guestbook while you are here.