Over the past 18 months we've really missed camping and other outdoor activities Guides normally do. We also realised that we've got lots of new Guides who've never been to Guide camp. So we decided that we'd run a one-day event to start off the new school year, when they could try out lots of different things.
We were extremely lucky with the weather (the Saturdays on either side were really wet!), with sunshine from start to finish.
We created four patrols for the day, and had four different activities for them to take part in - Crafts, Backwoods Cooking, Archery and Camp Skills.
We asked our very able Rangers to run the Crafts activities, which included painting canvases (Guide UMA - Painting under pressure and Pass the paintbrush) and soap carving.
Camp Skills included putting up a tent, and then taking it down and getting it back into the bag. Stuffing a sleeping bag into its bag, and practicing knots.
Backwoods Cooking involved learning to light fires with fire steels, cooking over fires - camp pot noodles and chocolate bananas were just part of the menu.
They all earned their Backwoods Cooking Interest Badge, their Camp Skills Builder stage 3, and a Newbigging Archery Badge.
The day closed with a campfire, and the other thing we'd all been missing - the chance to sing campfire songs together!
And we sent home 29 happy and tired Guides.
