In August, our scout troop went to Braggers Wood Scout camp in the New Forest. On arrival, we set up our tents. Some of the numerous activities we did were kayaking, horse riding and a visit to Brownsea Island. At camp we slept in hammocks, which Rishi said ‘felt like sleeping on clouds’, and cooked our own breakfast such as pancakes. We also had a fabulous barbeque on the beach. On our trip to Brownsea Island, which Thomas described as ‘fab’, we visited the site of the first scout camp, where Lord Baden Powell took 20 boys to develop scouting skills. We also saw lots of interesting wildlife, such as peacocks, red squirrels, deer and a frog. It was great. In addition, we whittled our own cutlery, which was Zohan’s favourite activity, as well as doing crate stacking, which Amy described as ‘really fun’. To top it off, we made our own pizza using the campsite’s pizza oven which, according to Finn, was ‘amazing’.

The expedition challenge is a scouting event in Surrey, where a team of at least 4 people competes over 2 nights and 1.5 days to win a plaque. During the 2 days, tasks such as route planning, pitching of tents and quality of food were assessed. Competition teams were completely self-sufficient carrying all their kit with them over the 2 days whereas the training teams left their kit at the campsite.

The expedition challenge was a brilliant experience for scouts across Surrey. After we had finished, we all felt a huge sense of accomplishment and achievement. All the scouts have improved their map reading and navigation skills. It was hard to keep on top of all the tasks, but I think that is what made it so much fun and interesting. It was the equivalent to a Duke of Edinburgh Bronze Award expedition; doing this at the age of 13 is quite a tough thing to do! We congratulate 1^st Hinchley Wood for winning and everybody for trying their best and thank the leaders for sacrificing their weekends for our benefit.

Alice says “I had the time of my life navigating through the vast hills of Surrey”. Rishikesh says “I thought it helped build team working skills, I’m very proud of my accomplishment and I feel I have grown as an individual .” Dylan says “It was an amazing weekend where scouts could put to use the valuable skills they have learned in meetings and on training hikes.”

From the 4^th Weybridge competition team: Alice, Rishikesh, Lauren & Peter

Congratulations to our scouts who braved the wind & rain on Sunday 3rd March to attempt to climb the equivalent height of Scafell Pike

Congratulations Harry & James on your Chief Scout Gold awards!

Glorious day for scrub clearing on Chobham Common – before & after – well done scouts and thanks Surrey Wildlife Trust!

Scouts at the Helm

4th Weybridge scouts join 500 other scouts & leaders at KIX18 in Switzerland this summer

Fun & games at our group summer picnic: