|
Thursday, 23 January 2020
Term 4 2019 - Round up & Look ahead to 2020
Wednesday, 15 January 2020
Jamboree 2019
Hi all
I will not attempt to put into words the experience the scouts had on Jamboree. This is because there are as many different experiences as there are scouts. Each scout will have experienced the sights and sounds and feelings (both highs and lows) of the whole Jamboree in their own unique way and I could never do any of them justice.
Jamboree is billed as a once in a life time experience for all who live through it. And for most it is.
More pictures here: https://photos.app.goo.gl/mD85S6CjwMJB34du7
Derrick
That evening, while scouts were all bedding down prior to lights out, I stood outside my tent on the grass in my bare feet (don't tell any scouts) and simply enjoyed the sensation of the grass under them.
The next days sailing was a load of fun as well. The lake was so still and flat that even when the wind got up I was able to get the cutter up to speed and run the gunwhale as close to the water line as I could. (Some of the land scouts were definitely uncomfortable with this, but most enjoyed the speed and fun). "
We lined up in the early evening for the half hour bus ride up to Karamu Caves, where we were kitted out with helmets and lights before the short walk up the hillside to the small, rocky opening which was the entrance to the cave. We were split into groups at that point. Liam, Adam and Hamish were selected for the fast-moving, extreme group, while old blokes like me went at a more sedate pace.
We spent more than an hour inside the cave, wading through the muddy water, slithering through holes not much bigger than we were, and climbing up and down through the rocks. But we also stopped to look and marvel at the chambers full of ancient stalactites and stalagmites. Or turn off all our lights and look at the walls and ceilings covered in hundreds of glow worms. We finally emerged, tired and filthy - in a good way, back above ground, into the clear, still night, for the walk and bus ride back to camp."
Other great activities that I enjoyed was riding quad bikes, drift tricycles and archery. I really enjoyed meeting the NZ scouts at the Porirua Pirates troop. Thank you for all leaders for look after me."
Or maybe all the free time for stuff like swapping badges and meeting friends if you have any in other troops or just sitting and thinking all I want to do is sleep because I'm soooo tired…. "
The other best thing was the sleep which there definitely wasn't enough of, (just a tip for next jamboree)."
When I did the evening activities I decided to do some trampolining, so I explored what I could do for a bit until I decided on dodgeball. I’m not very good at throwing so instead I collected balls and gave them to people who were good shots. (I definitely hope we have this next jamboree)"
I will not attempt to put into words the experience the scouts had on Jamboree. This is because there are as many different experiences as there are scouts. Each scout will have experienced the sights and sounds and feelings (both highs and lows) of the whole Jamboree in their own unique way and I could never do any of them justice.
Jamboree is billed as a once in a life time experience for all who live through it. And for most it is.
 |
Derrick
Stories
Derrick's Story
"Arriving at Karapiro for the overnight camp before the nexts days water activities, was a breath of fresh air literally. The most outstanding experience I have had to date at Jamboree was getting out at the beautiful grassy lake onto grass, with little wind and NO dust.That evening, while scouts were all bedding down prior to lights out, I stood outside my tent on the grass in my bare feet (don't tell any scouts) and simply enjoyed the sensation of the grass under them.
The next days sailing was a load of fun as well. The lake was so still and flat that even when the wind got up I was able to get the cutter up to speed and run the gunwhale as close to the water line as I could. (Some of the land scouts were definitely uncomfortable with this, but most enjoyed the speed and fun). "
Nick’s story
"One of the innovations at this Jamboree was evening activities, and in particular special activities just for Senior Scouts. I joined three of our Senior Scouts for one of those activities - caving.We lined up in the early evening for the half hour bus ride up to Karamu Caves, where we were kitted out with helmets and lights before the short walk up the hillside to the small, rocky opening which was the entrance to the cave. We were split into groups at that point. Liam, Adam and Hamish were selected for the fast-moving, extreme group, while old blokes like me went at a more sedate pace.
We spent more than an hour inside the cave, wading through the muddy water, slithering through holes not much bigger than we were, and climbing up and down through the rocks. But we also stopped to look and marvel at the chambers full of ancient stalactites and stalagmites. Or turn off all our lights and look at the walls and ceilings covered in hundreds of glow worms. We finally emerged, tired and filthy - in a good way, back above ground, into the clear, still night, for the walk and bus ride back to camp."
Callum's Story
"My best NZ Scout Jamboree experience was The Mystery Tour. I went to a beautiful garden and did orienteering activities, then went to Laser Tag and Trampolines. It was very fun day. Afterwards, we went rock climbing which is themed around different things like King Kong, Indiana Jones and more.Other great activities that I enjoyed was riding quad bikes, drift tricycles and archery. I really enjoyed meeting the NZ scouts at the Porirua Pirates troop. Thank you for all leaders for look after me."
Ethan's Story
"I don’t know but if I had to choose I would probably say the Fast and Furious day because it had so many activities you never thought you would do, like drift trikes on a go kart track, pushing a car around a field and using a slingshot to fire paint balls.Or maybe all the free time for stuff like swapping badges and meeting friends if you have any in other troops or just sitting and thinking all I want to do is sleep because I'm soooo tired…. "
Will's Story
"The best thing at jamboree for me was hanging out after the activities. It was really good doing cards and cricket and all the other things.The other best thing was the sleep which there definitely wasn't enough of, (just a tip for next jamboree)."
Rosie's Story
"It was all so much fun, I personally really enjoyed the evening activities. I only got to do one but I think that they were a really smart idea to add so that if you wanted to learn about space, shoot everyone you know with lasers or just backflip off a box onto a trampoline (which I’m sure would be fun if I could backflip).When I did the evening activities I decided to do some trampolining, so I explored what I could do for a bit until I decided on dodgeball. I’m not very good at throwing so instead I collected balls and gave them to people who were good shots. (I definitely hope we have this next jamboree)"
Xavier's Story
"What I most enjoyed about the whole NZ22nd Jamboree was dinner time when we all got to share all the amazing experiences with each other (we still needed to keep some secret so we wouldn’t ruin the fun). A close second was learning how to operate a digger, it was pretty cool. I also enjoyed meeting and making new friends from all over the place in NZ and overseas."
Saturday, 7 December 2019
Land yachts Sea Scout style
Caught a couple of videos of the scouts sailing their land yachts on Thursday night, thought I would share
Monday, 2 December 2019
Otaki Forks Chill Out Christmas Camp
Well, let me tell you a story. Once upon a time there were a group of scout leaders, who being keen on traditional scouting activities like camping and tramping decided they would like to share their fun with another bunch of scouts. Happily they picked us as the lucky invitees.
Negotiations began in September. Being a sea scout troop, all these activities have to be held around our normal schedule of regattas. And at this time of year, they come thick and fast.
After much too-ing and fro-ing between us the dates were settled and the location agreed and the programme was aligned and the menu deemed satisfactory (Actually, Tina told us what all this would be and we said "Yay!")
And so it began on Friday evening, arriving at Otaki Forks camp ground, we set up our tents, decorated for Christmas and settled down to meet all our contemporaries in the other troop.
This was followed by a good game of soccer out in front of the tents. It pretty soon became quite clear that I had chosen the team of better sports persons, as, for every goal that was scored against us we doubled our efforts to get one in return.
We then took a short walk to orient ourselves in the camp site (read: find the swimming hole!), before all getting ourselves ready to do the mornings tramp up to the old Otaki Forks Boilers. The walk was done at a leisurely pace and took a whole 20 minutes to get up there!
We did have a tricky bit where a slip had taken out a small section of track to negotiate, but easily done for a group of scouts.
Lance gave us a short talk on the history of the area and the reason why there is an old steam boiler, nearly 100 years old, sitting out in the open in the middle of the bush!
After a short refreshment break, we took the track back to the camp site. We took an obligatory group shot in front of the information board.
We even sang some Christmas Carols while waiting. Mostly it was "Last Christmas", but when it came to videoing it, everyone got shy and all we could get was "Jingle Bells"
Then came a quiet lunch of mac & cheese back at camp followed by swimming.
The excitement of swimming in a flowing river was only exceeded by the fun found in finding new and more creative ways to enjoy this new pleasure.
The temperature at this point felt like it was in the mid 20's and deserved a fair amount of time cooling down. However, more fun was in store: Catapults, not just any catapults though, water balloon catapults!
The practice tennis balls got VERY accurate, with one of the teams able to put them through the triangle of the others catapult with almost every shot. The balloons brought everything to a new level.
Then it was back to the river for another dip as the afternoon just seem to be getting hotter.
Even our lovely leaders joined in the fun!
Then came the discovery at the top of the section of river we were swimming in of a small rapid that gave a short but fun ride.
"Christmas Dinner" - the excuse for a fantastically impressive meal to be served to a bunch of scouts in the middle of the bush - meant everyone was looking forward to dinner. A few games of "Nuke Ball" - a new game the scouts taught us leaders - entertained us until the dinner as ready and then we were blown away:-
Saturday ended well with some quite games of cards before heading off to bed. The outstanding part of the evening, was that while we were telling some scouts to turn off lights and go to sleep, others in the group could already be heard snoring!
Negotiations began in September. Being a sea scout troop, all these activities have to be held around our normal schedule of regattas. And at this time of year, they come thick and fast.
After much too-ing and fro-ing between us the dates were settled and the location agreed and the programme was aligned and the menu deemed satisfactory (Actually, Tina told us what all this would be and we said "Yay!")
And so it began on Friday evening, arriving at Otaki Forks camp ground, we set up our tents, decorated for Christmas and settled down to meet all our contemporaries in the other troop.
Saturday
Saturday began very slowly. This was a Chill Out Camp after all and everyone was up by about 8 and had breakfast. Scrambled egg and bacon - gets us all going every time.
This was followed by a good game of soccer out in front of the tents. It pretty soon became quite clear that I had chosen the team of better sports persons, as, for every goal that was scored against us we doubled our efforts to get one in return.
We then took a short walk to orient ourselves in the camp site (read: find the swimming hole!), before all getting ourselves ready to do the mornings tramp up to the old Otaki Forks Boilers. The walk was done at a leisurely pace and took a whole 20 minutes to get up there!
We did have a tricky bit where a slip had taken out a small section of track to negotiate, but easily done for a group of scouts.
Lance gave us a short talk on the history of the area and the reason why there is an old steam boiler, nearly 100 years old, sitting out in the open in the middle of the bush!
After a short refreshment break, we took the track back to the camp site. We took an obligatory group shot in front of the information board.
 |
| (left to right - back row: Thomas, Matt, Hamish, Alfie, Jamie, Fletcher middle row: Connor, Laurie, Jasse, Quinn, Daniel, Marcus sitting: Penny, Pebbles, Rosie, Adam, Zac, Calvin, ..., Connor) |
Then came a quiet lunch of mac & cheese back at camp followed by swimming.
The excitement of swimming in a flowing river was only exceeded by the fun found in finding new and more creative ways to enjoy this new pleasure.
The temperature at this point felt like it was in the mid 20's and deserved a fair amount of time cooling down. However, more fun was in store: Catapults, not just any catapults though, water balloon catapults!
The practice tennis balls got VERY accurate, with one of the teams able to put them through the triangle of the others catapult with almost every shot. The balloons brought everything to a new level.
Then it was back to the river for another dip as the afternoon just seem to be getting hotter.
Even our lovely leaders joined in the fun!
Then came the discovery at the top of the section of river we were swimming in of a small rapid that gave a short but fun ride.
"Christmas Dinner" - the excuse for a fantastically impressive meal to be served to a bunch of scouts in the middle of the bush - meant everyone was looking forward to dinner. A few games of "Nuke Ball" - a new game the scouts taught us leaders - entertained us until the dinner as ready and then we were blown away:-
- Roast Leg of Lamb, marinated in rosemary and Moroccan spice and then slow roasted, served with a mint yogurt sauce
- Roast Beef - with traditional gravy
- Roast vegetables - potatoes, pumpkin, carrots - all grilled in garlic
I think that would be impressive for a home Christmas Dinner. It's all the more impressive that Tina & Izzy, turned this out off a BBQ and a Pizza oven in a campsite! Even the tables were decorated.
After dinner came a visit from “Heidi Claus” offering lollies off a Christmas tree
Sunday
Sunday began with a few early morning cloud bursts, just enough to damp everything but it didn't take long to warm up and allow things to dry. A Scouts Own, lead by one of Waikanae's senior scouts, moment of seriousness and contemplation before starting into the next level of fun was followed by bags being packed.
Another intense game of Nuke Ball followed with various teams opposing each other - Ngati Toa vs Waikanae; Patrol Leaders and Venturers vs everyone else.
Tents were packed and returned to bags, and some equipment made ready to pack.
Lunch was a quick hot dogs. Then one of the scouts dared to challenge a leader. The terms were water at close proximity. The scout, bless her, thought one water bottle was enough. Little did she know!
At lunch, we did have a sudden scare, when the gazebos that made up the mess area were caught in a strong gust of wind and lifted off the ground a couple of metres. That was the one and one blast of that strength, but we decided to bring all the gazebos down after that and pack the equipment.
Then back to swimming again. More rapid running, jumping from rocks and enjoying the cool water. Due to the cooler temperatures, this session was a little shorter than previous ones.
Both scouts and leaders were completely packed up and ready to go home by 2:30pm. All thoroughly happy and the camp was a great success.
A huge thank you to Izzy and Tina for all the catering and background organisation and Lance and Steve and Robin and Vanessa, who all gave up their weekends to ensure the scouts all had a brilliant time.
Heres to doing it again next year!
Monday, 25 November 2019
Petone Regatta
This years Petone Regatta was challenging. The highlight for me was the brave young juniors who, in the face of strong gusty winds, decided to give it a try anyway and went out and sailed. One of the two sunburst crews actually finished quite well, while the others failed to start due to an equipment failure. Unfortunately I got no photos of the event, but below are the results of the races that did run.
Date: 2019-11-24
Location: Petone foreshore
Status: Terminated - weather
Water temp: 18.00C
Average wind: 18.00kt
Predominant wind direction: NNW
Date: 2019-11-24
Location: Petone foreshore
Status: Terminated - weather
Water temp: 18.00C
Average wind: 18.00kt
Predominant wind direction: NNW
Attendance
| Age Group | Number |
| Junior | 28 |
| Intermediate | 20 |
| Senior | 20 |
| Adult | 16 |
Group Points
| Group | Points |
| Britannia | 16 |
| Eastern Bays | 0 |
| St James | 36 |
| Ngati Toa | 16 |
| Paraparaumu Beach | 0 |
| Kotuku | 0 |
| Westshore | 0 |
SAILING
| SUNBURST | 1st | 2nd | 3rd |
| Junior | St James | NTSS | Britannia |
| Intermediate | |||
| Senior | |||
| Open |
| CUTTER | 1st | 2nd | 3rd |
| Junior | |||
| Intermediate | |||
| Senior | St James | Britannia | NTSS |
| Open |
ROWING
| 1st | 2nd | 3rd | |
| Junior | St James | NTSS | Britannia |
| Intermediate | St James | Britannia | NTSS |
| Senior | St James | Britannia | |
| Open | St James | NTSS |
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)