Cardboard canoes - the fight to be first

There was fierce competition over who was to pilot our prototype cardboard canoes so ahead of the design stage we fought it out over who gets to go first! 

We're all in this together guys - "All for one...."

"After you!".... "No, I insist, you go can go first!"

Next week, perhaps we'll build them (I've got the Duck tape!)

Say cheese!

It's some pics from the Tryfan hike, with cheesy backing track :)

This week we'll be starting our boat building campaign to show Tuvalu scouts some things to do in the ocean! First up, ocean going cardboard canoes! Have a google around - there's loads of ideas and instructions for them on the web!

Same

OK - not same as Tuvalu, but still tasty...! And actually not so cold if you stand close to the fire, and definately not as many ants! To see what Tuvalu is like check out:
http://andyexplores.wordpress.com/ and http://www.getjealous.com//jay2tuvalu and see the guys we plan to meet up with next summer.


And meanwhile, this is Boreatton's version of a S Pacific Island :)

 Hmmm... are you safe with that cleaver???

Fish friend! :)

OK - so we don't actually know what the local cuisine is in Tuvalu but we have fish and prawns, roast bananas and sweet potato, coconut and chilli sauce... 

...Nice!

Next week we continue our South Pacific theme with low cost boat building - Cardboard can be structural!!! Bring some 6 foot long bits and we'll do cardboard canoes!

Up date

Reminder for those going up Tryfan - we can meet at 8:30 on 20 Nov in the Enigma car park

Beach Bar-B-Q

Talofa guys, its down as Tuvalu night tonight, and I've just heard from Andy and Jay - they are settling in in Funafuti. Why should they have all the fun ??? Why don't we have a south pacific beach b-b-q too? Bring a plate and kfs and we'll do the same whilst we discuss plans to visit them, in the warmth of the tropical Boreatton dusk!

Tryffic!

It's Tryfan! ...for our next mountain group hike on Sunday 20 Nov. It's a great scrambly mountain and hopefully the weather will be calmer than it was for Snowdon... Those doing the mountain walks for their DofE fitness should have a good time - and any others that come too!

Please also bring a fresh consent form with contact details for the day. Don't forget to ask to borrow kit if you don't have the right gear for mountains at this time of year!!! It's free, but you have to ask!!!

Balance

As it is 11-11-11 and a day to think about the waste of life when tolerance and respect for others fails, and conflict is the only way - we made our symbol to stand out for balance and tolerance. 

Opposites together, complementing and defining themselves by each other,

The light of our message can be seen from afar if you look...

Caving

Idris is running a scout caving badge course for those that came on the SSGMG Caving w/e in Littledale - he felt bad that you didn't get to do any caving! It will be on the w/e of 13-15 January in S Wales and he has estimated the cost as £45, but we do transport cheaper so should be less than this if we plan it right! He has given first option to Boreatton (because we made up most of the Littledale camp) and we aim to do Porth Yr Ogof, Bridge Cave, and Ogof Fynnan Dhu (OFD) top sequence - this is my favourate cave - its great! Google it! Here's a you tube of part of the cave, or check out 
 http://boreattonscouts.blogspot.com/2007/10/wombling-in-wales.html





The w/e will get scouts their caver badge but there is an explorers caver badge too! (Badges are great!) You have to do a bit more but Idris will arrange the opportunity to complete the full explorer caver syllabus soon after if you come on this one. Let me know that you want to come asap as he is holding places reserved for us!

Peace and light!

As the Drum Corps are meeting at PGL this week we can meet earlier and start at 8pm on 10 November and finish at 9:30pm.
As we are very nearly at 11:11 11/11/11 it seemed relevant to mark the occasion with a peace image art installation.... Bring lighters if you have them and we can see what we can do...

We also need to start fundraising for Tuvalu - actually start! not just start to talk about how we might start!!!


Alao, a number of you have mentioned problems with D of E registration... Evie said much the same, but when I tried to connect to her's it was all fine! Why not bring your eDofE email along and I can see if I can help - if you priont it off, I can also chase the DofE HQ guys and tell them exactly which eDofE id isn't working! You do need to log what you are doing - eg practice expedition, mountain walking, volunteering etc. I know lots of you have made a good start and are on track to get it all done by Easter!

The triumph of parliamentary democracy

Hurrah - we celebrate thwarting the traitors and tyrants by burning them in effigy with cubs and letting off explosives - OK I just like fireworks, so this week is a group pack-troop-unit night at my place on Friday. Early, to fit in with the cubs, so we will meet at Leaton Hall on Friday 4 November at 6:15 to 7:45 for fireworks.


(it won't be quite as exciting as this...)

The cubs are going to feed us, the scouts will sort out the bonfire (I hope!) so we can concentrate on fireworks! :) Everyone is welcome so bring a friend if there are any interested in explorers or if you just want to bring a friend.

I suggest we retire to the house after and have a debrief on the expedition and agree the finances for the food for those that took part. It is useful for those that weren't there to hear from those that were about what went well and what we should do differently on the next practice and of course on the real expedition. We should finish about 9:00.

I'm not sure what's happening about Tuesday 6:30 meetings, but Andy tends to post stuff about that on the facebook page so check that out if you are a Tuesday person! I can't do Tuesdays - clashes with too many other things - so I am carrying on doing things on Thursdays... I guess that means we end up with two half explorer units, but I can't really see a way round that as Andy and I seem to have mutually exclusive availability. Anyway - its all one district explorer unit so I'm sure it will sort itself out - come along to whichever appeals/is convenient/...

Stuff we've done...

Hmmm... it seems wasteful putting the same videos on two blogs and I put photo-video of our Snowdon hike on the scout blog... similarly the Rifle champs camp.
Here they are anyway -

and

I've just copied the html not uploaded the video again so its not really wasteful!
Next hike is Tryfan, which is a great scramble - if you haven't been up tryfan yet it's definately a good day so long as weather doesn't stop us doing the N ridge! (and its part of the fitness activity for those doing mountain walking for DofE fitness!)

Also well done to Evie being selected for the Scout National Rifle Squad! She came 8th in the senior Biathlon due to great shooting (and in spite of being really slow at the running! - she needs to come on more SSGMG hikes and get fitter! :) )

Faster Evie!!!