Wednesday proved to be another fantastic day on camp. The sun shone from dawn 'till dusk, the lads were on fantastic form and the HQ were working hard to make sure the activities were that little bit extra special.
In the morning the Troop completed a round of silly incidents which built towards the afternoon's zonal adventures. There were five zones - pirate zone, jungle zone, river zone, amazon zone and swamp zone. In each zone one patrol competed against another to claim a crystal (a stone painted red, yellow, blue, black or green!). The zones were marked out by wonderful signs and notices made by Mr Harman and his team which warned fearless adventurers to beware of the beast or mind the swamp or deadly waters! First, having braved these warnings, the patrols had to answer a riddle such as the poor have it, the rich need it and if you eat it you will die, the correct answer would give them an advantage in the challenge ahead. They then would pit their wits against each other running an assault course or seeking out hidden treasures or avoiding being caught by marauding Amazonian warriors (junior HQ). All silly nonsense really but great fun.
I always tell the HQ that if they really commit to the activity, no matter how simple or seemingly ridiculous, then the activity can become a great adventure. Dutifully, they attacked the zonal challenge with vigour and enthusiasm and we had a great afternoon of activities that cost next to nothing and everyone enjoyed. When you hear scouts walking away from a challenge saying 'that was great fun' you know that you have done your job!
The evening saw the first leg of the PLs vs HQ football match. Despite some interesting refereeing decisions the HQ were run away winners 5 - 0. A quick dip in the river was well received afterwards and then cocoa, biscuits, year group meetings and night prayers.
Another day done and amazingly we are moving towards the end of the first week. Time deceives you on camp. You have no sense of day or time and no access to modern technology. Quite a tonic really.
