Thriftwood Summer Camp - 15-08-2010Thriftwood Summer Camp. The Explorer unit ran a summer camp at Thriftwood Scout Activity center in Essex during 15th to 19th Aug. 6 explorers and 7 of the older scouts attended. On Sunday at 9am we packed the trailer with all the equipment required for camp, leaving Birchington around 10am, arriving around 11-30 at the campsite. Camp having been set up and lunch eaten at 2pm we started the first of our activities. The young people were split into 2 teams and then given a team building exercise to undertake, whilst the other team was sent off to explorer. The challenge was to transfer some radioactive waste from one set of tubes to another by using some long lenghts of rope from outside a roped off area. Both teams took some while to work out how to work together to achieve the transfer and each team seemed to divelop a slightly differnt system, but I must say it was rather amusing watching them. In the end it was a draw as they had both sucessfully transferred the same amount, however I should say that if it had been a real excercise then some of them wouldn't be with us right now. Next they moved onto the Demolition Derby, a large inflaterble with 4 poduoms and one rather large ball. The idea was to knock each other off their podium. I have to say a few couldn't even stand on it in the first place. Next the Earth Ball, 4 metre high hard inflatable ball, with 2 teams again trying to manourer it into each others goal. I think the ball won!! Activities for the day over, dinner eaten and some very tired young people to bed fairly early. Day 2, a bit of a struggle for some to get up, but with breakfast waiting and more activities to do including the Rodeo Bull which again was an inflatable and great fun to see how long you could stay on the bull till you fell of or was helped off!!!! after which some exploring was done. For the next hour they undertook canoeing, with differing amounts of sucess as they were set varing tasks once they had got used to their canoes. Mind you the take off was rather unusual. Once that was over we had lunch and by 2pm we were out on the water again. This time we had to buiid our own rafts out of the materails supplied, which consisted of large barrels and loads of rope and some long poles. Again varing degrees of sucess, but we did get at least 2 vessals onto the water, looking rather precariuos though. Atfer another rather tiring day we set about dinner and then some well earned rest. Day 3 Breakfast followed by activities starting at 10am, our first event of the day was water zorbing, which is basically a large seethrough plastice ball that is inflated whilst you squat in it and then your rather uncermonsly pushed into the water, to play in it while floating ontop of the water. Great fun but rather exhausting. Next came the Sky Hi Walk, which needless to say some of us didn't won't to have a go. Basically you had to climb up a rope ladder to a platform some 30 foot high and then walk along a pole to the other end about 10yards, then back to the middle for your decent which you could then choise, some chooses were rather precarious to say the least. lunch and then ready for the afternoon which started with rifle shooting, some excellant shooting seen. The rest of the afternoon was spent on the climbing wall, again a few decided not to go, but those that did had a good time. Day 4, After breakfast they were set a pioneering task, again the equipment was supplied, and with some good team work showing they built a rather good swing, which to prove how well it had been built they all had a go on. After lunch it was back down to the lake this time for the campsite Water Splash, during which all sorts of water activities were available, including a very high zip wire over the lake, water slide, surfing "thriftwood " style, canoe seal launch water canon, water walkerz, water wars plus inflatables. Some very tired people returned and we set about doing a barbarcue which was partially sucessfull due to the heavy rain. In the evening we lit a very large campfire. Day 5, after breakfast, they went to try their hand at the Cresta Run which was basically Toboggans descending over a 5 metre distance down a slope at rather fast speeds. Next they went to the 3d mazewhich was four levels of tunnels that wind their way up and down until you find your wat to the top and then down and out. The last event was Crossbows which unfortunately the young people found too tame. Unfortunately our camp was over which left the unpleaseant job of taking down camp and making our way home arriving about 6pm. Please check photo's more news articles... | Upcoming eventsLatest newsSurvival Camp at Quex |
Italian themed evening meal