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Reports of camps held at venues outside Scotland
Camp Report- 30th Pack at Bonaly, Edinburgh, August 2003
At the unearthly hour of 6.30 a.m. on a Monday morning in August, a bleary eyed group of Cubs and Leaders met at the Jack Britton Hall, piled into minibus and car and headed for the Sealink check-in desk en route to Troon. On our journey to Edinburgh, we stopped off at M&D’s Theme Park near Kilmarnock for an afternoon sampling the thrills and spills of roller coasters, waterslide, log chute and other scary rides. Our base for the week was Bonaly Scout Campsite, owned by Edinburgh Area Scout Association, and just five miles from the city centre.
This year, we went ‘upmarket’ staying in the recently refurbished Forth Lodge chalet, complete with all mod-cons, duvets, hot showers, microwave oven and leaders’ lounge, even The Hilton would have struggled to match our 4 star accommodation. Of course we didn’t want to spoil the Cubs completely, so they all had the opportunity to spend a few nights camping in the grounds around the chalet for their camper badge, and the seniors built a tree-shelter which they slept out in on several occasions, wakening to find squirrels crawling over their sleeping bags foraging for food- which was in a fairly plentiful supply thanks to the midnight feasts and regular trips to the campsite tuck-shop to restock supplies.
Activities during the week included a visit to Edinburgh Castle to visit the ramparts (what part of don’t climb on that cannon do you not understand Finlay!!), prison cells (how much do you reckon that guard would charge to lock ‘em up and throw away the key?) and Scottish crown jewels (so that’s where Gail got that expensive necklace and funny hat she was wearing at the last 30th leaders’ meeting?), and to Edinburgh Butterfly and Insect World where the Cubs completed the Naturalist Badge- we plan to give Haithi a bravery award for conquering her fear and venturing inside a greenhouse full of butterflies, moths, ants and all manner of creepy crawlies- certainly not for the faint hearted! Mid-week we travelled across the Forth Bridge to Deep SeaWorld, where the Cubs were able to grapple with snakes and lizards just like that chap on TV from the Australian Outback, before heading on to ‘Scotland’s Secret Bunker’ built during the Cold War- now how was someone with Akela’s legendry navigating skills ever going to find a secret bunker hidden in the middle of the Fife countryside??? Well fear not, would you believe the helpful Scots had actually posted signposts to their secret bunker and even Akela found his way! (in their defence at least the signs were written in English not Russian, no point in being too helpful!). The Cubs were mesmerised by all of the army equipment, radios, maps, weapons and supplies they encountered on descending underground to the restricted access area.
Many of the boys are keen rugby fans, one of their Dad’s had even played for Scotland in his younger days, and we were treated to a very enjoyable tour of Murrayfield Rugby Stadium, taking in the stands, pitch, dressing rooms, function rooms and VIP and Press areas and inevitably the gift shop too! We also had an excellent trip to the Museum of Flight at East Fortune, which had expanded greatly since our last visit in 1995, with many more WWII planes in the hangers, a 737 outside and a new display on space travel; the staff at the museum were very accommodating and all the Cubs had the opportunity to work on their Air Activities Badge.
Another highlight was the Edinburgh Dungeon, complete with a visit to the torture chamber, a boat ride in the dark through the sewers of old Edinburgh, being trapped in a burning cottage as Highland Clansmen and wailing banshees moved in to massacre us, and best of all ringside seats in the dissecting room where a frightening surgeon asked Jordan to assist him on stage in dissecting a bloody and gory but all too lifelike decomposing corpse!! We’re not too sure what long-term effect all this has had on Jordan, we feel he was just a little too keen to help the surgeon throw rotting body parts and squirt vile bodily fluids at the unsuspecting audience; Akela is already dreading the day he walks into the lecture theatre at QUB to discover that Jordan has enrolled at medical school!
During the week we also took part in some of the excellent activities organised on site, including the aerial runway and orienteering course, fought the multitude of midges that attacked mercilessly each evening, and also cooked many of our meals outdoors on the campfire, including a traditional Burns Supper of Scotch Broth, Haggis, Neeps and Tatties, and stodgy pudding, washed down with Irn Bru and finished off with Highland Toffee, although on our final evening in Edinburgh we did treat ourselves to fish and chips in Harry Ramsden’s before soaking up the atmosphere of the street theatre and musicians at the Edinburgh Festival. One night we ventured to the Artificial Ski Slopes which border onto the campsite for an evening of skiing and snowboarding, with the exception of Gail who is an accomplished skier, the Cubs put the adults to shame and we reckon it will be a long time before Akela and Haithi venture onto a real ski slope- they’re still nursing bruises and suffered the ultimate indignity of having to ask Cubs to help them get back on their feet each time they tripped on their skis and fell over!
We rounded off the week with a visit to The Magnum Centre in Irvine on our return journey to ensure that all the Cubs returned home to Mum having washed at least once that week! It was amazing how many bars of soap we found still in wrappers during mid week kit inspection, and one Cub even claimed his Mum hadn’t bothered to send any soap this time as he had never once used it at any previous camp so why start now! Congratulations to Andrew Kernohan who was presented with the Cub of the Camp Shield. Many thanks to 43rd BB Company who lent us their minibus, to Davy Hawthorne for driving it and for all his help during the week and to our ABSL Gail, for her superb cooking and navigating skills (with her in the passenger seat even Akela couldn’t possibly get lost!).
David, CSL 30th
Camp Report- 30thPack at Meggernie, July 1999
Having stayed up late the night before to help Betty, our Beaver Leader, pack our minibus with most of the contents of her house (iron, toasted sandwich maker, toaster, kettle, hair-dryer… I think we even found a microwave oven and a kitchen sink??), we found room to squeeze in a few Cubs as well the next morning before heading off to Belfast Harbour. After about an hour and a half, we had negotiated the ‘Stena high speed check-in facility’, force-fed the Cubs with travel sickness tablets, and boarded the HSS. Following a brief interlude, during which we ransacked the gift shop, tried out the arcade games and posed ‘Titantic’ style for photos on Deck, we were soon in Scotland. En route to our destination, we stopped off for a tour of Ibrox, home of Rangers, including pitch (what part of ‘keep off the grass! do you not understand, Paul!), changing rooms, press room (to grill our new lady manager, Betty Robb-son), VIP guest suite (I don’t think our lot exactly qualify), and Trophy room (and through the metal detector on the way out!!). After tea on we went, following Akela’s car, now bedecked with a McDonalds flag to help us follow him through the streets of Glasgow and into the middle of nowhere and beyond!
The venue for this year’s summer camp was the Meggernie Outdoor Activity Centre, the least well known of the three campsites owned by the Scout Association in Scotland, near the beautiful Bridge of Balgie, Glen Lyon, nestling deep in the heart of the rugged countryside of Highland Perthshire. Indeed, our arrival more than quadrupled the human population of the village, greatly outnumbered by dozens of huge scary highland coos which blocked the narrow perilous roads to the centre and snorted suspiciously at our minibus, the 3,500 noisy sheep which serenaded us before dawn each morning (but quickly dispersed in front of an advancing army of Cubs!), and the millions of blood-thirsty midges which hunted us mercilessly at dusk. After watching these hardened creatures crawl with contempt all over his roll-on Autan midge repellent one evening while others attacked his arms and legs, even Akela finally took the advice of a wise old shepherd and sprayed on ‘Escape’, a particularly obnoxious perfume from the Avon range! It may not have been that effective at keeping midges away, but Betty and Louise found that it at least kept Cub Scouts at bay! Activities during the week included a hike part of the way up Ben Lawers, swimming in the River Lyon (which was surprisingly warm due to the heat wave that ensured tremendous weather all week) and boulder hopping at the Falls of Dockhart. There was a memorable night-time hunt for florescent bugs that were supposed to glow in the dark but didn’t and were so well hidden by Betty that even she couldn’t find them!!! Five of the Cubs went fishing with Akela one evening on the north-side of Loch Lyon; as darkness descended, the only creatures biting were the midges, until at last Ross caught a small trout, about 7 inches long; Tommy the wonder Trout seemed to have been blessed with nine lives, frequently reviving before Ross finally dispatched him, and then announced to Akela , a complete novice when it comes to fishing, just as the gamekeeper arrived in a Land Rover to see how we were getting on that it was probably too small and that he thought that there were rules about returning small fish to the water! Thankfully, Akela had big pockets and managed to bluff his way and hide Tommy the Trout so that he avoided a fine and Ross enjoyed a tasty supper!
Some of the Cubs also had the opportunity to help the shepherds shear the sheep, and three of the seniors built a shelter in the forest beside the Centre and slept out overnight (well until 3.00am at which point Martin tossed in his sleep and brought the roof down on Adam and Colin submerging them in ferns, moss and bracken, and all three crept back sheepishly to the indoor dorm). There was a Highland Games competition with a local Pack from Aberfeldy, followed by a campfire, at which the local Leaders Donnie and Maggie taught our Cubs a few new songs including one about the Muffin Man and another about Postman Pat and a pink telephone which the traumatised Leaders are now trying to forget, as the Cubs sang it throughout the rest of the week and most of the way home! The evening ended with a rendition of ‘Flower of Scotland’; however, despite the Scots’ best attempts, Betty and David could not be persuaded to respond with a few lines of ‘O Danny Boy!!!’ (Perhaps that is something to be grateful for!!!)
Off-site activities included visits to Cruchan, an underground hydro-electric Power Station, a crystal mine, confectionery factory and to Sea-Life at Oban (the seals began wailing as soon as the Cubs arrived while the poor creatures in the touch pool are still recovering from concussion as a result of being repeatedly grabbed and dunked by dozens of eager little fingers!! , Akela’s wallet is also recovering as a result of the Cubs ‘Picking and Mixing’ more than they could afford in the gift shop later- the assistants wouldn’t let them put back the sweets they had handled!!!). We also visited Highland Mystery world, although the manager probably thought the Cubs were scarier than any of the exhibits and even the little Goblin was no match for our lot! Later, we went swimming at Lochaber Leisure Centre and had tea in Fort William; it was unfortunate that Ross decided to be sick in front of some German tourists just as we were leaving; a Cub throwing up at your feet as you stand in the door way reading the menu doesn’t exactly encourage you to venture inside!! There was also time for a visit to Inverary Fun-Fair and Inverary Old Jail House. Despite the Leaders’ best attempts we were unable to leave any of the Cubs at the Jail, though we did enjoy testing out the instruments of torture! By the end of the week we had amassed dozens of musical Scottish hats, tin whistles, wooden duck and owl whistles, and our minibus could attract foreign tourists just as well as any traditional Highland Piper perched on a lonely hill or road-side lay-by. Tired but contented we headed for Stranaer once more, taking in the Magnum Aquadome at Irvine en route. On board the HSS, we raided McDonalds and bombarded the Ulster Rugby Squad, who were also onboard, for autographs. Akela, after much persuasion, ‘I’m sorry sir, I don’t know your name, but Martin thinks you are famous and would like your autograph.’ Many of the Juniors completed camper and explorer badges and several ‘helped’ Betty in the kitchen to earn their cook and home help badges. The seniors had the opportunity once again this year to participate in ‘The Most Ancient and Noble Order of Gilnahirk MANOG’ challenge, for which Adam, Colin and Martin earned their coveted copper woggles. Congratulations to Colin also on winning the Cub of the Camp Shield and a big thank you from all the Cubs to our Beaver Leader, Betty and husband Billy who helped us during the week; we couldn’t have survived the week without them and their presence ensured that the crack was good and that the camp was a great success. (Start packing now Betty and I’ll hire a bigger bus next year!!)
Meggernie is a super venue for a Pack Holiday; recently refurbished, the Centre can easily accommodate 25-30 and there is an adjoining field for camping and games, as well as the forest and river nearby. The only drawback is the remote location, but this is more than compensated by the beautiful scenery and relaxing pace of life in the Highlands. Although the Centre has been used by Scouts and Ventures for several years, 30th were the first Cub Pack to visit Meggernie and will be featuring on the Meggernie web-site, publicity leaflets and Scottish Scouting Bulletin this autumn. If anyone would like more information about the centre, please let me know.
David, CSL 30th
East Belfast District Witch Hunt to Edinburgh (26-30 October 1995)
(with two slices of Dundee Cake thrown in!)
On Thursday 26th October, 26 Cub Scouts and Leaders from 7th, 10th, 30th and 33rd Packs set out for a Hallowe’en Pack Holiday at 71st Haymarket Scout Hall in Edinburgh West. It proved to be a fun packed and very active four days. Our intinerary included taking the Cairnryan ferry ‘by storm’ followed by a sail to Edinburgh via the flooded roads in the ‘Boogie Bus’ (courtesy of 10th) driven by Ian ‘Mansell’ Diamond and the ‘Blue Bomber’ (courtesy of 33rd) driven by John ‘Schumacher’Corry, arriving in Edinburgh at nearly midnight. Duly rested and refreshed, the boys invaded Edinburgh Zoo early on Friday morning, went wild in the aisles of Murrayfield Rugby Stadium at lunchtime (by which time the Leaders had received reinforcements from Dundee in the form of 10th ACSL Dougie and his flatmate, Bryan), donned hard hats to visit the Lady Victoria’s Coal Mine in the afternoon, then finally in the evening we went Ten Pin Bowling at the Mega Bowl: all good medicine to ensure that the Leaders had a restful night!
Saturday dawned bright and sunny to find the East Belfast Light Infantry Battalion (Special Task Force) attempting to scale the walls of Edinburgh Castle (and all because ADC, Suzi, likes Milk Tray?!) making many friends with the guards on the way, resulting in confinement in the barrack cells. The afternoon was spent shopping along the Royal Mile where the Cubs appeared frequently as ‘walk-on parts’ (whether they were needed or not!) during the shooting of a nineteenth century period drama, Jude the Obscure, which was being filmed at the time. On Saturday night, we headed to downtown Edinburgh for the Witchery Murder Mystery Tour, at which a witch (we’re not sure which) was bewitched by the East Belfast Cub Scouts, not to mention the Monk, last seen sprinting down The Royal Mile with the Cubs in hot pursuit! The East Belfast Cub Scout Choir, otherwise known as Suzi and the Banshees, were the star performance singing a ‘haunting melody’ down a darkened alleyway to entertain the other tourists on the tour (copies available on request from Scout Shop Belfast and all good record stores-tickets for forthcoming concert available from 33rd HQ).
Saturday was bath time, courtesy of a visit to Dunbar Leisure Centre Complex for badminton and swimming, then on to visit Dirleton Castle (now in ruins!) for numerous games of sardines. Sunday night was spent at home, for a Cubs’ Own followed by a Dutch Auction, Scottish Dancing and Campfire; a relaxing evening for a change! Monday dawned wet, but this didn’t prevent a final visit, to Edinburgh Butterfly World, with tarantulas, ants (and noisy little green and grey creatures thrown in for good measure!). Finally, after lunch, tired but happy, we headed for Cairnryan once more.
Highlights of the trip included ‘Where’s Wally in Edinburgh!’, an unscheduled visit by lots of ghosts and ghouls from 71st Haymarket Cubs and Scouts, and Come Dancing on Sunday morning when we tried and failed to vacate the hall by 9.00am for the Haymarket Professional Ballroom Dancing Team, led by Fred and Ginger! As regards the Leaders, a 7th Leader built a shelter on a park bench after a date (that ran late), a 10th Leader got his toe stuck down a shower plug (glug, glug, glug!), a 30th Leader caught the love bug with a ballroom dancer (and tried to romance her), Anna didn’t turn up for Dougie (what a disaster!), and Bryan was baptised by a cup (of water??) ‘cos Anne could run faster!. One ADC danced the Highland Fling and tried to sing, and the other slurped jelly and ice cream standing on top of a café counter (we’re certain that you won’t hear her talk at Leader Training about this encounter!!!!)
A fun-packed time was had by one and all!!
David,Anne,Jeremy,Suzi,Ian and John
PS: Ann- mass resignations in the post!!
