Camp 2004 – The Lake District

This was the first camp that WSS had joined the Guides and we got our own neckers and everything!

We were staying at the Acorn Adventure camp in Derwintwater (link). This meant it wasn’t a typical guide camp as the activities were organised by the acorn staff (PHOTO) and we got to sleep in tents with actual beds, floors and waterproofing!

There were lots of different activities to take part in and us Rangers were there to set the tone quite literally diving right in to the gorge walking and singing our way up the hill climbing.

We got back in our canoes and reenergised the muscles we’d built up the previous year in the Ardeche and were surprised to find some of the same instructors leading the way- we’re not sure if it’s a good thing or a bad thing that they still remembered us!

We abseiled in the rain and kayaked in the sun. Claire wowed everyone with her ability to spin in a circle while holding a paddle- she was so good they had to tell her to stop because she showed no signs of falling over- One up for WSS!

The week was splattered with lots of singing, from on root to activities; which “amused” the locals, to on camp when a particularly dazzling rendition of “The Funky Chicken” which got the whole campsite and staff joining in.. Not to mention a night worthy of the song “thunderation” which kept us “Singing in the rain” long into the night.

On the final night, with the superhero theme, the guides, rangers and leaders alike presented a variety of stints from ‘The Adventures of Super Ted’ to learning about the Guiders’ super powers. Not forgetting WSS in superhero form!

Even though we had wooden floors and beds in our tents, we missed our patrol tents so much that we couldn’t resist temptation to make some gadgets, including our now renowned clothes pegs, adjustable boot stands, and our revolutionary hat stand! Needless to say, we won inspection hands down, and of course we thought it only fair to inspect the leaders’ tents too. Sally, Dani and Lesley failed miserably and although Dani and Lesley claimed it was all Sally’s mess, we pointed out the importance of team work and lending a hand. Coming in first place was out lovely leader Evelyn, with a spotless and sparkling tent. We must point out that our judging was totally fair and impartial.