We started of at the scout hut on Saturday morning, loaded up the mini bus for our weekend adventure, once all packed and ready we were on our way. On route we were treated to the tree top adventure at go ape in thetford. It was fun climbing through the trees, at the end of the course there was a zip wire to glide down.When we were finished at go ape we were on our way travelling to Norfolk. When we arrived at our destination the tents were set up by everyone. After a long drive we all enjoyed some chips for supper.The next day we were driven to the beach ready to start our big clean up, as we were collecting the litter we saw seals swimming in the sea. 4 big bags of litter were collected, we could not believe how much litter there was on the beach.I feel happy knowing that I have taken part in something good for the environment, and will continue to do my best in the future to cut down on waste, re-use, and recycle where possible.Thank you to all the scout leaders for giving us this opportunity.
Ryan 

Photos are on the website link

My amazing scout camp

By Dylan

I had only spent two weeks with the 8th Letchworth scout group before I went on my first camp with them. We were going to the Norfolk coast stopping at Thetford forest to do Go Ape and have lunch. It was a nice day with a slight breeze as I got on the minibus with nine other scouts, one being my friend Ciara from school.

It was a pleasant journey to Thetford forest and we arrived at around quarter past twelve. When we got there we found a suitable spot to eat lunch. We ate our lunch then some of the scouts went off and played table tennis.  Then, we were set to go and be apes…

For those who have never heard of Go Ape it’s a sort of  obstacle course but set about twenty metres up in the trees. Ciara and I set off up a winding staircase which led to a bridge which kept jutting off in different directions. We also had to make our way across: a net on its side, some swinging x-shaped platforms, a really wobbly bridge, some boat- shaped swingy things and much more but of course we were strapped on with a harness. Last was the zip-wire where we didn’t have a seat, our harnesses held us up. I took a deep breath and vaulted off the platform into infinity and beyond! I remember the soaring feeling while I was up there and then I skidded to a halt on a bark platform next to Ciara. I definitely enjoyed that.

It was a slightly more eventful journey after that as the scouts started out in a better mood and about half way we all started to get bored. Eventually, we turned round a corner and found ourselves in the car park for the place we were staying at which happened to be a girl-guiding centre. We drove into our field to find Jay (one of our leaders) already there! We got into pairs and pitched our tents.

It was a very nice place and included: a decent sized area for football, a trampoline, a bit of play equipment and a huge wooded area. We discussed what we were going to do and decided on hide-and- seek -it. I remember playing in there for a long time, running around with Will, Ciara, Ryan, George, Connor, Shaun, Nathan, Harrison and Cameron.

After lots of fun, the leaders called us over to the minibus and announced that we were going into Cromer for chips. That was definitely my favourite bit of the holiday. We were sitting around telling jokes and just mucking around. After what seemed like hours, the food arrived. I had ordered chips and onion rings seeing as I’m vegetarian. We ate our chips still chatting happily until it was about half past eight or nineish. When we got back, it was very starry and Ciara even spotted Orion’s belt. We hung around for a bit drinking hot chocolate and watching wild bats zoom around (they came very near us.) Finally, we went to bed.                   

The next day, we arose to a morning a bit chillier than yesterday but it was still sunny and not too cold for our beach clean-up. Gradually, the scouts woke up ( George and Connor having a wet tent problem) and we made breakfast. After that, we made lunch, took down our tents and jumped on the minibus. We had a nice journey to the seaside.

When we got there, a man kitted us out with all of our beach cleaning equipment and a drink (mine being fruit shoot.) We started out on the car park and then went down to the beach. It was a nice day so we cleaned for about an hour and a half. Next, we had lunch followed by ice cream. Ciara and I went in the sea for a paddle. After lots of playing we jumped into the minibus and zoomed home. I think everyone enjoyed that.        

On a chilly March Saturday we headed over to Wendover Woods for the day. We invested our two newest members and then set off on the orienteering course. Wendover Woods has a permanent orienteering course in place which is run by the Forestry Commission. The scouts split into two patrols for the day and split the map in half so they could cover as much as possible. It was cold and muddy but they kept moving and warm. There were a couple of hiccups where the paths had been closed off while they are building new tracks but the patrols negotiated these and managed a tally of 11 out of the 17 markers during the day which was fantastic and required some skilled navigation.

Winter Camp was great! It was full of good experiences which were fun and helpful. Three of 8th Letchworth went and we were joined with two other groups – 2nd Baldock and 5th Letchworth which made it better because we got to meet new people from around the District.
When we first got there we set up our tents and then wandered around to get to know the place. The rest of the weekend was packed with exciting activities like: Freefall, Giant Swing, Bungee Jumping, Quadbiking, Segways, Horse Riding, White Water Rafting, Kayaking/Canoeing, Jacobs Ladder, Games, Air Bag and many more.
What made the camp great was that there were those many activities available for us to do when we wanted so we could pick and choose.
We were very well fed and looked after by the leaders of the three groups who were all upbeat and kind to us. Plus the food was delicious! This camp also enhanced our skills of being independent and many other things.
I most definitely would want to do it again and when I do I will try out some new activities which I didn’t have time to do as there were so many! I would like to say thank you to everyone who made it overall an amazing experience! they include organizers and leaders. I will be back!
Ginny

Scouts took part in a Quidditch tournament on the last Thursday evening of this term. Two teams, Hufflepuff and Slytherin, competed to win the coveted honour of Champion Quidditch team 2017
All three matches played were extremely close. The Beaters on both teams did a good job preventing the Chasers from scoring too many goals, and after two games it was one win apiece. In the deciding third game scores were level on 20 each when the Golden Snitch was released. In the final moments, just as Hufflepuff’s Seeker went to grab the Golden Snitch she came off her broomstick and Slytherin’s Seeker zoomed in and snatched the victory.
The evening was finished off in style with a BBQ.
The scouts have been getting fit and learning Quidditch as part of their Skills Challenge this term. Photos of all the action are on the Photos link.

This weekend we started to get our Expedition Badge. To do this we had to plan our route to our Backwoods Camp at Harmergreen Wood Campsite. We also had to plan our way back to 8th Letchworth Scout Hut.
We started at Letchworth Garden City train station and we got on the train to Stevenage. At this point we changed over train to Hertford. We got off the train and decided which way we were going to go.
Our walk started very uphill. Every ten minutes we stopped to check our maps. After a while we ventured into the woods. We were walking in the woods for about an hour and a half and then we came to open fields.
Every once in a while we stopped to change the person holding and looking at the map. We entered into Harmergreen but misplaced the campsite and spent a bit more time looking for it.
Eventually we got to the campsite and soon went to bed.
Next morning we had cereal and bacon sandwiches for breakfast. Later we made shelters which we would be sleeping in that night. We made them with tarpaulin and rope and a tree. We made them in pairs. Then after that we had lunch. We had hot dogs from the dutch oven with a side of crisps and soup.
After lunch we made fires and cooked cookies on the best fire. Then some people went over to the axing place and did a lot of axing. Peter and Zeke made a hammock which we all had fun swinging on.
We woke up early on a beautiful Sunday morning. Me and my shelter mate (Eva) got our clothes and changed in the bathroom. We then walked back to the shelter and packed our stuff away making sure that our rubbish was packed away. After, we packed our shelter away.
After that we sat by the fire. For breakfast we had bacon sandwiches. When we had finished most of us played manhunt. After about an hour of playing manhunt we headed back to the campsite. We collected everything and set off.
As soon as we set off we had to find our way back out of the forest which was a lot easier than finding our way to our camp.
We walked past the bog – fond memories, and started walking through the fields. We eventually got to Welwyn North and had a refreshing drink while waiting for our train
We finally got on the train and started seeing sights we are familiar with. We then got off the train and had to do more walking back to the scout hut. We eventually made it back and went home.
Report written by
Eva, Ryan, Mary, Ben, Millie, Will, Abbie, Aimee, Alisha, Kieron and Ginny

On Friday the 18^th of November 2016, our team arrived at our part of the campsite. Claire & Lesley had very kindly put up our tents and the mess tent so that we could unpack straight away. After we had unpacked and ‘settled in’, we talked to some other people from different groups that we knew. After an hour or so of talking to other groups we went back into our mess tent to discuss what was happening the next Continue reading →

ON 29th July we arrived at the scout hut at 8 in the morning and left at around 8.30. We were split into 2 groups (older & younger) to go on the minibuses.

About 2 hours later we stopped at the services to buy some sweets and to go to the toilet. By that time we were all bored. Then we all got back on the bus and set off. Continue reading →

This weekend we’ve helped the Friends of Norton Common clearing scrub and cutting down small trees to help with woodland regeneration

On Friday we arrived with our stuff and equipment, we had to load are equipment on to a trailer. We had to follow the trailer to where we would stay for the weekend there were 7 other born 2B plus teams which we had to compete against. Once we had put up our tents and dinning shelter we set out are beds and storage tent. Later that night we went to bed. All the girls had to snuggle in a three man tent because when we were putting up our tent we figured out it was broken so we all had to sleep in one. Continue reading →

Picture the scene……….a hot air balloon is in trouble and losing height, about to plunge into shark infested waters. To keep it flying weight must be thrown overboard. This year scouts drew names of fictional characters and prepared their costumes and arguments. After each round of debate, three scouts were chucked out of the balloon. Our evening was run by a very dapper Debate Master (Russell) and competition was brutal. Bribery and threats were commonplace and the three members of the judging panel (Richard, Charlie and Stan) were happy to accept large quantities of chocolates and sweets for extra points! Dobby, Dr Who and ‘He who shall not be named’ made it to our semi finals with Dobby triumphing in the final vote. For pictures of all the competitors follow the link on the albums page.