On a very hot weekend in July, a group of Young Leaders and Rangers from across the county came together for our fourth annual County Ranger and Young Leader Summer Camp!
The weekend was held at Phasels Wood Activity Centre and was a mixture of adventurous onsite activities as well as lots of time to chillout, do crafts, play games and hang out with new friends! We had a great mixture of Rangers and YLs, with 20 young members joining us from across both Middlesex North West and South West.
Overall, we had 8 Rangers, 2 Young Leaders and 10 young members who are both!
The young members arrived on the Friday evening with time to pitch their tents and settle in before dinner. After dinner we headed off to activities straight away! One group headed to the Cresta Run whilst the other group headed to the Rolling Rock.
After their first activity the young members all hung out in their tents playing games, chatting and getting to know each other.
“I liked the location. It was nice to be in a wooded area because it made it cool and quiet (ignoring the scouts). The facilities were fine and the food was great – there was always plenty and it was quite varied.” – Ranger (Ealing Division)
On Saturday morning, we had a relaxed wake up and breakfast. The Rangers had requested a ‘Whimsy/Enchanted Nature’ theme, so after breakfast we started the morning with the Rangers making Flower Crowns and then starting a large assortment of crafts including nature mobiles, dream catchers, beaded creations, macrame and jewellery making.
“Really good I loved the area and the food was good every day. I loved how it
wasn’t strict and everyone could just do their own thing yet still have lots of fun with the activities planned. A really enjoyable experience that has no faults.” – Young Leader (Ruislip Victoria District)
After some time crafting, they headed to their first onsite activity of the day. Half the group headed to the Rifle Range with the other half of the group doing crate stacking.
“Getting to spend time getting to know other Rangers and spend time having
fun with my friends from my unit; I loved all the activities booked for us for the weekend – especially Rifle Shooting!!” – Ranger/Young Leader (Hatch
End/Northwood Districts)
For lunch the young members made Pita Pizza which they wrapped in foil and cooked over the fire. After Lunch, they had some free time with some young members choosing to carry on with their crafts, some playing games and some exploring the site. Each group then headed to another activity, Climbing and the Rifle Range.
“Everything was so much fun and so well organised! Food was so good and all the activities we got to do were amazing” – Ranger (Harrow and Pinner Division)
After a quick snack and fruit break, the young members headed out to their next activities; Crate Stacking and the Spider Mountain!
Next up was dinner and then off to another activity! This time was the Cresta Run and the other half of the of the group heading to the Spider Mountain.
We then headed back to our pitch for a campfire, where everyone enjoyed chocolate bananas and lots of sweet and savoury S’mores! The young members then headed to their tents with 7 young members deciding to spend the night sleeping out under the stars.
“I liked sleeping outdoors on the last night – I’ve never done that before!” –
Ranger (Ealing Division)
In the morning, it was all hands-on deck to attend their final activities and to pack up and say goodbye. The young members once again split into two groups with one group heading to the Low Ropes and other staying back to start packing up. We then enjoyed lots of snacks before the other group headed to the Climbing Wall whilst everyone else did one final push to get everything packed away.
All the young members did an absolutely amazing job packing up, it was our quickest pack up ever at the end of a camp! After this we had a lovely closing ceremony and everyone headed home, exhausted but having made new friends and having a great weekend.
“A lovely weekend of games, singing, and fun with friends!” – Ranger/Young
Leader (Hatch End/Northwood Districts)
“I got to try new activities like shooting and crate stacking, meet and get to know other rangers, and put up and take down lots of tents – a weekend well spent! (And we got to wake up really late!)” – Ranger (Ealing Division)
A massive thank you to Jenni and Piper for volunteering over the weekend and all the amazing young members who attended and got stuck in to make it a truly great time, we could not have done the weekend without you!
“A lovely event full of excitement and creativity, each one just gets better! Thank you so much to the incredible leaders who work so hard before, during and after these events, it must be so much hard work but you do it perfectly every time! We are so grateful and lucky to have you!” – Ranger/Young Leader (Hatch End District)
“I enjoyed being with my friends and doing fun activities. It was a really well
organised event with great leaders and people, I had a really great time. Thanks for the amazing weekend!” – Ranger/Young Leader (Eastcote/Ruislip Victoria Districts)
Alice, Ranger Advisor – Girlguiding Middlesex West
