The weather in Mid-July should be good enough to risk a camp sleeping under tarps, right?

Well, let’s just say that, at times, it was very wet and not very summery at all. But did that dampen the spirits of Mafeking Explorers? Not one bit!

The Survival Skills activity badge is a pretty tough one to get. There is a lot of content to cover off, so making a weekend of it is a practical way to get the bulk of it completed.

On Saturday morning, between rain showers, we managed to cover off the topics of water collection and purification and foraging/hunting/snaring with a couple of exercises that include setting sprung wire snare traps.

A brief spell of sunshine perhaps lulled us into a false sense of security and we made the decision to take a walk out of camp up to Lud’s Church, a curious chasm in the woodland that was once used as a location for discrete religious services. Well, the heavens opened and a deluge of rain fell, along with thunder, lightning and hail. We were well and truly drenched. Back at camp the fire was still going, thanks to some ingenuity from Rob who had chosen to stay back at camp. Most of the tarps had done the job of protecting gear, and we were now extremely glad of the mess tent where we could all gather in relative dryness and cheer our spirits with a few light hearted games (…can you draw the man in the moon?).

The afternoon saw spells of very heavy rain interspersed with not-quite-so-heavy periods of rain. During this time the Explorers had the challenge of preparing and cooking a variety of meals, only using the open fire. The rain made it a challenge, but the deployment of the …. ahem… tactical-survival Mini-Mouse umbrella from Jo’s car saved the day.

All of the meals were a success, and actually pretty decent grub! They included:

• Pan-fried woodpigeon breast with hazelnuts and peaches
• Sea bream baked in newspaper
• Rabbit herby casserole
• Plank roasted rainbow trout
• Beer bread baked in a Dutch Oven

The Explorers found their singing voices as we sat around the fire in the evening. Abba would surely approve of their efforts, if not their tonal qualities.

Sunday morning saw us completing more of the badgework, with topics including identifying and treating hypothermia, signalling for help and how to prepare for helicopter rescue. This included the use of smoke and flare hand signals, with the honours going to Matt on his last camp with us and with Evie as she now takes on the roll of eldest Explorer, a sort of passing on of the baton, so to speak.

A huge Well Done! to all that attended. Each and every Explorer showed teamwork, enthusiasm and great resilience under adverse conditions.

KB