Tiger Cub Scout Pack’s Winter Camp – February 2024

This year we decided to try a different venue for our Tiger Cubs Winter Camp and hired 1st Burgess Hill Scout HQ which worked well, it was spacious and warm.

The cubs started arriving at 6pm and we got the cubs to put their stuff at the end of the hall, they were all very excited. We opened the camp and covered the rules, do’s and dont’s, expectations etc. We set them off playing indoor hockey to quieten their excitement until supper was ready of hot dog and they helped get the tables and benches out to eat. Afterwards they helped clean up and stacked the tables and benches to one side. The tome had come that they were excited for; setting up their tents, they were surprisingly quick, the girls were first to get their tents up followed by the older boys. They laid their beds inside and they got their PJs on and could either sit in their tents or outside their tents to watch a film which took them up to bedtime. They were still very excited and didn’t settle down until very late and were in and out of the toilets all throughout the night, which is usual for first night at camp!

The next morning they were awake before 7am, some looking like they didn’t want to be awake. We got them to, albeit slowly packing away all their stuff, which we interrupted to have breakfast.

After breakfast they took down their tents and packed away everything to put down the back of the hall again.

Once we got them all sorted with coats and hi-vis jackets and we got Sonny in the wheelchair we started the walk to Jumpin’. The pathways were diabolical, dips, raised drains and huge kerbs making it very torturous a route.

After booking us all in the cubs were hardly seen again apart from to have a drink as they enjoyed the bouncing on all the equipment. We got them all together and I handed out a packet of Haribos to them then with their coats and hi-vis back on we walked back to the hall again.

On arrival we sorted them out and got everything ready for lunch. After lunch we walked back into Burgess Hill (this time we let Sonny walk part of the route) to look at entering shops for their disability badge. A lady let us all walk the wheelchair around her toy shop, the cubs were on strict instructions to not touch anything as she let all 16 walk around the shop following the wheelchair. Sonny was pushing Lucas in his wheelchair and the lady was surprised when I pointed out that Sonny was the disabled child! After we had looked around Burgess Hill discussing the faults and merits of various shops and their entrances for wheelchair chair users, including opening and automatic opening doors etc. The cubs played in a stone area running around the walls, we then walked back with Sonny walking all the way and the cubs taking it in turn to sit in or push the wheelchair.

When we returned they had cake and a drink, the girls played a card game on the floor and the boys used the cross bows until we needed to sort the tables and benches for dinner which was a choice of bolognaise pasta, chicken in a chicken sauce or cheesymac followed by either jam rollypolly or apple crumble, we all stuffed ourselves on seconds because it was so good!

Due to the cubs being so tired from the previous late night and all the walking we did today, after dinner we got them to clear up and sweep the floor then get their tents up and we put on another film for them and by the time it finished they were either asleep or almost there. Those that were awake cleaned their teeth and go toilet if they wanted too and amazingly went to sleep very quickly. We didn’t have to sit up for long afterwards and because we were also tired, we went off to bed ourselves.

On our last day of camp the Cubs were awake for 7am, we rallied them to get them to wash and dress and get packed up. They were quite quick apart from not being able to find things and some needed help with their sleeping bags and roll mats. They very much knew what was needed in order to have breakfast now, and set out the tables for breakfast. After their breakfast of cereal and a cooked breakfast with eggy bread of course they stacked the tables and benches and started sweeping the floor. We then with their assistance ( as they like moving the the tables and benches) set up for indoor archery which Steve and Nathan’s ran whilst I took photos/videos.

When they had finished we packed it all away then the Cubs played games run by Nathan. We had lunch earlier so that they would be ready then the cubs swept the hall again continuously and we put away the tables and benches for the last time. Amazingly this is the first camp that we had no lost property to take back. We closed the camp with grand howl as well as good bits and bad bits then the parents took them home. This was a very enjoyable camp as expressed by the parents the following week.