Scouts’ unforgettable adventure at Jamboree

Aug 15 2007 By Lynda Nicol, East Kilbride News

FOR ten days, Scouts from East Kilbride have been enjoying the adventure of a lifetime along with 40,000 others from around the globe who are attending the World Scout Jamboree at Hylands Park at Chelmsford in Essex.

The East Kilbride scouts’ arrival at the Jamboree was the culmination of months of fundraising and team-building preparations.

But all the hard work proved worthwhile as they joined in the fun with Scouts from more than 200 other nations.

World Scout Jamborees take place every four years, with this year’s celebration marking the centenary of scouting.

Gavin, 15, an Explorer Scout from East Kilbride, explained how it differed from the other international camps he has attended.

He said: “The World Scout Jamboree is bigger than anyone could imagine and watching the flags of all the countries being raised in the main arena was awesome.”

Louise, 14, also an Explorer Scout from East Kilbride, is one of the many girls who have joined the Scouting movement in recent years.

She said: “I’ve met so many people from different places. Some of the countries, I’d never even heard of!”

During the last 12 months, Gavin and Louise, along with the rest of their EK Scout unit, have been working hard to fundraise and gel together and they both agreed the wait had been worth it.

The Scouts from East Kilbride have had the opportunity to try new sports and challenges, get involved in projects making a real difference to local communities and share in a range of life-changing experiences with people from all over the world.

Louise said “We went raft building during a day’s water activities at Splash, where we worked as a team to construct a raft which we then tested on the water. Our raft floated, but only briefly and we then ended up in the water.”

She added: “On another day, we visited Gilwell Park, the international home of Scouting. There were so many activities there that the day flew past. The giant assault course in particular was great fun.”

As well as trying all the activities the Jamboree had to offer, the Scouts enjoyed the excitement of meeting new friends and learning new skills.

From Zimbabwe to Zurich, from Algeria to Australia, the number of nations represented was greater than at the Olympics.

As well as enjoying the adventurous activities that the Jamboree had to offer, all of the Scouts participated in a day’s community service work.

Gavin spent the day helping to cut back trees in a national park to make it better for people to use.

Reflecting on the Jamboree experience, he said: “I’ve started to think out of the box a lot more and I’ve definitely learned a lot about other cultures, which was really interesting. The unique experiences that I have had with people and the new friends that I’ve met will stay with me for a long time to come”