Jul 20

Scouts were awakened by Scouter Ray just before 6 am. This morning the Scouts didn't doddle at all. They were up and about right away working on packing up their gear. All the gear was packed up and out of the gym by about 7:15. With all the gear outside on the grass on a beautiful sunny day the Scouts should have all had a quick breakfast and packed their lunch. Then they had about an hour of free time on the playground while the leaders cleaned up the hall. Some of the Scouts helped with the cleaning of rugs and some sweeping etc.

We started heading down to the train station about 8:15. A little bit slower walk downtown with all the baggage. A few Scouts and a couple leaders had luggage as opposed to backpacks. They were a little less convenient for a 20 min walk into town.

The train was very busy with not just our group but a lot of other people with luggage, so the usual shortage of luggage space on Scot Rail was nearly a crisis. We managed to store many backpacks up top in spaces obviously not designed for larger luggage.

It was a nice trip down to Blair Atholl, with a brief delay in Carrbridge to wait for a train on the track going the other way back to Inverness. The number of trains running around here is just staggering. And cheap!

We arrived in Blair Atholl about 11 am and were met at the station by a few of the Scottish Scout Leaders, including the Aunt from MacDonald Sub-Camp, which is the camp where 1^st Cobble Hill Scouts are at. It looks like the Duncan group are in Murray Sub-Camp. They brought a van to haul our packs up to the camp and the Scouts walked up the short distance with their day packs.

There was a bit of a backlog in registration as there were nearly 400 international Scouts arriving today. So our Scouts did have to wait for a bit before getting checked in. The leaders all got checked in and sent straight away to their new jobs.

I can't report much on what happened for most of the Scouts for most of the day, and this will be the case for pretty much every day, as the leaders and their Scouts won't be in much contact with each other during the camp. I did take some time this evening after the camp opening to see what 1^st Cobble Hill had been up to. It appears so far that everyone is finding it fun and interesting despite the rain.

And speaking of the opening, it was very impressive. About 1200 people gathered at the football pitch. A pipe band led in all the international flag bearers into the camp where they were welcomed one at a time, and everyone at camp was introduced to the sub-camp Aunts and Uncles. I took some video which I don't know where or when anybody might be able to see. Perhaps if I ever get around to making a DVD of the trip.

In their sub-camps it looks like the boys and girls are all sharing tents with Scottish boys and girls. And from what I've seen the Scottish Scouts are very enthusiastic. I can't even describe what a great experience this is for our Scouts, meeting and making friends with so many Scottish and international Scouts.

It rained pretty hard this evening during campfire at the sub-camps, but at 10 pm the rain has pretty much subsided. Lights out is supposed to be at 11 pm every night and rise and shine at 7 am. I'm curious to see how well that timetable is kept. I believe the sub-camp Aunts and Uncles are supposed to crack down on them to get them to bed and get them up, and every morning there is an inspection of the Scouts in full uniform, and their tents will be inspected as well.

Check out the official Blair Atholl web-site for daily photos and news of the camp as it happens.
http://www.jamborette.org.uk/