SEA SCOUTS

Mr Matthew Balchin Leader, 4th Epping Sea Scouts

The Spring Term has been busy for the Sea Scouts. As always, it was Winter Camp season for cubs and scouts, with both camps running just after the half term.

As well as typical activities, such as the high wire climb, frisbee gold and trying to escape from the ‘Cave bus’, this year the scouts tried their hand at a wheelchair obstacle course consisting of wooden walkways which featured gaps, steps, tipping ramps and sideways inclines that the teams had to navigate and race in wheelchairs. As well as being a challenging course in its own right, it also allowed scouts to get a feel for what it might be like to navigate day-to-day life using a wheelchair. Lunch on Saturday was provided, as usual, by our senior scouts, cooking over open fires despite the

At the stand hosted by REME, we learnt how to attach rivets. It was quite literally ……riveting. They showed us how to find a faulty wire in a tube and how to attach many wires together with knots and floss. There was a mini competition to see who could tie the best and tightest knots, which I won.

At the indoor range, there were two challenges: shoot a moving target at 100m and one at 300m that only appears for four seconds. It was challenging as the targets were really small, but everyone did really well and the best score was 17/25 for the targets at 100m and 13/25 for the targets at 300m.

The best stand was that hosted by the Royal Aviators where they showed us

RAF to Hendon

The RAF Field Day saw the cadets visiting the RAF Museum in Hendon. The six hangers were visited, covering the history of the Royal Air Force from the First World War to the present, and the many planes on display were admired. A particularly popular stop was the interactive displays that allowed cadets to design their own aircraft, which resulted in some innovative craft!

around the Apache helicopters and we got to look inside. We learnt many cool things about the helicopters, for example, all the wiring is doubled so that if they get hit, the helicopter can still fly.

The day was good fun and we all enjoyed every minute of it. Major thanks to Major Baum.

unexpected, but thankfully brief, hailstorm that hit the camp just as the fires got going. Our Saturday night entertainment this year involved a disco dance-off between various groups of scouts with many of the scouts (including leaders) dressed as what they would like to be when they are older.

During the rest of the term, the scouts have made good use of the school pool, achieving many swimming badges as well as demonstrating their ability to swim fully clothed and safely exit an upside-down kayak, both of which are required for the next term’s activities on the water at Fairlop Waters. The scouts have also built and traversed high tension aerial runways, crossing with rope harnesses made under instruction from the senior scouts as part of their Gold Award leadership challenge. As part of the leadership challenge, the senior scouts also had to complete their own risk assessments and deliver a safety briefing to participants. The scouts have also practised their knots and ropework whilst building scramble nets and stretchers using rope nets, all of which had to be ‘woven’ by hand and carry the weight of actual scouts. We turned the main school playing field into a simulated river harbour, allowing the scouts to practice their knowledge of navigation buoys and marker lights at night and made tin can wax burners.

The upcoming Summer Term, which is the main term for us as sea scouts, will be a busy one on the water with sailing, paddling and paddle boarding inland, a Royal Navy camp in Portsmouth, offshore yacht sailing on the Solent and culminating with our annual camp, this year in Swansea.