Helping the local Scout group

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spamel

Banned
Feb 15, 2005
6,833
21
48
Silkstone, Blighty!
I have exchanged a few emails with a scout leader in the area, and have offered my services to come along and possibly teach a few bushcraft skills to the scouts in his group. I got a really quick reply and he wants to meet me tomorrow in their campsite to talk about what I could do!

I'm really excited, I think mentioning my military service may have helped me out a bit here, as he also served in HM Forces, so this could be a smart move for me. It also gives me another outlet instead of kids and missus, who I love dearly but you know what they say about living in each others pockets!

I must say that the inspiration to try and give something back has come mainly due to the excellent posts made here by our very own Stovie, the pictures he posts of his troops doing bushcrafty stuff and being self sufficient at such an early age has greatly inspired me. I want to be able to pass on what knowledge I have to a greater base than my own three children, and with the area I live in it looks like it could go down a storm with children around here.

Let's wait and see what happens, eh! :D
 

Jodie

Native
Aug 25, 2006
1,561
11
54
London
www.google.co.uk
That's brilliant - and well done for actually taking a step towards doing it rather
than just thinking about it! Hope it's as much fun for you as for the scouts :D
 

spamel

Banned
Feb 15, 2005
6,833
21
48
Silkstone, Blighty!
I plan to take a few bits and bobs along, I'll take a shotgun match case along, a wooden spoon that I carved ages ago and use when I go out, maybe take some of the kit I use to show how I tend to camp out. I'll take my fire stick to show how I light fires, I noticed they have some fire pits there, and I've prepped some birch bark that I gathered peeling off a tree earlier, so I can quickly light it showing one method of firelighting.

Not too sure if I should take any sharps along though, it could give the wrong impression, what do you think?
 
Mar 22, 2006
291
0
38
North Wales
Thats so cool! im also a scoutie not been there too long but having difficulty teaching bushcraft skills into activities that they can get interested in so if you have any good sessions please post up! ive started a thread somewhere (DIY forun i think) called scout activities and if we could start that going it would help me lots!!!!! good on ya aswel for giving back its a really rewarding feeling to know that youce taught them something!!
 
spamel said:
Not too sure if I should take any sharps along though, it could give the wrong impression, what do you think?

Not too sure,as it depends on the troop. Perhaps leave them behind for the first session and guage the possibility of bringing them along in subsequent sessions. When I joined the troop I'm currently leading, knife usage was being introduced to the Scouts. Its suprising how sensible even the most excitable kids can be once given a bit of responsibility an instruction.

I'm sure you'll enjoy it though spamel, its great fun :)

woodwalker
 

Mr_Rimps

Forager
Aug 13, 2006
157
0
60
Hampshire
spamel said:
.
Not too sure if I should take any sharps along though, it could give the wrong impression, what do you think?


The scout leader will have some ideas of what he wants you to show his scouts but its best not take your knife along with you spamel. Scouts don't carry knives like they used to when I was a scout. Do take an axe and saw though and demonstrate their use.

Fire lighting is aways a popular pass time with scouts. I'm sure they'd love to see you demonstrate the bow and drill.

If all goes well with your first visit please go back a teach some cooking methods. "Backwoods" cooking in scouting, for the most part, seems to be restricted to wrapping a potato in tin foil!

Scout leaders are in short supply and if you (or anyone else here) can give their local scout troop some help with bushcraft instruction you will be greatly received.

Be interested to hear how you get on.

Andy(Explorer Scout Leader)
 

spamel

Banned
Feb 15, 2005
6,833
21
48
Silkstone, Blighty!
Oh, I'm just meeting the scout leader tomorrow, no kids!! :D

I'll leave the sharps, maybe just the UKPK in the pocket and a pruning saw in the bag. Nobody would frown at a saw, surely. I wanted to take my traditional flint and steel with some charcloth, but it is packed still, God knows where!! :rolleyes: I have an idea that it may be thrown into my bergen, so I'll quickly check.
 

spamel

Banned
Feb 15, 2005
6,833
21
48
Silkstone, Blighty!
Got it!! And the fire piston, and assorted bags of tinder to show how easy it is to collect the stuff and use it to your advantage. I'll save the fire piston for the end as it is purely magical!! :D
 

Bosun

Need to contact Admin...
Oct 30, 2003
33
0
Gloucester, UK
:You_Rock_

Hope today's meeting with the SL goes off OK. I'm an Assistant Scout Leader myself, and I know that we'd welcome help such as yours with arms wide open!

Re the question of knives, I think that if they're introduced as "tools" - and if that is stressed throughout the session - you shouldn't have a problem. I agree that knives are probably more suitable to a later session though. We've just bought five Mora Clippers for training purposes, and they'll be kept in a locked ammo box (with an FAK) when not in use.

Firelighting is always popular. Cooking something on it (sausages on clean, sharpened sticks?) makes it even better!

Good luck! Let us know how you get on (and what you did so I can steal your ideas!)
 

spamel

Banned
Feb 15, 2005
6,833
21
48
Silkstone, Blighty!
Well, I had a good day. Considering it was only supposed to be an hour long meet to throw some ideas about and to learn the structure of the scouting community in the Barnsley area, I'd say I did alright! I met John at 1300 and got home just before 2000!!! The missus was not amused :lmao:

Johns' wife runs the guides up here and she had some lasses up today, they were cutting some firewood with a bow saw and looked to be struggling. By this stage, I had been shown around their pristine camp and so I went over to see if I could lend a hand. It seems the blade on the bow saw had seen better days, so I lent them my pruning saw.

Once they had their fire wood ready, they wanted to light a fire, but hadn't a lighter or matches. I asked if they had any kindling or anything else to get the fire going, they said no, so I showed them birch bark. This impressed a few, although I think most of the girls were thinking "Who is this wierdo?!!" They collected some and took it to the fire site.

I then got the fire piston out which I think amazed a few of the girls, lit some birch bark peelings and got the fire going. (I must add that I didn't have quite enough puff and needed help from Johns' wife in getting it going, I started to go a bit dizzy with all the blowing!!) The girls helped putting wood on to get a good bed of embers. Then they made a camp oven from cardboard boxes and ally foil. They cooked some cakes in them and I left them as they were cooking sausages, beans and jacket spuds on the fire.

During the cooking and fire lighting, we put up a beautiful white canvas ridge pole tent that looked like something from Nessmuk. It wasn't in a great state of repair, but the canvas itself was intact and in one piece. A few hours of running repairs to the lacing and maybe sorting out the discoloration would have it in A1 condition.

All of the holes for cordage are hand stitched with twine for reinforcing, and the large wooden button behind the eyelets stops the rope pulling through, it was double stitched along each panel and had that canvas smell, you know the one. It was the most fantastic tent I ever saw, I would have one at the drop of a hat. Not great for backpacking, but a brilliant family tent!

I have been invited back by the girls, an offer I may take up as they are gonna make Hudson Bay style packs (bed rolls), and are having some sort of camp around a fire next week and they want me to bring the kids and missus to meet them all. All the helpers and scout/guide leaders, everyone I met there today in fact, where the nicest people you could wish to meet, I will definitely be going back to lend a hand wherever I can! :D
 

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