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General Advice
General Advice
Please do not go out and spend lots of money on any item on the kit list unless you already intended to do so. Speak to a member of the leader team for advice or explanations before making any purchases. We might have some items at the hut that can be borrowed or bought (unclaimed lost property).
We have a selection of pre enjoyed wetsuits in the hut, please have a look and make a donation.
We have a 10% discount code as Scouts at GO Outdoors, follow the link below to find out the details.
https://www.gooutdoors.co.uk/online-scout-manager-parent-coupon
Many other high street outdoor shops will give discounts to Scouts if you take your necker in.
Footwear
Footwear
One of the most common issues on camp are to do with feet. It is important to have a variety of footwear and to change them often. Please make sure they are worn in beforehand, new shoes are more likely to cause blisters.
The trick for camp is to try and keep "land" footwear dry, so wear the heavier types of shoes such as trainers and walking boots when the grass is dry (unless told otherwise for an activity - such as walking expeditions and going into the woods). On a morning, camp shoes should be worn until the grass is completely dry, as once a pair of shoes is wet they will take a long time to completely dry.
Recommended footwear includes one or more from each of the following sections.
Boating
Boating
Please ensure the shoe choice will stay on the feet when they enter the water (i.e. crocs and flip flops are not acceptable) and that the shoe will protect there feet from walking through the water and around boats.
Wetsuit boots
Wet shoes
Lace-up pumps
Water sandals (as long as they protect the toes)
Camp shoes
Camp shoes
Croc type shoes
Waterproof sandals
Flip flops
Wellies (for short periods only - they cause a welly rash on the calves)
Hiking
Hiking
Walking boots
Good quality walking shoes.
Thick socks (2 pairs of socks – 1 thick and 1 thin)
Evening Activities
Evening Activities
Dry Trainers and socks
Uniform
Uniform
Black shoes and black socks
What to wear on camp activities
What to wear on camp activities
Staying warm and dry on camp
Staying warm and dry on camp
The following advice is invaluable for keeping warm and dry on camp by limiting the amount of kit that is wet at any one time.
● Take off wet kit as soon as you can.
● Hang wet kit to dry as soon as you take them off. Spread them out to allow them to dry.
● Do not put your wet kit in with your dry kit
● Do not get changed out of wet kit in your sleeping tent or near anyone’s dry kit.
● Reuse wet kit when you know you are going to get wet again i.e anytime you are going boating.
● Waterproofs - Make sure you have a good quality waterproof to wear on camp, showerproof jackets are NOT suitable. Consider reproofing your waterproof with specialist proofing agent. If it can be washed and tumble dried, then do this in accordance with the manufacturer’s instructions.
● We have a rule of no trainers/boots or trousers (including anything below the knees) before morning colours (this includes walking round in pyjama trousers or onesies). The reason for this is often the morning grass is wet and these items find their way back into sleeping/kit tents, in the case of trainers they will stay wet for a long time making them unpleasant to wear for the rest of the time.
● Cotton is colder than bare skin when wet; man made materials are much better for boating etc
Sun protection
Sun protection
This is extremely important on camp as you will be outside for the majority or the day. The following applies even when it is overcast as weather conditions can change quickly. To stay safe in the sun you need to
● Slip on a shirt- The more of you covered up in the sun, the less of you there is to be affected by it. Long sleeved shirts and those with collars offer additional protection. No bare shoulders or midriffs are allowed on camp.
● Slap on a hat - A hat with a brim all the way round or a legionnaires style cap are ideal for camp. Have a piece of string / cord to attaching your hat to your buoyancy aid when boating.
● Slop on the sun cream - You will need lots of sun cream, minimum SPF30 to cover up any exposed parts of your body. This needs to be put on before you leave your patrol site and reapplies regularly throughout the day. This needs to be taken with you if you are off site.
Tick prevention
Tick prevention
We are aware that Ticks have been an issue in the past whilst camping at other campsites, and therefore suggest the following points to minimise the risk of Tick bites and infection:-
● Wear the right type of clothing to avoid tick bites. Long-sleeved shirts and trousers tucked into socks can keep ticks away from the skin on your arms and legs when hiking through tick infested areas (long grass, ferns etc). Shorts, crocks etc. are only suitable to be worn where the grass is mown short.
● Stick to light-coloured clothing. Ticks are easier to spot when they land on light colours.
See Health section for information on what the Scouts must do if they get a tick.
Glasses
Glasses
Those that wear glasses or sunglasses need to ensure they are attached, walking round a campsite blind for a week is not much fun (guess how I know). Neoprene glasses straps are great and inexpensive (certainly compared to new glasses). Send two they will invariably loose the first one in their bag and then end up with them tied on with a bit of string... (Titch recommends this style as being the least intrusive/annoying, though you can buy them from other places/manufacturers, the type that have an adjustment behind the head tend to get caught in sailing boats/buoyancy aids but are better than being blind at camp for a few days (trust me on that))
Great
Not great
Staying warm on the water
Staying warm on the water
Temperature regulation on the water is really difficult, you get wet to the knee getting in the boat so at least your feet will be wet. Both extremes of temperature can make for a miserable day on the water if you are not prepared.
We try to carry on activities at camp no matter the weather as if we stop activities we still need to entertain 60+ young people and that is probably more difficult than the boating.
For Cold weather (some of what is below is copied from an advert for Rooster clothing so its a bit salesy in places but...)
TIP #1: Ditch the rash vest (in cold weather)
They're designed to keep you cool, so you'd be warmer and better off without one. That goes for most swimsuits too! Instead get your hands on some naturally hydrophobic base layers. Cotton Tshirts are not a great alternative but if you are prone to getting cold search out a Skiing baselayer or similar there are warm boating baselayers but they can get expensive.. On the other hand rash vests dry quickly... (which is why they are cold)
This is a snug fit on the head with nothing sticking out to catch on things
While this is "awesome" it will be constantly in the way, you also cannot put a helmet on over the top for paddlesports
TIP #2: Headwear is king
To keep warm, carry some insulating headwear tucked into your buoyancy aid. A beanie is much better than a woolie hat, fleece is good.
The cuter it is the longer it will take to dry out when it inevitably gets wet
TIP #3: Cosy toes!
Growing feet are a problem for parents wallets, wetsuit boots are excellent but can be expensive, you can get wetsuit socks to wear under whatever boating shoes you have weather they be sandshoes or even your brothers old wetsuit boots that are a bit big
TIP #4: Don't get cold
The best way to avoid sea sickness is to sit under a tree, the best way to stay warm is not to get cold... Don't get wet unnecessarily, (many scouts delight in sitting in cold water or spashing each other even when its cold) put that extra jumper on before you get cold not when you are cold..
TIP #5: Cold water flushing
Not all wetsuits are created equal - and unless they fit reasonably well they don't work very well. If there is a gap at the wrist neck or leg then they are pointless, the wetsuit works by trapping a thin layer (between 0.2&0.5mm) of water by the skin that is warmed by the body. If you have a gap then you get "flushing" of cold water though the suit pushing out the water you have just warmed up. The same problem occurs if you have gaps at the wrist , neck and ankles, water "flushes" in and out letting all that warm water escape.
I know children grow fast but a wetsuit that they barely touch the sides of isn't a massive advantage
Contrary to popular belief, wetsuits do work when dry. They just work the same as any other clothes.
A wetsuit should be a snug fit all over.
TIP #6: Winter Wind
Wind and rain make you cold, even if you haven't fallen in, a windproof coat will make a big difference to staying warm, if it is waterproof as well then even better, a cycling top works just as well as a dedicated boating one.
Tip #7: Jog On
Cotton tracksuit/Jogging bottoms are very heavy when wet, and not very warm (when wet), when we launch boats generally we have to go into the water to knee depth, this means trousers are wet before we get in the boat, shorts are the way forward with waterproofs on over the top if cold.
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