The Cool Dale: Part 3

The last 3 days of camp were filled with excitement and Christmas beetles. These largish beetles, about the same as Canadian June bugs, emerge around Christmas (hence the name) and go about their activities at night. Around the camp, there appeared to be millions of them. They had to be cleared from the entrance to the activities building with a broom. It was impossible to go to the toilet at night without being hit by them. They were interesting though a minor annoyance.

The first activity of the new year was the camp Olympics. The scouts were divided into several teams, each one representing a decade: the 1950s, 1960s, 1970s and 1980s. The games were all collaborative efforts and involved various teamwork exercises. I was in charge of a challenge that required the scouts to disassemble and reassemble a tent as fast as possible. The Olympics started with a procession through the camp and then the games were underway. I could only see my portion of the games but I imagine that fun was had by all under the blazing sun. In the end, it was the 1980s that took home the gold.

The last full day of camp involved a short hike around the Penrose area but first, I learned about another Australian tradition, the nutbush. This is a dance, something like the macarena but done to Tina Turner's Nutbush City Limits. It seems to be a very popular children's dance and is even taught in school. Even the adults recognized the dance. It's a bit curious as Nutbush City Limits is a well-known song outside Australia but it seems that Australians are the only ones to have this particular dance. I'd certainly never heard of it before.

At any event, in the afternoon we got underway. The weather had taken a turn and before long the temperature was dropping and we could hear distant thunder. We marched through wooded areas and along logging roads. Eventually we reached the outskirts of the town of Penrose and turned towards camp. By this time, a thick fog had rolled in and you could see the mist swirl above the trees. I was at the rear and I remember talking to Julia Manchester, one of the scouts, about the finer points of the Harry Potter series. In my opinion, she knew everything there was to know.

The final day was pretty miserable and it seems that the camp ended much like it had started --- with rain. After breaking camp and packing up the gear, we made our way to the meeting building and had the closing ceremony. There were the usual speeches and awards conferred but the treat was at the end. After the camp was officially closed, the scouts got together and performed the nutbush outside; I even have it on video.

I was very happy to have participated in this year's camp and I look forward to next December when the national jamboree will be held in Canberra. I wonder if I'll be asked to fill any particular roles.

Well, that was my camping adventure but I didn't have time for rest. After returning to Canberra I had 1 day to prepare myself as I was about to embark on a truly great adventure, perhaps my greatest to date. If you promise to keep coming back, I promise to tell you that story of adventure and misadventure.