Scouting around in May

So it’s May and supposedly Spring. But by the snow flurries and negative temperatures we’ve had lately, I’ve become increasingly suspicious of “Yellowknifes great summers”.

I hunted out the local Scouts group at the beginning of the year as a means to tag along on some outdoor activities and get involved with the local community. They had some trainers come up to Yellowknife from Alberta to run a weekend course on leadership i.e training to be a Scout leader. So I ended up spending my entire weekend learning about Scouts and what it takes to be a Scout leader.

The commonly held myths of what Scouting is all about were quickly dispelled – just camping, tying knots and helping little old ladies cross the road. Although all of which were covered, except helping little old ladies cross the road.

The course was held at the Folk On The Rocks site and we had a camp fire on Saturday night. Below is a short excerpt of a great poem read by (the Scout trainer) Bob.

 

 

Having only recently assembled my bike, I enjoyed the chance to bike the 8.5kms to and from the Scout course. Although, when it started to rain and then snow on Sunday I wasn’t so enthusiastic about my inevitable bike ride home.

I had to tell a slight lie when asked what motivated me to get involved in Scouts. As one of the few people there without children I couldn’t exactly give my true reason – to use sacrificial kids as bear bait. As a keen camper and hiker in New Zealand I’m still a bit nervous about the concept of going into the wild where all sorts of dangerous animals live ie, bears. People are often surprised when I say that there’s no dangerous animals roaming wild in NZ. So I figure if I camping with some young Scouts and we come across a bear, I’ll easily be able to out run a Scout kid, especially after I’ve pushed them in between me and the bear!

But seriously, I’ve enjoyed my involvement so far and look forward to our upcoming “summer” camping trips. Assuming summer ever arrives in this barren freezer.

Tags: Scouts, Yellowknife