Making Camp

In Scout camps the tents are not pitched in lines and streets as in military camps, but are dotted about in Patrol units, fifty or a hundred yards apart or more, in a big circle round the Scoutmaster's tent, which, with the flag and camp fire, is generally in the centre.

Pitching Tents

When you have chosen the spot for your camp, pitch your tent with the door away from the wind. If heavy rain comes on, dig a small trench about three inches deep all round the tent to prevent it from getting flooded. This trench should lead the water away downhill. Dig a small hole the size of a teacup alongside the foot of the pole into which to shift it if rain comes on. This enables you to slacken all ropes at once to allow for their shrinking when they get wet.

Water Supply

If there is a spring or stream, the best part of it must be kept strictly clear and clean for drinking water. Farther downstream, a place may be appointed for bathing, washing clothes, and so on. The greatest care is always taken by Scouts to keep their drinking water supply very clean, otherwise they may get sickness among them. All water has a large number of germs in it, too small to be seen without the help of a microscope. Some of them are dangerous, some are not. You can't tell whether the dangerous ones are there, so if you are in doubt about the water, it is safest to kill all the germs by boiling the water. Then let it cool again before drinking it. In boiling the water, don't let it merely come to the boil and then take it off, but let it boil fully for a quarter of an hour, as germs are very tough customers, and take a lot of boiling before they get killed.

Kitchens

The cooking fire is made to leeward, or down-wind of the camp, so that the smoke and sparks from the fire don't blow into the tents. Cooking fires are described on pages 102 and 103. Scouts always take special care to keep the kitchen particularly clean, as, if scraps are left lying about, flies collect and are very likely to poison the food, and this may bring sickness to the Scouts. So keep the camp kitchen and the ground around it very clean at all times. To do this you will want a wet and a dry pit. These are holes about eighteen inches square and at least two feet deep. The top of the wet one is covered with a layer of straw or grass, and all greasy water is poured through this into the pit. The covering collects the grease in the water and prevents it from clogging up the ground. The straw or grass should be burnt every day and renewed. Into the dry pit is put everything else that will not burn. Tin cans should be burnt first and then hammered out flat before being put in the dry pit. Burn everything you can or your pit will very soon be full. The rubbish should be covered with a layer of earth every evening.

Latrines

Another very important point for the health of the Scouts is to dig a trench to serve as a latrine. On reaching the camping ground the latrine is the very first thing to attend to-and all Scouts should bear this in mind. Before pitching tents or lighting the fire the latrine is dug and screens erected around it. The trench should be two feet deep, three feet long, and one foot wide, so that the user can squat astride of it, one foot on each side. A thick sprinkling of earth should be thrown in after use, and the whole trench carefully filled in with earth after a few days' use. There should also be a wet latrine made by digging a hole and half-filling it with stones for drainage. Even in a one-night camp, Scouts should dig a latrine trench. And when rearing away from camp a Scout will always dig a small pit a few inches deep, which he will fill in again after use. Neglect of this not only makes a place unhealthy, but also makes farmers and landowners disinclined to give the use of their ground for Scouts to camp on. So don't forget it, Scouts!

Camp Routine

Here are alternative programmes:

A

• 7.00 a.m. - Cooks roused.
• 7.30 a.m. - Campers roused, wash, etc.
• 8.15 a.m. - Breakfast.
• 8.45-10.00 a.m. - Washing-up, cleaning tents and ground, airing blankets, etc.
• 10.00 a.m. - Inspection. Flag break; prayers.
• 10.15-1.00 p.m. - Scouting activities.
• 1.00p.m. - Dinner.
• 1.30-2.30 p.m. - Rest hour.
• 2.30-5.00 p.m. - Wide games, and Scout activity.
• 5.00 p.m. - Tea.
• 6.00-7.30 p.m. - Camp games or free.
• 8.30 p.m. - Camp fire: one hour is long enough; a long yarn will provide variation from songs and choruses.
• 10.00 p.m. - Lights out.

B

• 7.00 a.m. - Cooks roused.
• 7.30 a.m. - Campers roused, wash, etc.
• 8.15 a.m. - Breakfast.
• 8.45-10.00 a.m. - Washing-up, cleaning tents and ground, airing blankets, etc.
• 10.00 a.m. - Inspection. Flag break; prayers.
• 10.15-1.00 p.m. - Scouting activities.
• 1.00 p.m. - Light lunch.
• 2.00-5.30 p.m. - Wide games, and Scout activity.
• 5.30 p.m. - Tea, and biscuits.
• 5-45-6-45 p.m. - Camp games.
• 7.00 p.m. - Dinner, followed by free time.
• 8.30 p.m. - Camp fire: one hour is long enough; a long yarn will provide variation from songs and choruses.
• 10.00 p.m. - Lights out.

N.B. - There should be silence in camp after "Lights Out" and in no case should there be any noise after 10.30.

A night game should be included in the programme on one evening, and rising time next day adjusted accordingly.

Note to Parents

Camping is the great point in Scouting which appeals to the boy, and the opportunity for teaching him self-reliance and resourcefulness, besides giving him health.

Some parents who have never had experience of camp life themselves, look upon camping with misgivings as possibly likely to be too rough and risky for their boys. But when they see their lads return full of health and happiness outwardly, and morally improved in the points of practical manliness and comradeship, they cannot fail to appreciate the good which comes from such an outing.

I sincerely hope, therefore, that your boys will be encouraged to go to camp whenever they can.

Author

Lord Baden-Powell of Gilwell (Chief Scout, London, UK)

Date of Creation

1908

Learn A Continuation:

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