Austrian Adventure 08
Event Started: 24/07/2008 - 18:00
Event Finished: 04/08/2008 - 18:30
Location: Austrian Adventure 08
Attendees: 30
The beginning of the school holidays marked the start of an adventure for a group of explorer scouts from BSWE, as they embarked on an activity packed trip based in the Öztal valley, Austria. Steve Bernal, the Area Explorer Scout Leader BSWE (British Scouts Western Europe) had organised the trip as a way of promoting the outdoor and adventurous aspect of scouting for the senior section (explorer scouts are the oldest age group with ages ranging from 14 to 18 years of age). Some of the scouts working towards the ultimate award in scouting, the Queen’s Scout Award, would also be able to use the activities as part of the requirements to achieving the award, which in itself is very demanding and on an equivalent, if not higher, status to achieving Gold in the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award. The BFG contingent met up with the remaining explorers at JHQ on Thursday 24th July, where they were able to meet and bond via a game of ten pin bowling before settling in for an overnight stay in the scout hut before setting off on their travels the following day. Altogether 22 explorer scouts and 6 leaders made up the party, with the mix being approximately 50/50 between BFG based scouts and those based in other parts of Europe (BSWE caters for British scout groups from Netherlands, France, Belgium, Luxembourg and Germany). Friday 25th saw the group set out on their bus journey from Rheindalen to their destination in the Austrian Alps, a campsite just outside the village of Haining. After the eight hour voyage, the explorers got straight on with putting up their tents before being given their evening meal, provided by the advance party who had made their way earlier in the day to set up the mess tent and catering area that would be central to the group’s functioning over the next few days. Saturday 26th meant white water rafting. The group were divided into smaller groups of six or seven, so that each boat would contain a mixture of ages and people who were new to each other. As with most of the activities of the week, team work and being part of a group was the focus as a way of seeing the youngsters battle personal fears together. The journey down the river was a mixture of adrenalin rush and relief as all boat crews were put through their paces. Everyone had experienced the chill of the glacial river as rescue techniques had been practised over quieter stretches of the river, which meant jumping overboard and being hauled back in by crew members. After an hour and a half’s fun, the journey was complete and accounts of each others experiences were swapped. Sunday 27th found the group venturing out into the countryside on mountain bikes. For many, going out for a bike ride is a fairly normal occurrence. However, in this environment, mountain bikes are used in the way they are designed for rather than for a quick trip to the shops. The route followed was a mixture of ups and downs over varied terrain and was a challenge to all. Part of the route included a stop off at a Roman foot spa, which provided a much needed opportunity to cool hands and feet. The afternoon was spent on the climbing wall, learning climbing techniques and overcoming fear of heights which would be needed later on in the week for climbing on real rock surfaces. Monday 28th was no rest day as this was the day chosen to do a hike which would see the group climb to a height of over 2600 metres and walk a total distance over 20km. The initial part of the route was a mixture of gentle climbing and traversing as the group made their way to a small lake where the cool water was used to refresh hot feet, or in some cases allowing a brief swim. The second part of the route was more of a test as the gradient increased and pacing became more important. Grazing goats and a couple of horses helped distract from the arduous task before reaching the summit, where the group were rewarded with breath taking views of the surrounding mountains, many of which were being looked down upon. Tuesday 29th saw the group putting on wet suits again, only this time the activity of canyoning meant the group would be following a water course down its gully. Following the stream down its course would require the group members to be scrambling down wet rocks, sliding and jumping into the occasional plunge pools and in some parts using a rope to help descend some of the steeper parts. Again, teamwork came to the fore as the more confident members were able to help and encourage those who were finding the experience more of a challenge. Wednesday 30th was used for a bit of sight seeing as the group travelled to the nearby Neuschwanstein Castle (better known by most Brits as the Chitty Chitty Bang Bang castle). After following a guided tour round the impressive building, the group made its way to a suspension bridge viewpoint with the castle in the background, where several of the newer members of the explorer group made their promises – much to the bemusement of the hordes of visiting tourists, many of whom captured this uniformed spectacle on their own cameras. On return and after being fed their tea the group went out in the evening for a spot of 9 pin bowling at a local Kegelbahn. Thursday 31st found the group putting their climbing wall techniques into practise on a piece of real rock face. The route was a prepared climb which meant that foot and hand holds had been put onto the rock face along with a safety cable which the climbers would be attached to throughout the climb. Although on initial inspection it looked merely to be a ladder climb, on closer consideration the overhangs and exposure to big drops would make this the most challenging part of the week for many of the group. On completion, the afternoon was spent chilling out at the campsite pool. Friday 1st August saw the groups divided into three teams in order to compete in a mini Olympics of team based tasks. Teams competed against the watch to get the best scores possible in activities that included archery, blindfolded climbing, horseshoe throwing, command tasks and walking on skis/planks designed to be worn by three people at a time. In the afternoon, the group visited the nearby rodelbahn for a couple of runs. Advertised as the longest Alpine rodelbahn, descent would take ten to fifteen minutes of travelling to complete the run, depending upon how fast the traveller dared to go. Saturday 2nd saw the group complete its final activity as they visited the city of Innsbruck clutching a list of tasks to complete and places to visit as they lived up to their names and explored the city. With part of the task being to sample some local cuisine (apple strudel) and to interview local people about various topics, the wearing of the scout uniform made the tasks easier to achieve as the scout necker is recognised throughout the world as a symbol of the movement and all that it stands for. Indeed, one of the groups was approached by an elderly gentleman, who had spent time as a prisoner of war in England, and was told about how life had changed for him over the years.
