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This was probably the low point of the week because by now everyone was very tired and the camp site looked like a laundry with wet clothing draped over every available tree branch, guy rope and a couple of washing lines. In desperation we rigged up a clothes drying area in the back of the van (101 uses of 7.5 tonne van will be published later this year).

Breakfast was eggy bread which we cooked in the mess tent because it involved deep frying in hot fat. This showed good team work on the part of the leaders, with Jim and Sian doing preparation of egg beating and bread soaking and Steve and Dave got the short straw and had to cook. Steve managed to survive unscathed but Dave learned that putting your fingers into hot fat to pull out a piece of bread is definitely not a good thing to do.

It was impossible to do the climbing and hillwalking planned because the weather was so bad, so we had a lazy start and opted for a 3 hour boat ride from Ambleside down to Lakeside.

This was enjoyed by all, it was good to get out and see more of lake Windemere and it’s surroundings. On the outward leg we were on a large boat with several decks and lots of covered areas which we could of course use to shelter from the torrential showers. This was a day of blazing sunshine and tropical showers. We got off the boat at Lakeside and ate our picnic lunch at the side of the lake adjacent to the boat jetty and steam railway station. After negotiation with the local ice cream supplier for a bulk discount we all enjoyed a 99 cone to warm us up. We then went to join the back of the queue for the return boat journey. The queue was very very very long and it was a much smaller boat. We eventually managed to squeeze onto our sardine can form of transport but we couldn’t stay together so there were small groups all over the boat. Several sensible scouts found space in the lowere indoor cabin and refused to move for the entire journey. Other less sensible members of the group, including me ended up at the help of the boat to welcome the full force of the rain and wind! Never mind, it blew the cob webs out of our brains whilst we were there.

 

 

 

Wednesday

Departing from Ambleside
on the 10:50 ferry to Lakeside

Designer waterproofs were the order of the day

Docked at Bowness on the return journey


 

Tea was sausages and mash with onion gravy. Even though this is a relatively simple meal it was interesting to see how many different ways in which it could be cooked. We did provide guidance on what to cook and in what order but these were not necessarily adhered to. One group added milk and butter to their drained potatoes as instructed; unfortunately the potatoes were still in the colander when this was done. Another were about to mash the potatoes with milk and butter without having first drained the water out. Luckily patrol mentors were on hand to monitor progress and discovered these small difficulties before disaster struck.

Hot coffee and chocolate was the order of the day.

Our boat on the outward journey

Washing up after this tea was a real trauma, as patrols were not heating their water to a sufficient temperature to stop the fat in the frying pans congealing. After an initial rather disastrous attempt at washing up we handed out bowls of hot soapy water in order to prevent some really bad stomach upset occurring the next time the utensils and pans got used.