Around 30 young members, parents and leaders gathered for a spring camp, four nights in the beautiful Gower. The site was situated in a field surrounded by woodland & within walking distance of the beach. The weather was FANTASTIC all week - hot & sunny every day!
One of the features that makes a Woodcraft Folk camp different from other organisations is the mix of ages. On this camp there were four Woodchips, as well as a mix of Elfins, Pioneers and Venturers. It's wonderful to see how well all the age groups mix together - the older ones in particular helping to look after the younger ones & make their camp even more fun.
This year the Marine Conservation Society joined us for a day, where we worked with them to perform a 'beach clean'. It's amazing (& disheartening) to see quite how much rubbish can be collected from what appears to be a very clean beach. The bucketfull of glass shards was truly horrifying, especially as it was a very busy beach with lots of bare footed children! Quite an eye opening experience for children & adults alike.
One of the best things about camping is the opportunity to get to know others & make new friendships. This year, as well as the children who come along to most group evenings we also met up with a Woodcraft group from Cardiff; and had a couple of furry friends along (who got a LOT of love & cuddles all week).
The Gower is one of the most beautiful places in Britain & we were delighted to be returning there after a 12 year break. One of our favourite places was Three Cliffs Bay, where we spent a lovely day on the beach & paddling in the waves; and a second day where the younger members did a lovely cliff walk above the bay & visited Pennard Castle. There was enough time for some very well deserved ice-creams along the way!