The Haz camp
This is my report of a camp I held. It's a wee bit stilted commentary wise, but hopefully not mind numbingly so.
With photos!!!
Cut for your convienience :P
9.30am, Saturday (22nd)
Calum, Stuart, Andrew and Roddy arrived and walked along the track to Stemster with Charlotte and Emily while I went to Wick to pick up Fraser. We got a call around 10.15 saying that the ‘bell’ tent we’d brought was in fact an Icelandic fly sheet…
I called Mike Grain (who would be coming out later that day to drop of Angela and Tom) and asked if he could bring us the bell tent canvas. He said yes and the explorers (upon later discussion) decided that all the leaders in Caithness would soon know of our little mix-up.
10.30ish
Fraser and I arrive at the camp site and help transport the rest of the camping equipment and wood from the trailer in which it had been stored in. We got two hike tents up (Andrew’s and the Mahoods'. We had all the kit in Andrew’s and the cooking equipment, food, and explorers in ours) before heating up hotdogs for an early lunch.
11.30am
Treasure hunt!!!
• Red Team
Charlotte
Andrew
Roddy
Emily
• Blue Team
Fraser
Calum
Stuart
Harriet
We split off into two teams (team captains ‘volunteered’ were Charlotte and Fraser) and I presented each team with their first clue. There were seven clues in total, each directing the team (in the form of a riddle) to the next point (two painted stick in the ground with a clue tied to each). The last clue would tell them to take the first word of each collected clue, rearrange them and this would hopefully lead them to the treasure.
The clues were (please don’t laugh too hard):
#1 Fifteen posts, you must count,
From the double gated corner.
Turn westwards now, and begin to tread,
To where it might be warmer.
#2 Steps you have taken to reach,
A great stone dwelling,
Your quest is almost over.
Search now quick,
Within the corner,
The one that’s close to Dover.
#3 Eastern most corner,
Of the southern side.
Is where your next clue,
Surely must hide.
#4 From the bothy, to the bog, I can see all,
For when you stand upon me, you can be tall.
Many pieces have I, and mainly slate they be,
A bothy I may have been, but am not as you can see.
#5 “Holy” ground I stand upon,
The entrance to a field.
Southeast from here, the dead are buried,
And slowly begin to yield.
#6 Entrance am I to the land,
The land you are exploring.
The fence is high, six feet in fact,
From here the land’s adoring.
#7 A trek you have taken, to find this clue,
And now you’re almost done.
Rearrange your clues, the first word of each,
Do this and you may have won!
NB - ignore the word of this clue
The “holy” entrance was referring to the rabbit warren one of the gateways was right next to. Both teams worked the riddles out okay, red team won and were seen whooping and dancing with the tin of chocolates they’d just uncovered.
2pm
After polishing off an awful lot of the victory chocolates (sweet for the victors, but the losers concurred that they had a bitter aftertaste) we decided that a short hike would be good and trooped off towards loch Stemster. This is us stopping by the duck pond briefly for a camera war.
Andrew and Roddy stopping to pose on the way
>
We arrived back at our campsite at 3pm and talked in the tent till Tom and Angela arrived at about 4pm.
With them, they brought the bell tent canvas and we quickly pitched it after correcting our original position which had the door facing directly into the wind. Oops.
With the bell tent pitched, and the boy’s gear moved in, we started our next activity, rabbit skinning.
For this, we’d kindly been presented with seven gutted but still fluffy rabbits and the plan was to skin them and barbecue the meat later at the campfire.
The boys seemed to have really enjoyed this activity. I skinned one before starting on dinner whilst the boys finished off the rest of them. Angela and Emily helped skin many, many potatoes for the mash we were going to have with the sausages.
After dinner, we began to try and start the campfire Fraser had constructed for us.
8pm
The campfire burnt down to embers reasonably quickly (while we ate our delicious ‘pie-cake’ for desert) and our various offerings were produced. We had marshmallows, bite sized rabbit and ‘twists’ (A cinnamon, flour and water dough, rolled into sausages and twisted round sticks for cooking). Everyone tried everything I believe. Calum even tried marshmallows and rabbit at the same time which he -said- was pretty good. At around 10pm, fireworks were spotted in the distance (Eastwards) and there was a beautifully full moon out. Everyone was in bed by 11pm, although not everyone went to sleep then!
8-8.30am Sunday 23rd
Pretty much everyone was up at 8.30. Fraser had gotten the campfire sorted and had replaced the turf whilst I got frying bacon for bacon sandwiches. Unfortunately, the gas did run out, but everyone who wanted a sandwich got one before this happned. There were rolls, spreads and cereal on offer as well.
After breakfast, the tents were taken down and all but personal kit was transported and put back in the trailer.
A short walk back to the farm to meet Gary (who told us we were 3 minutes late!) and everyone went home by various means.
MISC PHOTOS
With photos!!!
Cut for your convienience :P
9.30am, Saturday (22nd)
Calum, Stuart, Andrew and Roddy arrived and walked along the track to Stemster with Charlotte and Emily while I went to Wick to pick up Fraser. We got a call around 10.15 saying that the ‘bell’ tent we’d brought was in fact an Icelandic fly sheet…
I called Mike Grain (who would be coming out later that day to drop of Angela and Tom) and asked if he could bring us the bell tent canvas. He said yes and the explorers (upon later discussion) decided that all the leaders in Caithness would soon know of our little mix-up.
10.30ish
Fraser and I arrive at the camp site and help transport the rest of the camping equipment and wood from the trailer in which it had been stored in. We got two hike tents up (Andrew’s and the Mahoods'. We had all the kit in Andrew’s and the cooking equipment, food, and explorers in ours) before heating up hotdogs for an early lunch.
11.30am
Treasure hunt!!!
• Red Team
Charlotte
Andrew
Roddy
Emily
• Blue Team
Fraser
Calum
Stuart
Harriet
We split off into two teams (team captains ‘volunteered’ were Charlotte and Fraser) and I presented each team with their first clue. There were seven clues in total, each directing the team (in the form of a riddle) to the next point (two painted stick in the ground with a clue tied to each). The last clue would tell them to take the first word of each collected clue, rearrange them and this would hopefully lead them to the treasure.
The clues were (please don’t laugh too hard):
#1 Fifteen posts, you must count,
From the double gated corner.
Turn westwards now, and begin to tread,
To where it might be warmer.
#2 Steps you have taken to reach,
A great stone dwelling,
Your quest is almost over.
Search now quick,
Within the corner,
The one that’s close to Dover.
#3 Eastern most corner,
Of the southern side.
Is where your next clue,
Surely must hide.
#4 From the bothy, to the bog, I can see all,
For when you stand upon me, you can be tall.
Many pieces have I, and mainly slate they be,
A bothy I may have been, but am not as you can see.
#5 “Holy” ground I stand upon,
The entrance to a field.
Southeast from here, the dead are buried,
And slowly begin to yield.
#6 Entrance am I to the land,
The land you are exploring.
The fence is high, six feet in fact,
From here the land’s adoring.
#7 A trek you have taken, to find this clue,
And now you’re almost done.
Rearrange your clues, the first word of each,
Do this and you may have won!
NB - ignore the word of this clue
The “holy” entrance was referring to the rabbit warren one of the gateways was right next to. Both teams worked the riddles out okay, red team won and were seen whooping and dancing with the tin of chocolates they’d just uncovered.
2pm
After polishing off an awful lot of the victory chocolates (sweet for the victors, but the losers concurred that they had a bitter aftertaste) we decided that a short hike would be good and trooped off towards loch Stemster. This is us stopping by the duck pond briefly for a camera war.
Andrew and Roddy stopping to pose on the way
>
We arrived back at our campsite at 3pm and talked in the tent till Tom and Angela arrived at about 4pm.
With them, they brought the bell tent canvas and we quickly pitched it after correcting our original position which had the door facing directly into the wind. Oops.
With the bell tent pitched, and the boy’s gear moved in, we started our next activity, rabbit skinning.
For this, we’d kindly been presented with seven gutted but still fluffy rabbits and the plan was to skin them and barbecue the meat later at the campfire.
The boys seemed to have really enjoyed this activity. I skinned one before starting on dinner whilst the boys finished off the rest of them. Angela and Emily helped skin many, many potatoes for the mash we were going to have with the sausages.
After dinner, we began to try and start the campfire Fraser had constructed for us.
8pm
The campfire burnt down to embers reasonably quickly (while we ate our delicious ‘pie-cake’ for desert) and our various offerings were produced. We had marshmallows, bite sized rabbit and ‘twists’ (A cinnamon, flour and water dough, rolled into sausages and twisted round sticks for cooking). Everyone tried everything I believe. Calum even tried marshmallows and rabbit at the same time which he -said- was pretty good. At around 10pm, fireworks were spotted in the distance (Eastwards) and there was a beautifully full moon out. Everyone was in bed by 11pm, although not everyone went to sleep then!
8-8.30am Sunday 23rd
Pretty much everyone was up at 8.30. Fraser had gotten the campfire sorted and had replaced the turf whilst I got frying bacon for bacon sandwiches. Unfortunately, the gas did run out, but everyone who wanted a sandwich got one before this happned. There were rolls, spreads and cereal on offer as well.
After breakfast, the tents were taken down and all but personal kit was transported and put back in the trailer.
A short walk back to the farm to meet Gary (who told us we were 3 minutes late!) and everyone went home by various means.
MISC PHOTOS