We are so thankful and grateful that this year camp was able to return! Due to some of the guidelines and restrictions in place at the time of organising, we chose a local venue, Skreens Park, just outside of Chelmsford.

Unlike a typical camp, our time at Skreens Park spanned 4 days; a long weekend from Friday morning to Monday afternoon at the end of July.

There were no inspections, fines or bugle calls, which many of us did miss!, but just as much fun and laughter. Campers were most happy to find out they didn’t have to take part in the sanitation squad this year!

Our first evening was particularly fun, making a big campfire on which dinner was cooked, then campers participated in a quiz which ended up spreading throughout the weekend as there were so many rounds! Having spent quite some time of the last year engaging with our young people online via Zoom, it was a pleasure to have them all together enjoying each other’s company in person!

The facilities on site meant we were able to offer a broad range of activities to our campers including climbing, paddle boarding, a zip wire, and kayaking. The campers were enthusiastic and full of courage, with many taking on challenges they hadn’t before, including a leap of faith (jumping from a high tower to grab hold of a hanging bar) and high ropes, a range of obstacles several stories off the ground.

As well as making use of the onsite facilities, our programme also included a range of activities prepared by our leaders. There was ultimate frisbee, night hike, a game of giant pit and what 3 words? This last game was made up of an ‘explain it, act it, draw it’ round to find out three words, these three words then corresponded to a special coordinate where campers found a clue to help them in a final dingbat round.

Our devotions were held in small groups using a variety of tools including a

game using large poles, a clapping song and some Lego!

Although some aspects of camp were a little different, no camp is without a bit of rain! The forecast leading up to camp didn’t look particularly fantastic, and yes, we did have several downpours, one of which did lead to a slight mishap with a wet sleeping bag! There was thunder as well, but we were blessed with some sunshine and dry evenings!

The atmosphere of camp was just as rich and lively as always! Although not all our young people were able to attend, it was great to get together those that could. Thank you to the families of all our young people at both 2nd and 7th Chelmsford, who have continued to support the Brigades over the last couple of years. We hope that next year with less restrictions in place many more of our young people can return to camp or join us as a first timer!