At 10 am on Sunday morning past, the sun was shining, the birds were chirping and there were smiles all round whilst the Cubs all came together one by one at Ravensdale. Before we set off, all 17 cubs and 7 leaders performed our Cub chant and had a brief chat about road safety.
We embarked on our adventure at 10:30 am, with those striving for their chief scout award leading and bringing up the rear of the pack. Those individuals leading the hike were given the whole experience! We spent some time in the meeting before preparing and planning for the hike. They wrote the packing list, sourced a weather forecast and planned accordingly.
We made our way to Foyles way and the lumpers loop. The trail had many interesting features including 10 bridges, a beautiful river, a rocky path and rock steps. As scout leaders we are always on the lookout for learning opportunities that create a lasting memory, which is why we took a short interlude to allow the Cubs to wade through a section of the river and made a quick pit stop for an impromptu backwoods stretcher build. These survival skills are not only fun for the cubs, but they are valuable skills that they will carry with them throughout their scouting journey.
5 hours later at 3:30pm we were back at our starting point, and after hiking so far above sea level that we had a great view of the sea along with all of Dundalk, the Cubs were ready for home.
Whilst the hike itself was a challenge for all of the cubs, there were some cubs who really highlighted why Scouts as a movement is so important. The challenges that some of our Cubs overcame this weekend left all of the leaders in attendance stunned and immensely proud.
We are always grateful to the volunteers that put in the time and effort to attend these events, and who encourage the Cubs to challenge themselves and support them whilst doing so. Our thanks go to Ronan, Tasha, Thomas, Anthony, Fiona, Pete and Rachel