Camp Diary - Page 6

Saturday 3rd May 2003

THE STORM

16.30pm - Our walk back had taken us around the base of the hill and away from the wind, thus I had decided to go ahead with it. On the way back to the campsite Dave had taken Louise, Kay and co to get a few things that had been forgotten during the morning shop. The plan was for Alex and me to return to the campsite and upon Dave’s arrival Alex would be able to leave for the evening (he had a very important engagement to go too). As we drown onto the campsite the heavens opened and as it did the wind went up another notch. As we pulled up to the tents we could see that the green frame tent was on the verge of taking flight. We all jumped out (the wind nearly ripped my car doors off). From this point on we had over 45 minutes of amazing activity. I got all the lads into the white frame tent; Rob and Alex made a dive for the green frame tent. I’m not too sure what was happening outside but in the lads tent there was water dripping along the middle ridge and the wind and rain was howling through from every single gap. Dave had now arrived and their were screams from outside ‘Baloo, we need some help, now’ Tom, Tom and Leo disappeared out of the side of the tent within seconds. The wind was very strong and the rain was lashing hard, each of the remaining lads where given others, either grab some mallets, pegs, move kit, refasten tent flaps or hold the tent sides down while they where treble pegged. These lads are used to receiving instructions and carrying them out but this time they were unbelievably. As I pegged one eyelet down another popped out, within a second George had grabbed hold of it and shouted ‘I’ve got it’, Chris was struggling to move the kit way from where the rain was lashing in and Luke spotted it even before I did and instantly gave a hand, Oliver as knocking pegs in with me and David was supplying us both with more pegs while also helping everyone else when they where struggling. After what seemed like only minutes but was actually over 45 minutes we had secured both tents, the lads kit and sleeping bags where damp but dry, we had also spend £10 and cleaned the site shop out of every single peg they possessed. Every eyelet was treble pegged and where we had run out of my spare pegs or bought pegs we bent knives, forks and spoons over to make pegs (oops, sorry parents) About 5 minutes earlier I had taken delivery of three very wet lads, first Tom and Tom, then Leo, they were absolutely soaked through, waterproofs, coats, two jumpers, t-shirts right down to their underwear. As quick as they walked into the tent they were stripped off into dry clothes.

Eventually, I left the lads and went to talk to the other leader, I was amazed to see Alex still here, I had assumed that he had gone, in fact I could even remember him popping his head in the lads tent and saying ‘I’m going, see you later’. They had performed miracles and with the help of large boulders from the cliffs, new pegs and bent over cutlery the green frame was no longer hovering above the ground. They were all soaked to the skin, and worried that the green frame tent may not last the night, for a few minutes their was discussion about abandoning camp, the wind was due to get stronger and they where all absolutely exhausted (performing miracles takes a lot out of you), then we started to here the sound of singing drifting over the noise of the wind and rain, the lads were singing ‘Always look on the bright side of life’. I have always taken my role as pack leader very seriously and although I spend most of my time with the lads the welfare and happiness of the other leaders is just as important. What they had been through in the last 45 minutes was very intense and they where all wet, cold and exhausted. Dave and Louise were despatched to the showers and returned later much more refreshed. Alex was struggling, he was cold, tired and had made a decision not to go to an engagement which was extremely important to both him and Dee because his conscience would not let him leave us.

This called for strong leadership so he was duly ordered to drop Rob and Andy off at the showers and then to keep driving, he would return with Dee and a patrol tent so that if need be it could be erected on a less windier part of the site just in case. During his time away he rang us 5 times to make sure everything was still ok (that sort of dedication to the lads is priceless).

Because the lads were still brimming with enthusiasm and they still had warm, dry clothes to wear and the other leaders needed a chance to warm up I decided that we would say for now but reassess the situation every hour. The rest of the evening worked like clockwork, the showers seemed to revive Dave and Louise. Dave instantly started to cook the burgers that we had bought for a barbeque and Louise and Kay made warm drinks for everyone.

We spent the evening playing cards in a tent that had a permanent 20-degree tilt, the rain was leaking through the windows and half the fold up seats were soaked.

Chocolates bars all around and a few jokes and stories and no one seemed to care.

We played chase the joker, followed by chase the ace, followed by George’s unique game ‘Chase the nothing’. George forgot to take a card out before we started so we were playing with 52 cards (an even number), we played right the way through the game chasing this nothing before we realised that no one could actually loose and be left with the remaining odd card ‘the nothing card’.

9.30pm - The last toilet run and then bed, the lads slept right through till 8.00am the next morning. I can probably give you the angle of tilt on their frame tent at any given time during that night; it was never in any danger of coming up routed but I will say that at exactly 11:56pm it spent 5 minutes taking a real battering as the wind peaked.