KK Klub Camping Trip: It Could Have Been Worse
"In all circumstances give thanks..."

The main canopy tent before (above) and after (below).

fter communal tents were set up on a lovely calm Tuesday evening (see right), children and leaders congregated at the Monkswell farm field at 11am Wednesday 11th August to put their own tents up, play a bit of cricket and eat loads of pasties before yomping to a nearby wood to play an exciting game of 'Capture the Flag'.

(Above) Beneath the tailend of Hurricane Alex...and (below) beneath the viaduct at Magpie Woods

It rained. We came back, played some more cricket and frisbee and had a barbecue, during which it rained. The kids then enjoyed a period of enforced community beneath the main canopy tent while it rained. As everyone prepared to get ready for bed, it began to rain heavily. During the night, it also rained.

Everyone woke to a grey morning, enjoyed some bacon butties and a game of cricket before it started to rain heavily. It continued to rain. The main tent collapsed. We put it back up. The rain carried on. The tent collapsed again. It rained. Nobody had any dry clothes (or anything much else) left. It continued to rain. Barely twenty-four hours after everyone had arrived, we packed it in and met up again the next morning at King's for another session of 'Capture the Flag' at Magpie woods (during which it rained).

hy give thanks? (i) It wasn't cold; (ii) it wasn't windy; (iii) the thunder and lightning didn't come really really close; (iv) no-one got swept away in the deluge; (v) the kids bonded well together, with the older ones keeping a watchful eye over the younger ones; (vi) they all mucked in with the cooking and cleaning (without too much complaining!), and (vii) they had a good time together and are already asking when they can do it again!

hank you, Ben! - a big 'Thank you' to Ben Jeffery for choosing to join us in our summer maelstrom of activity. Ben was with us for five weeks and got really involved with the kids on several of the KKKlub events, as well as helping out around the Watering Hole. He's gone back to Crawley to prepare to go out to Africa with Colin in September where he'll be helping run a youth camp of 3,000 kids (after the camping trip, it'll be a doddle....).