18/10/2026
This weekend 4 scouts and 2 young leaders took part in the Chiltern20 organised hike. Leagrave Scout Group entered two teams in this year's event, Team Hare and Team Tortoise.
Team Tortoise, consisting of our younger scouts was accompanied by our group leaders, over a 12.5km walk in the chiltern hills. Scouts benefited from over 6 hours of hands-on, 1-1 instruction in navigating through the chiltern hills and building map reading confidence and stamina.
Team Hare, was unaccompanied and were taking part in the 20km senior team event. They set off confidently enough but after a set back or two, our teams met up. After a brief intervention and some timely coaching from Bob, Team Hare were away again, under their own steam. We didn't see them again until the finish line (but we did keep an eye on them via a GPS tracker).
True to the old parable, ponderous Team Tortoise finished the challenge first and with fewer detours but Team Hare absolutely smashed the full 20km distance.
At the finishline, aching legs, a familiar hike-related shuffle and at least one blister to patch up but we cannot stress how proud we are of your scouts. Both teams demonstarted resillience, determination and a real thirst for adventure.
I hope our scouts and young leaders wake up this morning feeling accomplished. Despite the sore feet, the majority expressed a wish to complete more organised hikes or to try the unaccompanied version of this challenge next year.
Learning to hike and navigate around the countryside is not necessarily about getting it right everytime but being able to make a plan, to adapt that plan if required and to build on their experiences. In short, to be prepared.
