October 2024 – Vésenaz Campout
Written by Sebastien Burgess (Life Scout; Senior Patrol Leader – Webmaster)
Troop 77 had a campout on 5-6 October 2024 in Vésenaz (GE), which truly tested our Scout Spirit.
We set off on Saturday from CDL to make our way to the campsite, but with a twist: we were comprised exclusively of scouts (there were no scoutmasters), and we had to make our way to the campsite via public transport, while visiting places of interest in the city of Geneva. Throughout the Geneva walk, we were on the look out for architectural places of interest for the Architecture merit badge, as well as geocaches for the Geocaching merit badge, both kindly offered by two of our scoutmasters.
Our first stop was the botanical garden, on the outskirts of the city. We really enjoyed seeing the extensive collection of plants on display, and even went looking for a geocache. Next, we walked along the lake to the old town, where we visited the cathedral, the Reformation wall, the old arsenal, and the cantonal court. We really enjoyed walking around Geneva and taking in such a wealth of history, but we are all quite tired once we’d arrived at the campsite!
Upon arrival, we pitched our tents and went to the lakeside to observe birds, for the Bird Study merit badge. We saw numerous ducks and swans, to name a few. We were also treated to a spectacular and picturesque sunset!
We finished the day with a stove-cooked dinner and a convivial campfire, and retired to our tents for the night.
That night, we received a slightly unwelcome visitor in the form of a fox, which unfortunately helped itself to some of our food. Our senior scouts were up a bit earlier to keep it our rather inquisitive furry visitor away.
In the morning, we packed up tents and cooked breakfast. Unfortunately, it started raining, but we persevered and worked on merit badges and advancements indoors.
In summary, we had a really nice weekend, and visited all the amazing sites of this historical and culturally-rich city. We also learned a huge amount for the Architecture, Bird Study, and Geocaching merit badges, and most of all everyone had fun!