International Jamborees: 1985 Report USA

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1985 - 11th American National Jamboree, Camp AP Hill, Virginia, USA.

22 - 31 July / Participants 32 615 / South Africans 16

Report by Peter Foster - Leader of the SA Contingent to the USA

Jamboree Badge

Jamboree mania snorkelling the spectacular world of the coral reefs, the endless rush in the Big Apple the exciting attractions of London, the magic of Walt Disney World and Epcot, a week at sea aboard 40 foot yachts, the amazing realities of the Air and Space Museum, the thrills and spills of white-water canoeing - these are but a few of the highlights enjoyed by the fifteen Scouts and myself during our five-week overseas visit.

After a three day shake-down camp at Florida Lake in Johannesburg the contingent left on July 3rd, amidst envious farewells from family and friends. A change of Planes in London, then on to New York, and what better day could we have chosen to arrive than in the midst of Independence Day Celebrations. These reached a climax on the East Side of Manhattan Island when the sky exploded in a massive display of fireworks, expertly synchronised from four boats on the East River. The bombardment reached a crescendo after half an hour, at a tempo beyond the capabilities of any machine gun.

Miami was our next destination, from where we travelled south through the Florida Keys to the Florida Sea Base. This efficiently run High Adventure Base offers a variety of programs, based on sailing, diving and camping, for a week at a time. Our Coral Reef Sailing Adventure saw the contingent take to the open ocean in three yachts for the experience of a lifetime. Covering an average of 20km a day, we visited numerous coral reefs, each one different to the others, yet breathtaking in its own way. Shoals of brightly coloured fish, some striped, some spotted, others a multitude of colours, abound on the reefs. So do Barracuda, Stingrays, Turtles, Lobsters and Eels inhabit the waving fronds of the colourful coral. In the clear warm water, hours would pass by before we could draw ourselves away from this unique creation. A storm at sea was a sobering experience, bringing home to us our humility in the face of Nature, with the sky a backdrop painted in solemn colours never seen before.

SA Contingent

Then it was on to Miami Beach, where the clean sand stretches for mile upon mile, flanked by palm trees on one side and a restful sea idly splashing on the other. Orlando - tourist Mecca of the States! One day was not nearly long enough to enjoy all the wonders and marvels of Epcot Centre, home of some of the most advanced exhibitions in the World. Using the very latest in technology, we were treated to a host of impressions of the future, in the fields of science, energy, motion, farming and the like. The shrieks of delight and exhilaration never end at Disney World, particularly on the notorious Space Mountain, home of a spine-chilling roller coaster ride in complete darkness! Some of the attractions were so popular that we had to queue for more than an hour at a time. When our feet were virtually dropping off, our thirst for Disney was as fresh as when we had arrived.

Washington D.C., elegant capital of America, and also famous for the Smithsonian Institute - after spending a day at the Air and Space Museum, we had still not seen it all. Another visit was necessary to finish following the history of aviation from hot air balloon, to the Wright brothers, the barn stormers, the aircraft of the World Wars, jets, space flight, moon landings and space stations to the present space shuttle flights. The museum abounds in true-to-life exhibits, from an Apollo capsule that has actually come back from outer space, a lunar landing module, a moon buggy, rockets, and even the duplicate Skylab amidst many aeroplanes of all sorts of shapes and sizes. What was a typical Sunday outing for our American hosts was a new experience for us - white water canoeing. Taking on the Shenandoah River in double canoes, we overcame all the rapids and waterfalls in a blaze of glory and excitement.

And then a dream for so long became a reality - the 11th American National Jamboree. Being the 75th anniversary of the Boy Scouts of America, it was intended to be bigger and better than anything before. And sure it was - over 33 000 Scout folk in camp and many thousands of visitors each day made this a memorable event and a resounding success. Even when Hurricane Bob put in an appearance, leaving a trail of flattened and flooded campsites spirits remained high. The motto of the Jamboree was "The Spirit Lives On", and indeed it did. Friendship and Brotherhood were alive everywhere - from the hive of activity at the trading posts, to the campfires and meals, to all the Activity centres.

These activities included rubber rafting, clay-pigeon shooting, BMX racing, archery, several canoeing events, air rifles, pioneering, obstacle course and other Patrol challenges. With the very warm reception we were given by the Americans, ten days was much too short to accomplish everything on offer. The arena stage was a mammoth construction, quite up to the standards of any Broadway Theatre. The highlight of the Opening Show was a live concert by the Beach Boys. Nancy Reagan flew in by helicopter to deliver a speech from the President, before the Jamboree closed with the traditional Candle Ceremony and spectacular fireworks display, with thirteen tons of fireworks exploding in the sky above the arena.

New York, New York. Four more days staying in the heart of Broadway. Barely time enough to join the pilgrimage to the top of the Empire State Building, a cruise around Manhattan Island, Wall Street and the New York Stock Exchange in all its urgency, to the tranquillity of Central Park, from viewing pretty Chinatown and Greenwich Village to the colourful graffiti of the New York subways, to Broadway at night in a blaze of pulsating lights, and swarming with crowds of people. Fifth Avenue on a Saturday afternoon is stage for many New Yorkers to entertain and amuse, with music, break dancing, magician shows, while tourists lose their money to tricksters and gamblers.

Our last stopover was London, with only 30 hours to see as much as possible of this famous city and all its attractions. And what a busy 30 hours it was! In and out of the underground stations, on and off the tube, and competing with the thousands of other tourists invading London at the height of the season. Our travels took us to St Paul's Cathedral, the changing of the guards at Buckingham Palace, the lifelike models at Madame Tussaud's waxwork museum, the gruesome London Dungeon showing all the horrific torture methods of the past, Piccadilly Circus by night and Oxford Street, Harrods and its famous Toy Kingdom, a laser lighting show at the Planetarium, St Katherine Dock with its historical vessels such as Scott's Discovery, the Houses of Parliament and Big Ben, the floating museum of HMS Belfast, and some whizzing rides at a funfair in Leicester Square. Exhausted, we made our way back to Heathrow Airport, and patiently waited to board our Plane back to South Africa. Imagine our shock to hear that our flight was delayed for 21 hours and that we would have to spend the night at a nearby hotel! We all appreciated this opportunity to sleep and sleep and sleep.

We flew to Johannesburg with mixed feelings, looking forward to seeing old friends and family again, yet sorry that this wonderful holiday had come to an end all too quickly. What had been a dream for so long had become a reality and now but a multitude of happy memories. The Spirit Lives On, and so do the many new friendships across the Atlantic Ocean.


Report by Ian Smit - Troop Leader of the SA Contingent to the USA

In the past July holidays a group of 16 South African Scouts went to the United States of America. The main reason for us going overseas was to attend the 11th USA National Boy Scout Jamboree. We were also very fortunate to visit many other exciting Places. Our first stop was at the Florida Keys, where we participated in the National High Adventure Sea Programme. This High Adventure Sea Base is run by the Boy Scouts of America and offers a wide variety of activities. We did the coral reef sailing adventure. This adventure included sailing off the Florida Keys and diving the coral reefs. It was a fantastic sight to see the coral reefs. Even though a tropical storm hit us one night while out at sea, we had a tremendous time. From there it was up to Orlando where we toured world famous attractions such as Disney World, Epcot Space Centre and Sea World.

After visiting the main attractions in Orlando, we moved up to Washington where we looked at the attractions Washington could offer us. The White House, Capital Buildings, Vietnam Memorial were just a few of the things we saw in Washington.

In Orlando and Washington we were hosted by American Scout families. The home hospitality was greatly appreciated at the time as we had a lot of washing to do which was kindly done by our host families. But seriously they were tremendous towards us.

After the brief stay in Washington we went to the highlight of the entire trip, the 11th National Boy Scout Jamboree. This was held at Fort A.P. Hill Military Base in West Virginia. There were 35 000 Scouts attending this Jamboree from all over America. There were also a few Scouts from Australia, New Zealand, Japan, Britain and a few other countries. The Jamboree campsite was 8 kilometres in diameter. They had 20 Sub-camps with about 40 Troops in each Sub-camp. There were many activities at the Jamboree including shotgun shooting, archery and many more.

At the Closing Ceremony 12 tons of fireworks was used. This 45 minute display cost the Boy Scouts of America 500 thousand Dollars. The main activity at the Jamboree was the trading of badges. There would be Scouts all along the roadside trading badges and hat pins. We were very sad and had mixed feelings about leaving our host Troop and the Jamboree. Most of the South African Scouts left the Jamboree with half of their uniforms missing as they traded them for American uniforms.

From the Jamboree we went to New York where we spent a most exciting four days. In New York we went to Places such as the Empire State Building, Central Park, Chinatown and many other attractions. From New York we flew to London where we saw lots of things there in a short time. Then it was back home.

I would just like to thank everyone (especially Contingent Leader Peter Foster) who went on this trip, for making it as enjoyable as it was.


See Also