Scouts Use Home-Made Canoes For River Trip

Press, Volume C, Issue 29621, 18 September 1961, Page 10

Scouts Use Home-Made Canoes For River Trip

Travelling in home-made canoes, 21 senior scouts from five Canterbury troops took part in a 12-mile canoe adventure down the Avon river in the week-end. Sixteen canoes were entered—five from the Linwood senior troop, four from South Brighton, one from Shirley and six from Ashburton. Five of the canoes were doubles. No-one sank or capsized on the journey ana the only damage was some large tears in the canvas of two canoes. The expedition was not a race, although some points were awarded for the fastest time. Points were awarded or deducted for seamanship, handling the canoes in and out of the wrter, stowage of gear, manoeuvring the canoes and behaviour. The scouts started their journey kt the Bridge of Remembrarce on Saturday morning and travelled to the Swanns road bridge where they stopped for lunch. In the afternoon they went to th- South Brighton domain where they camped for the night in the scout den. On Sunday morning they completed the trip, travelling across the estuary to the Heathcote bridge. On the last stage of the journey they were accompanied by three launches belonging to members of the New Brighton Power-Boat Club. This project was the first of its kind in Canterbury, and next year’s one would prob-

ably be held in a swifter river, said the organiser, Mr A. Lester, who is the scoutmaster of the Linwood senior troop.

They learned a lot on the trip,’ he said. Several had to throw out sodden loaves and some had to sleep in damp sleeping bags because they had not stowed their gear in waterproof bags. All the faults were discussed around the campfire on Saturday night and nobody made the same mistakes yesterday when “practically no points were lost,” he said. Two Shirley scouts, Fred Fowler and Athol Leask, same first in the double-canoe contest with 90 points out of 105. Clyde Cook and Colin O’Neill, of the Linwood troop, came second with 86 points, and Garth Taylor and Neil Scott, of Ashburton, came third with 83 points.

Neil Andrews, of the Linwood troop, was the highest scorer in the single-canoe section with 97 points out of 111. Geoffrey Flanagan (Ashburton) came second with 90 points, and Bill Whelan (Ashburton) came third with 89 points.