CCF Summer Camp

CCF Summer Camp

Summer camp at CCF is all about building closer friendships through fun and challenging activities led by the cadets. These activities spanned across five days.

Sunday 

After what felt like a very long journey, we finally arrived at West Camp on the Salisbury Plain, filled with excitement and anticipation for the week ahead. We jumped off the coach, grabbed our bags and gathered for a welcome briefing from the Major. With a clearer idea of what was to come, we headed to our rooms to unpack, iron our uniforms and polished our boots in preparation for the morning.

Monday 

As you can imagine, eight Southborough boys sharing a room meant sleep was limited, so the 6:30am wakeup call was a shock to our systems. After a quick shower and change into our MTPs (what you see the army wearing), we headed to breakfast. We then jumped into the minibuses and travelled to our training area where we established the HQ. Our task: navigate the terrain using 10-point grid references to locate checkpoints. It was excellent preparation for real-life scenarios where knowing enemy positions is critical for planning attacks. When the exercise finished, we headed back to camp, got changed, eat and headed out for an evening of bowling and laser tag. After a full day of activities with little rest the night before, we were fast asleep the moment our head hit the pillow.

Tuesday 

Another early 6:30am start, but this time we were changing into swimwear, as we were off to enjoy a full day of water sports. During the day, activities rotated between raft building, paddleboarding, kayaking and the massive paddle board. Raft building saw our group split into two teams with an aim of constructing the sturdiest raft capable of supporting us on the lake while paddling. Paddle boarding included a series of challenges to collect imaginary stars. Some consisted of jumping on the board, doing star jumps and head stands but by far the best was when you got to tackle your mates off their boards. Kayaking was the most chilled activity of them all. This consisted of paddling around the lake whilst watching the other groups tackling each other off their paddle boards. Last but not least, the massive paddle board. This was an all against all battle to stay on the board while pushing your teammates into the cold lake.

Wednesday

At 6:30 am, it was back into our MTPs for a day at the firing range. Here we practiced shooting from prone, sitting, and kneeling positions—each more difficult than the last. When not on the range, we were doing team activities like navigation and team building. This was a revision on what we learnt from our night in the field the previous week. As we got back to camp at a reasonable time, the boys and I played a bit of cards and Rugby. This helped bring Southborough and St. John’s boys together, creating a stronger bond through shared laughs and friendly competition.

Thursday

Today was a change of pace. We wore our own clothes for a morning filled with paintball and airsoft. We were split into four teams on arrival, which meant we would all go against each other. This exercise brought the competitive side out of us and was great fun eliminate your mates. After lunch, we suited back up in MTPs for a reconnaissance exercise of locating an enemy position. A fire team had to push through the bush line, while trying not to be seen by the enemy. We had to listen to enemy communications and do a recce of their camp, gathering as much intel as we could to report back to HQ. To finish the day, we practiced air rifle shooting in preparation for Friday’s test on grouping.

 Friday

6am early start to pack and prep for our final circuit of exercises. These included, weapon handling, drill, military knowledge, first aid and air rifle shooting. Each task contributed to an overall score which we received at the end of the day. After the awards and group photo, we got back on the coach for the journey home. It was a quiet ride as everyone was fast asleep, completely worn out.

George D