The Cub Scout's


I was in the cub scouts for almost two years, and had some fabulous adventures, and memories that have stayed with me. I was sceptical prior to joining as i wasn't too keen on joining a movement with a squeaky clean image, though when i learned that most of the other "scallywags" (including the Murray twins) from my school year were also members, then i joined up, together with my best mate at the time, and gave it a whirl - no regrets.

When you joined you were given a special uniform (which had to be bought) - this incorporated, a green sweater, purple tie (with a waddle/toggle/whatever they were called, that looped the tie in place), and a cap. In addition you were given a little booklet that went through the rules and etiquette of the Cub Scout's. Also you were expected to memorize the Cub Scout motto......which i have now forgotten....:unsure: (http://www.survivor-online.co.uk/forums/misc.php?do=getsmilies&wysiwyg=0&forumid=8#)

All Cub scout leader's are known as Akela (association's with the "Jungle Book" i think), and we were split up into 4-5 different groups or lines, which were represented by a colour. The colour of your waddle/toggle over your tie, determined which group you was part of, and each group consisted of around 5-6 cubs. The leader of your particular line (i refer to tham as "lines" because we always had to line up at the beginning of proceedings and recite the cub motto etc - discipline), was known as a "sixer", and the heirarchy moved downwards to a "seconder" i believe it was. I "climbed the ladder", through no other reason than having earned more "prestigous" badges (bronze, silver, gold etc) than the rest of my line to become a seconder, though i never really gave much of a toss about this, as there was really only one leader - the mighty Akela!!

Anyway, once you got all the nonsense of learning how to tie "special" types of knots, and that type of thingout of the way, most of us were there only for two reasons - These being "tracking" and also "camping".

"Tracking" was a close variation of "Hide and Seek", whereby one group would have a set time to go off into the village and hide, while the other group then went in pursuit. We didn't really need a cub uniform to do this, but it assembled a large number of us together and we all looked forward to the "tracking", in a similar way that most lads of that age looked forward to football in PE at school, rather than cricket.

I went on two camping trips while i was a member of the Cub's, and enjoyed both immensely. They were incredible adventures, and on the final trip (a large number of us had already decided we were going to leave immediately following our return from it), we were "tented up" in the Forest of Bowlee, in an area that was reputedly the haunt of witches and the like - which made it all the more exciting for us.

I hanged out with my then best pal garry most of the time, along with our mutual friend Gareth, who was a "sixer", and once we had pitched up tents we went off to explore the surrounding forest, which to lads our age, seemed vast. It was an amazing forest that sloped steeply down, so that you actually descended rather than merely walked through it. We got to know every single vine (which we would use as ladders often, as it was at times incredibly steep and dangerous), every fallen tree, etc etc, and it became "ours" so that anyone else who entered our territory would be seen as trespassers. It was our forest, as we got to know it like a good friend. We knew all its good points, and all its bad ones too. We even had a nickname for a particular massive tree stump with roots that extended out like a giant hand (very spooky) - we christened it "The Rancor's Claw", after a creature from the movie Return of The Jedi.

Some of the other Cub members often came back from their own particular adventures relating to us teriffying stories of how they had seen evidence of witches being present in the woods. They claimed to have seen carcuses of little animals having been strung up from tree branches. On further inspection, we did notice the string from the branches.....(all very Blair Witch)

Anyway, when we arrived home, we kept to our words and most of us left the Cubs (one or two went on to become fully fledged Scouts) - but what great memories the Cub Scout's provided.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v672/Woodstock73/Photo0255.bmp ......"dib-dib, dob-dob"

I was never a member of the chipmunks, or brownies of girl guides. I think I may have missed out on a few adventures. And I love camping, so a few bug infested nights. Ah well, in my next life!

Anyway, when we arrived home, we kept to our words and most of us left the Cubs (one or two went on to become fully fledged Scouts) - but what great memories the Cub Scout's provided.


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Sorry, Woody, fell asleep there, did you used to be in the Scouts?

I just enjoy the freedom of writing Patsy. It's as much for my benefit than anyone else here.

Like many have said, if you can always "switch off the tv etc etc if you don't like the topic...."

I know it's not as interesting as the subject of garden sheds but....

I used to be a Brownie. I actually made it to the heady heights of a "Sixer", which meant I was a leader of the Leprechauns.

My sister only made it to "seconder" of the Elves before being suspended from Brownies for 2 weeks after slapping her mate around the face with a wet swimming costume. She was too ashamed to go back afterwards so I left in protest too.

Not a successful Brownie career all in all.

I was a member of the Tufty Club too!

Here's my guilty secret then - I used to be a Cub Leader. Not Akela - just one of the underdogs - lol. I was know as Kaa (all the leaders names come from Jungle Book as you probably know).

I have painful memories of going to weekend camp and basically being used as a "Skivvy", doing all the cooking, washing up, the flag, etc. while Akela went swanning round doing tent inspections and taking the cubs on nature rambles.

Akela also took her caravan. When we got there and they undid all the tents, mine turned out to be a "Toilet tent" so I would have had to sleep standing up!! Did Akela invite me into her caravan - no sireee! They made me sleep in the big open Marquee with a blanket across to screen me off!! It was freezing at night.

The "toilet" was a bucket in a wooden shed full of spiders. I wouldn't go in there and used to pee in a corner of the marquee at night or in the bushes in the daytime :blush:

Now I know why I was the only one who volunteered to go.

I enjoyed the weekly pack meetings though.

I've been in the Girl's Brigade and the Guides and I would never submit my children to any of the torture that was food at camp. :laugh: Seriously though, I enjoyed both and had some good times.

Here's my guilty secret then - I used to be a Cub Leader. Not Akela - just one of the underdogs - lol.

D'ya know, I've always quite fancied doing this for either the cubs or brownies. You've put me off a bit now though :laugh:

Knowing my luck, I'd get an Akela or Brown Owl like your one!

I went for two weeks but got bored and left!

I went for two weeks but got bored and left!

My brother did the same things with the younger boy's group which precede's cubs (Beavers?). :laugh:

I was in the Brownies for two weeks....I then asked myself...what was I doing skipping around a giant mushroom? I didn't come up with a sensible answer and so I left!

D'ya know, I've always quite fancied doing this for either the cubs or brownies. You've put me off a bit now though :laugh:

Knowing my luck, I'd get an Akela or Brown Owl like your one!

Oh go for it KH, it's good fun, especially when you get invested and get your Woggle - lol. Just remember that if everyone else seems to have a prior engagement don't volunteer for it cos it's probably gonna be 'orrible :)

I was in the Imps at Brownies and I was a Bluebell at Guides. I loved the Brownies, however the Guides had a bit of sinister Guider who was actually truly appalling. Her daughter was also part of our group and she was a big girl who quite often took the huff when things didn't go her way. On many occassions she would storm out of the hall, if someone didn't agree with her. She as a bit of a bully and she had a new guide in her six, who was also quite a big kid but a really lovely girl. Anyway within weeks she was in tears over comments that this girl had made, so we invited the new girl to join our six. It didn't go down well the Guider and her daughter and there was a bit of a rumpus, plus the Guider didn't like the song that we made up about daughter - remember the song Pop Music, Pop Music...well, we sung Fat (the girl's name), poke her with a pin and she'll go bang.......something I am deeply ashamed and guilty off, but you know what she is still a horrible, fat, lazy person from what I have heard! So to cut to the chase, my six left the Guides that night, and soon after that the whole company folded.

Katie though has just left the Rainbows and will join the Brownies after the holidays and is really looking forward to it. And I know the women who run it and they are lovely, so I have no qualms about it at all!

I was in the Girls Brigade had some fun but left when it clashed with youth club and I was more interested in meeting boys than getting badges. I should've stuck with the badges as I wouldn't have got into half so much trouble. :naughty:

I was in the Brownies for two weeks....I then asked myself...what was I doing skipping around a giant mushroom? I didn't come up with a sensible answer and so I left!

I know what you mean Coastie - you have to drop a helluva lot of acid for it to make any sense at all!


I had to leave brownies cos Brown Owl's sausage dog kept shagging my leg!! Honestly! I know I've told this story before! I just to be in tears behind the toadstool hope that effing dog wouldn't get my scent! To this day I can't look at a sausage dog without getting erotic feelings!

Woodstock - I like the way your title is in the corporate colours, dib dib dob dob!

I was an Imp in the Brownies and made it to Sixer.
I used to love it. Used to go round the corner every friday night to the garage where Brown Owl lived. Her hubby always had itv news on (strange how I remember that) and she gave me a lift to the hall.

My mum had a clear out a while ago, and she found my little Brownie book. It was hilarious looking through that. all the things we had to do to be a good Brownie.

I have my both my sons down to go into the Beavers, so I hope they enjoy it as much as I did.
But apparently its much more pc now, there are girls in the beavers and cubs too.
I wonder if there is any boys in the brownies.

I used to be a Brownie, but i hated it. I went with my best friend every Thursday evening (or was it bi weekly :mellow: ), and i used to dread going, and what made it worse was the grotty brown uniform :sick:

I dont think i got many badges as i couldnt be arsed, i just bummed around most of the time. The only thing i do remember doing was putting on a show for the mums and dads ..... and i was a tree :blush:

I went to Brownies for 3 weeks....then I left....it was all a bit to "cliquey" for me :w00t: :w00t: :devil: :laugh:

From the minute I was 7 I was a brownie, and a bloody good one at that, seconder then sixer. Then I was a Girl Guide, and I wasn't such a good guide - but I loved camping.

My sister was also a brownie and a guide - but she was pants and I was so proud of her. Thing was Mum was first of all Brown Owl, then something else, then County Commisioner, then Lady BP's dep and P. Margaret's right hand person, for 500 hundred years - so my and sis were supposed to be model brownies and guides - and I was a little bit - [although I was never a Queens Guide] and my sis was the worst and most rebellious little person in the history of the GG.

I encouraged eldest son to join Cubs - but he did a fortnight and hated it much to my amusement and Grannies utter horror!!!!:devil: