CCF Camp Penally

In late June, the Army section of the Shiplake College CCF travelled to Penally in South Wales for this year’s central camp, run by 160 Brigades Cadet Training Team.

The multi-activity camp began with a field exercise, meaning the Shiplake cohort travelled directly to the Sennybridge training area near Brecon, rather than heading for the more comfortable Penally camp. Despite a promising weather forecast for the week ahead, the coach departed Oxfordshire in the rain and the thought of a wet night in the woods filled the coach with a sense of impending doom.

Unusually, the weather improved having crossed the border into Wales, and after a last pit stop and meal at McDonalds, smiling faces had returned. The Cadet Training Team was extremely well organised and pitched the training exercise at exactly the right level for our cadets, teaching new skills and improving those previously learnt. The highlight of the overnight exercise was without doubt the Ambush; nothing pleases a cadet more than lying in wait for unsuspecting regular soldiers to casually walk into their trap. After a barrage of blank simulated firing the bad guys were taken care of and it was back to base for a good night’s sleep under the trees.

The following day the group was collected by coach and taken to Penally camp; their main base for the week. After cleaning and sorting out their field kit the cadets were shown to their accommodation and given time to settle in. The Training Team arranged evening activities for each group. After sampling their first army meal, the cadets settled down to watch Robocop.

The rest of the week was filled with a great range of activities including shooting on the range, practicing navigation skills around a local country park and a fantastic array of outdoor pursuits including climbing, abseiling and kayaking.

No activities were scheduled for the final day so Contingent Commander Steve MacPherson decided to reward the cadets for all their hard work and press ups with a day at Oakwood Park, a local theme park. The cadets had great time on the rides but without doubt the tea cups were their favorite. More screams were heard on this ride than any other.

The College would like to thank 160 Brigade for organising such a smooth and enjoyable camp. The cadets also deserve credit as they maintained a fantastic attitude throughout the week and did the College proud. Whilst Shiplake did not win any prizes, we did achieve multiple first class shots on the range, not bad for boys who are novices in this activity. The Shiplake CCF is changing next year and we are confident the positive attitude shown by the cadets at this camp will be passed on to all other pupils to make it an even better success next year.

Photos from the camp can be viewed on our Flickr gallery.