CCF Summer camp was blessed with almost a full week of sunshine. Seven elite members of the CCF deployed on the annual camp, but with family holidays and Harry Barlow having to pull out at the last minute to play rugby for England in the Bahamas, we were left with a smaller than usual section of Cadets.
The week was very busy but tremendous fun, with an array of activities put on by 160 Brigade in and around Penally Camp, West Wales. Our week began with ‘Watermanship’ with the Royal Engineers, the Cadets built rafts and in teams of eight raced across a lake, obviously all competitors had a little dip in the cold water but a lot of fun was had by all and basic rope work lessons learnt.
On the Tuesday we spent a day on the rifle ranges in torrential rain! Cranleigh CCF gained two marksmanship and three first class shooting badges, more than any other Contingent that week which was remarkable given that some schools had more than 30 cadets attending.
This was followed by a day of Adventurous training; Rock Climbing, Abseiling and Kayaking in the glorious sunshine. Cranleigh then deployed on a tactical Exercise for 24 hours; field craft and tactical training were taught by instructors from the Army. The section excelled with Will Grainger and George Chilcott volunteering to take part in an overnight OP (Observation Position) to ensure surveillance on the Enemy was maintained, they both caught up on their sleep during the long journey back to Cranleigh.
Clay Pigeon Shooting, Archery, STEM stands and an evening on the beach were thrown in to keep the cadets busy at in the evening. This was one of the most fun packed and diverse summer camps Cranleigh has attended; all (including the Staff) thoroughly enjoyed their time.
