The Mining Challenge

Next year Scouting is 100 Years old and each District in Cornwall has been asked to put on an event for everyone involved in the Movement within the County, but also involving their families and friends.

As our Scout District is called STENEK HA’N MOR (which means Tinland and Sea) we thought that an ideal event would be to celebrate our mining heritage.

Our District covers the whole of Kerrier and part of Penwith and the most suitable venue to stage a large event is the Great Flat Lode. It is safe, circular and shows of our mining past with the buildings and information boards.

Each District has been allocated a month and we have been given 15^th July 2007. We are expecting up to 1000 walkers plus some families and friends.

The event will take the form of a simple Challenge Hike, in other words as the walkers go around the Great Flat Lode they will take part in several basic challenges. These challenges are fairly simple as the youngest walkers will be Beavers who are six years old.

We have eight Challenges. They are in order (as the walkers will hopefully complete them):-

1.                  A Quiz based on the Great Flat Lode, and other material we give them

2.                  A short guided tour around King Edward Mine

3.                  Gold Panning

4.                  A Proper Meal

5.                  Making a St Pirans Flag

6.                  Glass Window painting

7.                  Brass Rubbing

8.                  Making a Key Ring

The start of the walk will be at King Edward Mine as we have been given to use the car parking facilities there plus we can site the first three challenges on site. There is parking for cars, mini-buses and coaches. The walkers will then set off in an anti-clockwise direction.

Each walker on signing in (which will be staggered over a three hour period from 9-12am) will be handed a printed booklet, leaflets from attractions such as South Crofty, Poldark, Geevor, King Edward, etc, plus a quiz sheet and pen or pencil. This quiz sheet is Challenge 1.

As stated the first three challenges will be based on the Mine.

The Quiz sheet, Gold Panning and a Guided Tour of King Edward Mine. We are going to ease the numbers going into King Edward and doing the Gold Panning by telling them that they can also do the bases at the end if they want. This will spread them out a bit further.

To spread them out even more the next challenge they meet will be A Proper Meal which will be in the large car park at Piece or South Wheal Francis. Here we hope they will have a break and try a pasty as tradition says the miners did. We hope to have some sort of display here.

At Sleggen Smelting Works they will get the chance to make a St Piran’s Flag out of seed beads.

At St Uny Church, Carn Brea Village they will have a go at painting onto acrylic sheet to make a small church window. Also here will be the Brass Rubbing base.

At the old Mineral Tramway Centre they will have a go at putting a design onto a piece of leather, colouring it and then adding a key ring.

As they complete each task the back of their booklets will be stamped and if they manage six out of the eight Challenges then at the finish they will be given a certificate and limited edition badge which they can wear on their uniforms until the end of the year. There will only be 1000 badges made.

The whole event will be free to the walkers so we are trying to find sponsors, grants and goods in kind. The booklet will contain free adverts for organisations, attractions, etc who have helped us plus we are going to sell advertising space.

We are also hoping to give each walker at the end a set of vouchers offering entry to attractions for a reduced fee or even free.

What better way than to celebrate our Mining Heritage whilst having an enjoyable days walk on the Great Flat lode.