We had been told to catch the 7:30 AM shuttle, so that we could begin setting up our areas to receive visitors. I set my alarm accordingly, dragged myself out of my cot, and got dressed. I then picked up my phone, and saw that there had been a message late the previous evening saying we could wait until 10:30. With the challenges of the previous day, buses were still being handled, and they also wanted to add more gravel into our area (because it had also turned into mud).

I crawled back into my sleeping bag for a bit, but was pretty much awake at this point. I waited for a break in the continuing rain, gathered my gear, and headed to the dining hall. I had a fairly leisurely breakfast and picked up my lunch. I decided to go ahead catch a bus to the Welcome Center. Our team lead had said he would be there early and we could come help if we wanted to. And with the luck I’ve had with buses, I figured it’s best to be early.

We spent the late morning and early afternoon setting up tables, metal detectors, barricades, orange plastic fencing, and more. We also reviewed all the different steps in the process for the next day. Around 3 PM we were released. Dinner for the evening would be early, 4:00 – 6:30 PM, because of the opening ceremonies.

We got on a bus, and started to make our way to Echo. I had high hopes of having time to take a shower before going to dinner. Unfortunately those hopes were dashed, as our driver took a wrong turn and ended up in Alpha/Bravo, which is on the opposite side of the camp. It took an hour for the bus to get us from Ruby to Echo. Once we got there we decided to go straight to dinner instead of returning to tents and coming back.

After dinner I headed back to my tent to change out some things. I took a very quick shower, made sure I had the essentials, and headed back out. I had gotten a notice in the US Contingent’s map about instructions on how to get to the opening show, but couldn’t find them in the app itself. A friend from my team invited me to walk along with the UK IST members, so I met up with her by the stage.

As we were gathering we were treated to a performance by The Kwahadi Dancers and The Sahawe Dancers from Texas. After their opening the dancers pulled scouts from the audience into the dance with them. It was so wonderful to see a truly multi-cultural display of friendship and celebration. Great way to send us off for the opening ceremonies.

We hiked over to Echo, and I was reminded of my grand plans to get in shape before Jamboree that never happened. Luckily once we climbed up from Echo the rest of the way was fairly flat.

Walking into the AT&T Summit Stadium was amazing. Scouts from all around the world were streaming in from multiple directions. They were wearing their uniforms, carrying flags, and singing songs. All the troops filled into the space as they came in, so everyone was mixed in with each other. We found some space to sit in the back, and waited for the show to start.

The show was opened with a presentation of flags from all the nations attending. One of the Masters of Ceremonies was also escorted in by several Royal Canadian Mounted Police and The 48th Highlanders Pipes and Drums. And we couldn’t of course have a World Jamboree Opening Ceremony without the Chief Ambassador of World Scouting, and we also had the grandson of Lord Baden-Powell.

My friend and I decided to leave early, as we had another early morning ahead of us. We didn’t want to get caught up in the mass exodus of everyone trying to get back to their camps. So, we gathered up our things and caught a bus back to Echo.

We made it to camp without any major delays. I headed straight to my tent and into bed.

First thing I did this morning was hit snooze. And I think I hit it a second time, too. Eventually, I did get up, get dressed, gather my gear, and head out.

I maybe shouldn’t have hit snooze, as I got to the dining hall with about ten minutes in which to eat my breakfast. Being a fast eater comes in handy sometimes.

My early shift teammates and I were driven to the Ruby Welcome Center, and we got settled into work. The first couple of hours were very uneventful. We went over the process, and waited for buses to arrive.

Around 9 AM we finally started getting a steady stream of buses. At the same time the temperature was climbing higher and higher. I was very happy with my decision to get up earlier than I would have preferred. I was done with my shift and heading back to camp before the hottest part of the day.

I headed back to my tent, and did some laundry. I brought a dry sack to use for that purpose, and some low sudsing biodegradable camp soap. I loaded my dirty laundry in the sack, added a bit of soap and water, and closed it up. I then took the sack and rolled and flopped it around for a bit. Then I drained and refilled the bag to rinse. My tentmate had brought a collapsible drying rack, so I spread out my clothes on that and set it in the blazing sun outside our tent.

Unfortunately the blazing sun also turns the tent into an oven. I tried my best to keep cool: opened the door all the way, fanned myself with the frisbee I had gotten the previous day, took my shirt off and sat around in my sports bra. Nothing made it bearable. So I decided to go sit in the Chat-N-Chew tent, since it would at least have fans.

The forecast called for rain and thunderstorms, so I moved the drying rack inside the tent. This turned out to be a good decision, as the sky was looking ominous as I started walking, and the rain started coming down as soon as I got to the corner of the trading post. I did have my rain gear, so I made it to my destination dry.

I found myself a spot near a power strip, and settled in. I addressed some envelopes for things I want to send out from Jamboree. I browsed things on my phone. I made a few calls. The enjoyed the temperature drop brought in by the rain.

After a few hours I met up with my tentmate, and we got dinner. We hung out in the dining hall chatting for quite a while. Partly just because we could, partly because a thunderstorm with heavy rain rolled in, and we were already in the tent.

Eventually I did have to head back to my tent so I could get some sleep. I had another 5 AM start ahead of me, and couldn’t stay up all night.

Another early alarm, another snooze. I got myself moving, fathered up my gear, and headed to breakfast. From there I grabbed lunch items, and headed off to catch a van to “work”.

There were beautiful clouds in the sky, but by 7:30 AM they started raining on us. Pretty soon the volume of buses also picked up, and we got down to the business of getting scouts into the World Scout Jamboree.

All of the youth in from the over 150 international contingents arrived within about 24 hours. There were some steps we needed to complete for each bus before we could allow them to drive into the Summit. 40,000+ people means a lot of buses.

Rain and unpaved roads combined with lots of buses equaled lots of mud. We had some challenges with getting the buses in, and we may have caused a four mile long line on the highway. I did hear that we got through said four mile line in an hour and a half.

After my actual shift was over, I stayed to help out. One big motivation was to see the Finnish Scouts. I didn’t have any information on when they might arrive, just guesses based on driving time from their pre-Jamboree trip destinations. I kept thinking “with my luck, if I leave now they’ll be here in 30 minutes”. Then, due to the traffic caused by the buses, the transportation back to Echo got backed up (I even heard mention that it was suspended for some time). So even if I had wanted to go back, I wouldn’t have been able to. My wait was worth it though, some of the Finnish contingent’s buses finally showed up, and I had a chance to welcome them.

Once I had achieved my goal of meeting the Finns, the excitement wore off quite quickly, and I was suddenly drained. I looked later and saw that I had walked close to ten miles in that parking lot. I let my team know I was heading out, and did so. I stopped inside Ruby Welcome Center and ate dinner there. The awesome Food Team brings food up, so the people working there don’t have to journey back to Echo.

That turned out to be a good decision. I got on a bus, and we were told that there was a small contingent that needed a ride to their campsite. Being helpful scouts, we were ok with that plan. We waited for them to get on the bus and got under way. Due to the condition of the roads, and the number of buses on those roads, and dropping the contingent off, we were on that bus for an hour and a half. By the time we got to Echo, I was glad I had already eaten, and just headed off to my tent and went to bed.

The radar right before I went to bed

My role at Jamboree is Visitor Reception, which mainly focuses on the day visitors who will be coming during the two weeks of the actual Jamboree program. Before that, we are setting up what we need for the days to come as much as we can. This means that while we’re going to have a lot of work coming up, right now we don’t have as much. So today, we didn’t have to meet until 1 PM.

Since I could, I slept in. This just means that I woke up without an alarm about the same time as I would have with an alarm. I got dressed, made sure my side of the tent was in some semblance of order, and headed out for breakfast. After breakfast I picked up my lunch, and decided to stop in at the trading post. I didn’t need anything, and wasn’t intending to buy anything, I just wanted to see what they had, and they have some awesome things! I did pick up a carabiner, because I forgot to bring any with me.

Then, as I was walking to the register I fell victim to the impulse buy display.

I saw some sunglasses with purple, polarized lenses.

Resisting buying up all the stuff has been extra difficult because the color of WOSM is also my favorite color: purple. So much of the gear is available in purple, and I want it ALL!

I did get the sunglasses, they were practical. I brought my everyday sunglasses with me, but I’ve always had issues with them falling off. They don’t fit tightly, and when I lean forward they slide down or just plain fall off my face. The new ones don’t.

Next, I headed off to Camp Delta, or Pigott, to see a friend. I had put together neckerchiefs with our district logo on them, but they weren’t ready until the night before my friend headed up here, so I still needed to deliver his. I found him, chatted for a bit, and came back to Echo. I hung at the Chat-and-Chew for a little while before heading off for my team meeting.

We learned about what we’ll be doing when the visitors arrive, did a bit of set up. By the time we were done, it was late afternoon. The temperature had climbed to 91°F (33°C), and the humidity was over 50%. I got on a shuttle to head to camp, and once there got some dinner. I wasn’t feeling very hot. Actually, scratch that, I was feeling very hot. I had become overheated, and decided that it was not something to mess with.

I headed over to the medical tent and checked in. I don’t know what they officially put down for a diagnosis, but I don’t personally feel I was dehydrated, o believe it was heat exhaustion. Regardless, they gave me a cot to lie on with a fan blowing on me, and I rested. I was there for almost four hours, but afterward I felt much better.

I had already known earlier in the day that the heat is not my friend. With this in mind, I had signed up for a 5 AM shift for the next day. So I headed to back to my tent, and went to bed.

Today started early. I was up before 6, headed out to breakfast, and met up with my team at 7:30. We rode a bus from the campsite to the welcome center, and got to work.

We set up a few things outside, then we moved inside to help the registration team. There are 10,000+ International Service Team members, and while a good third or more of them came through yesterday, there are still plenty more. The registration team makes sure all the required training and medical screening is taken care of, gets each participant their credentials, and most importantly gets them their lunch tickets.

In the afternoon we went back outside to do some training. Our main job will be the day visitors when they arrive during the week. We have to set up equipment and learn about the process, and it will all be done outside.

It is hot out here.

Thankfully the forecast says it will cool down just a little after the weekend.

After our official duties were done, I went back inside the welcome center to help the registration team some more. I enjoyed all the different people who came through, and I gave a few people smiles by being able to say their names properly. I’m sure I completely butchered a few, too.

I finally got tired around 10 PM. We had been told we didn’t need to be back until 1 PM the next day, so staying late wasn’t overly detrimental to my schedule. Now I’m heading back to the campsite on a bus, and plan to not set an alarm for tomorrow morning.

Today I got up about the same time I normally do, but instead of heading to work, I got in my car and drove 7+ hours to West Virginia. A little over a year ago I decided that since the World Scout Jamboree was going to be so close, this would be my best opportunity to go.

I participated in scouting for a few years as a child, but due to international moves I was not involved past the age of 13. A participant at WSJ has to be between 14 and 18 years old, so I never got to go.

This year, WSJ is being held at Summit Bechtel Reserve, a property owned by Boy Scouts of America. The WSJ was last on the North American continent in 1983 in Canada, and last in the USA In 1967. As the International Service Team must pay for their on transportation to Jamboree, this would be the cheapest I would be able to go.

In the scouting world folks are fond of saying that employees get paid to work, volunteers work for free, and scouters pay to work. The price tag for me to come work for two weeks, sleep in a tent, out of a duffel, is $1,800. But on the flip side, the participants don’t have to pay a higher price to subsidize my food and other amenities while I’m here.

My drive took me through parts of Tennessee, Virginia, and West Virginia. The further into the mountains I got, the more gorgeous the drive was. Along the way I saw two houses and a swimming pool making their way to their new locations. I also saw several very purple cars, which delighted me.

I made stops at each of the visitor centers, though only quick ones. Now I get to stand in line waiting to check in, along with a few hundred of my closest new friends.

In the morning I’ll be off to the 24th World Scout Jamboree. I’m dealing with pre-travel jitters which I always have, but for once (thanks to My Engineer) I’m packed with time to spare.

Keep an eye out for more updates of my adventure!