Completing the Kings Scout Award

I had started working on the King’s Scout Award during my time in Explorers and continued it after becoming a leader. However, during the Covid pandemic I completely lost motivation for it. Not long after I turned twenty-four, Sarah O - the Network Leader at the time - got in touch and asked if I was still keen to finish it. I apprehensively agreed.

The King’s Scout Award involves learning a new skill (in my case, guitar), completing a physical activity for a year (I chose hillwalking), and doing a year of volunteering, which I easily covered through helping at Cubs. It also requires completing two expeditions, which will be the main focus of this blog post.

Practice Expedition

The practice expedition involves planning and organising a walk for three days and two nights. I had come up with a great walk that was easily accessible from Glasgow. It started at Ardgarten just after Arrochar, walked down to a bothy, into Lochgoilhead and then over the Brack back to the car.

Day One

To avoid using any holiday days for the expedition, we decided to head out straight after work. We arrived at Ardgarten around 18:00 and met up with Sarah and Shaun. It was absolutely pouring, but we set off optimistically towards the bothy - our home for the first night.

After roughly three hours of walking, we finally reached the bothy. We weren’t alone; two guys had come across Loch Long and already set up base. Not that we were complaining - they had the fire going and plenty of beers on the go. When Donald opened his rucksack, we realised why it had been so heavy: he’d packed two full crates of beer! We spent the evening chatting and drinking with the lads and their two dogs before finally heading to bed.

Practice 1 Heading along to the bothy

Practice 2 Team photo in the bothy - many beer consumed!

Practice 3 Mark’s Cottage bothy.

Practice 4 Our bedroom for the night.

Day Two

The next morning was a very slow start - my head was absolutely pounding. We tidied up the bothy, said farewell to our new friends, and continued along the path towards Lochgoilhead. At this point Donald left us; he decided it wasn’t for him, mostly because he was also dying with a hangover as well! After around two hours of walking we stopped for lunch and a much‑needed cup of tea. Not long after, we bumped into Sarah and Shaun on the trail, who were thoroughly amused by our story from the night before.

A couple of hours later we arrived in Lochgoilhead, had a quick rest, and then continued on to our campsite for the evening. I think it was one of the longest sleeps I’ve had in a long while - we were in our sleeping bags by around 7 p.m. and didn’t get up until about 9 the next morning. A full day of walking with a hangover really does finish you off!

Practice 5 Night two campsite.

Day Three

The final leg involved a hard push up the hill. Amy was struggling by this point, so we had to tag‑team carrying her bag to get it up the climb. Eventually, we made it! Coming back down was much easier, and we were finally on the home stretch. We powered on back to the car park, had a quick debrief with Sarah and Shaun, and then we were off home. Practice expedition: successful!

Practice 6 At the top of the final hill.