By Jamie Salter
More than 7,000 youth members, leaders and support staff across the whole state are still feeling the positive effects of the Victorian Jamboree (VicJam).
Scout groups within the City of Casey attended the $5.5 million event which boasts 11 days of fun, friendship and adventure.
Usually held every three years, the Australian Jamboree brings scout groups from across the nation together but the 2021-22 event was moved to Elmore, Victoria due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Set up like a small town, the scouts have everything they need on site, including a supermarket and welfare hospital as well as a daily printed newspaper and radio station.
VicJam has a wide range of onsite action activities from Vertical World including abseiling, rock climbing, caving, zip lines, bouldering and low ropes, to Tech World using drones, robotics, and 3D printing, as well as the Radio Active wide-game, where scouts compete across the VicJam site to save the planet from a covert alien invasion using smartphones, radios, and GPS.
Off site activities range from water skiing, scuba and mountain bikes.
At night, the scouts enjoy bands, stunt shows, comedy night, MasterChef Mystery challenge, and Esports.
Scouts Victoria chief commissioner Rod Byrnes said VicJam kicked off 2022 with a bang and filled everyone with optimism for the year ahead.
“Our scouts have emerged from the last two years of lockdowns and grabbed every opportunity to experience outdoor fun and adventure,” Mr Byrnes said.
“VicJam has given them a chance to paddle canoes, climb rock walls, explore regional cities, splash down waterslides and most importantly meet new friends, all in the safest way possible.”
The previous Jamboree was held in South Australia in 2019 and the next Jamboree will be held in January, 2025 in Maryborough, Queensland.
The local scout groups that attended include 1st Cranbourne, Berwick Central, 1st Casey, Casey District, 1st Narre Warren North, Narre Warren South, Narre Warren, 1st Devon Meadows and 1st Berwick.
The Victorian Jamboree took place in Elmore from December 29, 2021 to January 8, 2022 and was run according to a detailed CovidSafe plan which received high-level review and endorsement from the Victorian Government.
