EXPEDITIONS TWO
QUEEN SCOUT AWARD
 

Great Sandy National Park – Cooloola Region
Intended for 27th June 2005 – 1st July 2005
Actually 27th June 2005 – 31st July 2005

Venessa M
Pamphlett Sea Scout Venturer

CONTENTS

Expedition Overview and Background Information

Prior Approvals and Forms

Participants

Transport Arrangements

Maps

Equipment

Emergency Contact Details

Catering and Quantity Lists

Proposed and Actual Costs

Expedition Details

Plants and Animals

Expedition Report

Expedition Review

Appendix

EXPEDITION OVERVIEW

BACKGROUND INFORMATION

Located about 100km north of Brisbane, the Noosa River lies within the northern most area of the Sunshine Coast and the south-east Queensland region. The region is a popular destination for tourists and has a permanent growing population. It is characterized by a coastal lagoon system, the diversity of river bed and bank habitat types, the wetlands and range of fish species. The water quality in both the freshwater and estuarine areas is of a relatively healthy standard.
The Noosa River is 60km long and orientated North to South. The Noosa River consists of a series of freshwater and saltwater lake systems. It has a year round flow of freshwater and is unregulated. Almost 70% of the catchment is located within the Noosa Shire, most of the other 30% is contained within the Great Sandy National Park. There are six catchment’s that supply surround the Noosa River (Teewah Creek, Upper Noosa River, Lake Cootharaba-Kin Kin Creek, Lake Cooroibah, Lower Noosa River, Lake Weyba). The filtration effect of the sandy soils in this region ensures a healthy input of water into the system. Dependant on rainfall, tides can influence north of Lake Cootharaba into the National Park, although in general the impacts of saltwater decrease at the northern end of Lake Cootharaba near the Kinaba Information Centre.
 

PRIOR APPROVALS AND FORMS

PARTICIPANTS

Name: Venessa M
Address:
Phone:
Unit: Pamphlett Sea Scouts
Age: 17
Award Level: Expeditions 2
First Aid Qualifications: St Johns Ambulance Senior First Aid Certificate

Name: Nick W
Address:
Phone:
Unit: Pamphlett Sea Scouts
Age: 16
Award Level: Expeditions 2
First Aid Qualifications: St Johns Ambulance Senior First Aid Certificate

Name: Helen T
Address:
Phone:
Unit: Pamphlett Sea Scouts
Age: 16
Award Level: Expeditions 2
First Aid Qualifications: St Johns Ambulance Senior First Aid Certificate

Name: Claire P
Address:
Phone:
Unit: Pamphlett Sea Scouts
Age: 18
First Aid Qualifications: St Johns Ambulance Senior First Aid Certificate

Name: Daniel H
Address:
Phone:
Unit: Silkstone Scout Group
Age: 17
First Aid Qualifications: St Johns Ambulance Senior First Aid Certificate

Name: Tash McG
Address:
Phone:
Unit: Silkstone Scout Group
Age: 14

Examiner Details:
Name: Ian E
Address:
Phone:
Position: District Leader for Adventurous Activities
 

TRANSPORT ARRANGEMENTS

Location Travelled to Starting Point: Pamphlett Sea Scout Den to Noosa Sea Scout Den by two vehicles
Drivers: Daniel H and Ron T
Total Driving Time: 2 hrs

Intended
Location Travelled for pickup on completion: Harry’s Hut (Upper Noosa River) to Pamphlett Sea Scout Den
Drivers: Daniel H and Matthew M
Total Driving Time: 3hrs

Actual
Location Travelled: Booreen Point Camping Ground (Western Lake Cootharaba) to Pamphlett Sea Scout Den
Drivers: Daniel H and Matthew M
Total Driving Time: 2 hrs 30mins

MAPS

Sunmap Tourist Map, Cooloola Region – Coast and Hinterland
Scale: 1:100 000
Edition: 4
Date of Issue: 2002

Beacon to Beacon Directory
Scale: varies according to different maps
Edition: 6
Date of Issue: 5th May 2004

EQUIPMENT

 Each person was supplied with a large, black, plastic waterproof drum to store and keep their personal gear dry. The two tents, emergency kit, gas stove, cooking equipment and two water containers were waterproofed and packed onto the canoes. The food was waterproofed and kept in the storage compartment of the large, expedition canoe. Maps and toilet paper were packed evenly in the leaders drums. Below is the distribution of equipment between the canoes.

Each canoe had a painter, bailer, sponge and laminated maps attached. Everything was tied onto the canoes with rope to prevent anything falling out or floating away if the boat capsized.

EMERGENCY CONTACT DETAILS

CATERING AND QUANTITY DETAILS

MONDAY
Dinner: Lasagne and Salad
Dessert: Apple Pie and Cream

TUESDAY
Breakfast: French Toast and Maple Syrup
Lunch: Ham and Salad Sandwiches
Dinner: Beef, Vegetables and Noodle Stirfry with oyster sauce
Dessert: Heated Banana’s filled with Marshmallows and Choc Chips

WEDNESDAY
Breakfast: Weetbix (with milk) and Muesli Bars
Lunch: Pita Breads with flavoured tuna
Dinner: Jasmine Rice with Satay sauce and peanuts
Dessert: Chocolate Cake

THURSDAY
Breakfast: Weetbix (with milk) and Breakfast Bars
Lunch: Pita Bread with non-cold cheese and tomato
Dinner: Packet Pastas (Alfredo, Macaroni, Carbonara)
Dessert: Heated Green Apples filled with sulatana’s and cinnamon sugar

FRIDAY
Breakfast: Pancakes with Maple syrup
Lunch: Cruskits with non-cold cheese and vegemite

Snack Food: nutella, apples, oranges, bananas, lollies, corn thins
Drinks: hot chocolate, tea, milk, tang (pineapple, raspberry and mango flavour)

The meals were cooked on a lightweight gas stove. Two 20L water drums were filled up at Noosa Scout Den before starting and topped up at Booreen Point. However, were not necessary in the end because water was available where we camped. Each person was given a bag of all the snack food for morning and afternoon tea for the four days to store in the top of their drum and eat when needed. Everyone had a 1L water bottle attached by rope to the canoes. We found the catering, quantities and measuring was well judged for the actual expedition; there was exactly the right amount of food for each meal with none leftover. However, if the planned expedition was completed more food would have been needed because of the high level of physical activity and cold weather. Some scroggin as a healthy and energy restoring snack would have been good and more fruit/vegetables would definitely have been enjoyed.

Cooking Utensils Taken:
spatula
2 x tongs
carrot grater
sharp knife
apple corer
2 x chopping boards
large pot
large mixing bowl
fry pan
alfoil
garbage bags
liquid detergent, washing-up cloth

PROPOSED AND ACTUAL COSTS

Proposed Costs

Food cost for the group: $150
Food cost per person: $25

Camping fees for the group: $48 for 2 nights permits at Great Sandy National Park
$24 for 1 night at John’s Landing private campsite
$30 for 1 night at Noosa Sea Scout Den
Camping fees per person: $8 for 2 nights permits at Great Sandy National Park
$4 for 1 night at John’s Landing private campsite
$5 for 1 night at Noosa Sea Scout Den

Fuel donation: $5 per person to be divided between transporters

Total Cost for the group: $282
Total Cost per person: $46

Actual Costs

Food cost for the group: $150
Food cost per person: $25

Camping fees for the group: $30 for 1 night at Noosa Sea Scout Den
$67 for 2 nights at Booreen Point Caravan and Camping Ground
$48 for 2 nights permits at Great Sandy National Park
Camping fees per person: $5 for 1 night at Noosa Sea Scout Den
$12 for 2 nights at Booreen Point Caravan and Camping Ground
($7 for Tash because he 14yrs and therefore considered a child)
$8 for 2 nights permits at Great Sandy National Park

Fuel: No fuel money was donated because that money was needed to pay for the Booreen Point Caravan and Campground fees.

Total Cost for the Group: $295
Total Cost per person: $49

PROPOSED EXPEDITION DETAILS

ACTUAL EXPEDITION DETAILS

EXPEDITION REPORT

The months leading up to my Expeditions Two went something like this: planning meetings, map searching, canoe selecting, examiner briefings, completing C4’s and C5’s, shopping for food, contacting national park rangers, notifying police, booking campsites, notifying district commissioners etc. But most importantly we heard that waterproofing is useful when canoeing; so our main aim was to ensure our possessions remained dry. Wishful Thinking! Have you ever tried to keep tents, clothes and food dry when camping in the rain and canoeing is the method of transport? It felt like mission impossible but we partially managed it and had a fantastic time.

Five excited Venturer’s and one Rover met on a raining Monday afternoon to begin a week of adventure and fun. Conversations (mainly checking for forgotten items) prevailed while three canoes, 6 lifejackets, paddles, water containers, food and six black drums were packed onto the canoe trailer and Ron’s Van and Daniel’s trusty car (the Mazda with a roo bar and rectangle exhaust!). The road trip up to Noosa Sea Scout Den can be summed up by three words: rain, traffic and rain. Another part of the trip involved becoming geographically disorientated in Coolum/ Peregian Beach /Noosa Heads? (we still don’t know where we were!). Upon arrival, the Noosa Den Caretaker showed us the facilities (kitchen, dining room, bunkrooms, amenities) available and we were left to eat a warm dinner and get what was meant to be an early night sleep (something like 11pm).

The boys received an early wakeup call at 6.00am (we ‘accidentally’ set off the fire alarms while making pancakes) and discovered the weather still looked unpromising; heavy rainfall had left the ground looking like a lake. We packed up our expedition gear ready to be loaded into the canoes and drove to our launching spot near the Noosa Yacht Club. After the canoes were packed with approximate even distribution of weight, a group photo snapped and our wet weather gear put on; we headed out into white-capped water.

 Our predictions of traveling at 5km per hour were reduced to 2/3km per hour due to battling a strong current and waves in fully packed canoes. After a few rest stops for regrouping and redistributing the gear more evenly we reached the more sheltered part of the river. It was good to stretch our legs by playing vortex at a brief morning tea stop on private property (ooops!!). After countless jokes, songs and shouted conversation exchanged between canoes we crossed Lake Cooroibah and continued North to stop at our Tuesday night campsite - John’s Landing. A toilet stop and 20mins to eat lunch was all that was needed to encourage the group to keep paddling to Booreen Point. The John’s Landing campsite was low-lying and flooded with water and had only one drop toilet. Basically it was a horrible mosquito-breeding property that looked like a hippy village. Anyway, because we reached it earlier than expected we had time to continue on. We set off with new crews and new canoes and enjoyed talking together on the calm water of the river. A quick regroup and rest before battling the open waters of the lake was needed. At this point the paddling and steering of the canoes was physically challenging. We reached Booreen Point Caravan and Camping Ground at 4.30pm and quickly unloaded the canoes, set up tents and tarps before heavy rain set in again. Then the most amazing thing happened – we discovered untimed hot showers, real toilets and an undercover BBQ area to cook and eat dinner! As we were feeling tired, wet, cold and hungry; this was a huge reward. We soon became friends with some fellow campers and made a fun night of trivial pursuit and card games. Daniel and I thought we were extremely smart because we beat all the other teams, until we found out it was only junior trivial pursuit. Lights out at 8.30pm in the shelter meant we relocated to a tent for more cards and Tash’s bag of lollies. Yummy!!! We retired to warm, dry sleeping bags near the middle of the night. You may be thinking that the rain cleared up because I haven’t mentioned it lately but it continued to rain ALL night.

We woke up at 6.00am to another dark, rainy day. The first challenge of the day was getting the boys up (that took nearly an hour!). The kind caretaker came and warned us that severe weather conditions were expected so we had better set off before the winds and rain got worse. We changed into our cold, wet canoeing clothes, quickly packed up camp and loaded the canoes.

The lake was perfectly still just before we set off at 8.30am. Then as we turned around we saw a wall of heavy rain coming towards us across the lake.

It was so heavy that the canoes filled with a few inches of water. This only lasted briefly and we were able to try and make headway on the calm water before the conditions became increasingly rougher (white caps, gale force winds, big waves) and paddling was made extremely difficult. We just had to plough on through the water to make headway because if we stopped to take a rest, the canoe quickly drifted backwards. A few times we checked our speed on the GPS tracking device to find that despite our persistent efforts at paddling we were traveling at 0km per hour. So we were paddling as hard as we could in the same position! Instead of disheartening us, that made us more determined to reach our small goal of getting to the red beacon (approximately 3/4 the way across the lake). It just meant we had to paddle more effectively and in synchronization to get the most out of each stroke. After more than 2 hours of constant paddling all three canoes reached the red beacon. At this point everyone was physically exhausted and needed a good 30mins rest before canoeing anywhere. Here we assessed the conditions (they were not ceasing but instead getting worse) and made a decision to turn around and paddle back to Booreen Point. Because we were so tired, the conditions were so severe and we couldn’t see the other side of the lake to where we were heading; we thought that was the safest decision. It only took 1 hour to return to the campground but the waves gave the small canoes a rough time, nearly capsizing sometimes. Because us Sea Scouts are used to the feeling of being on water we didn’t get sea sick at all. However, poor Tash and Daniel felt quite woozy and didn’t enjoy the return trip. I think it took them about one hour to regain their land legs once back on firm ground!

Once again we unpacked the canoe’s (by now we are professionals at the task of packing and unpacking). For our second night a Booreen Point we claimed a better position for our campsite (close to the BBQ shelter and amenities). After hot showers and lunch we were feeling better and went for a walk to the Booreen Point Local Shop to see if we could get weather predictions for the next few days. To our surprise we discovered that the heavy rains had caused the Upper Noosa River bank to erode away and all campers North of Lake Cootharaba had been evacuated to Noosa. When we returned to the campsite I was extremely tired so had a short sleep. Meanwhile Helen, Nick and Claire were busy contacting our examiner, Venturer Leader, Canoe Instructor, National Park Rangers and getting advice from the camping ground caretaker. All this was helping us decide whether or not it is safe to continue the expedition under the current conditions. They came to the responsible decision that we should not continue North and possibly return South to Noosa the next day depending on how the weather evolved. An important factor that influenced our decision was the fact that as Canoe Level 2 Badge holders we are not allowed to canoe in winds stronger than 20knots. We spent the rest of the day having fun with the other campers (trivial pursuit, card games) and taking walks along the shore. After a delicious dinner we talked until lights out and then Helen and Claire retired early because they were absolutely buggered. The others played a few rounds of our favorite expedition game – SNAP! – before sleeping well.

When we woke up in the morning to assess the conditions we found that the weather had in fact got worse and had stormed throughout the night resulting in a strong current down the River. Therefore we decided it would be unsafe to canoe back to Noosa because it was possible for us to be swept out of the Bay and into the Ocean due to the strong conditions. After coming to this decision, we quickly phoned Brisbane to tell them and arrange transport home. The morning was spent eating a mix ‘n’ match breakfast (using what food we had left). We then packed up our camp for the last time, said goodbye to our fellow camping friends and headed home with Matt M. The expedition finished a day early because of the torrential rain and a very wet, tired group of Venturers unpacked and retreated to bed for some well earned sleep!!!

EXPEDITION REVIEW

The most challenging (and rewarding) part of the Queen Scout Award Scheme is the Expeditions of the Adventurous Activities Diamond. Venturers have the opportunity to organize and participate in a fun, confidence building, leadership exercising, rewarding and maturing activity. Every expedition is completely different; the participants, the location, the menu, the duration and the levels of abilities between the group members. These differences are what makes each one so great to be a part of. However, I learnt one very important lesson during my expeditions: no matter how much time, effort and resources you put into planning an expedition there is always room for the unknown, unexpected and uncontrollable forces of nature that suddenly turn everything around. Unfortunately this expedition didn’t go exactly to plan because of the unpredicted weather, but that doesn’t mean the trip was ruined or we gave up trying to find a way to complete it. Of course I was disappointed about not being able to complete it and returning early, but I am not disappointed with the decisions we made. The leaders are responsible for the safety and well-being of our fellow participants and ourselves; and I am confident that all the necessary and correct choices were made. Overall the countless positive experiences far outweighed the not-so-positive. Everyone had a fantastic time and it is definitely an expedition we won’t forget! We were lucky to share our canoe expedition with two land Venturers; ensuring that old friendships were strengthened and new friendships were formed. Everything the leaders planned was very well done but for future expeditions I would consider the overall fitness of each member and allow more flexibility for fatigue or lack of. If anything else was to be changed, we could do without the strong weather conditions and perhaps tackle a challenging hike (longer distance over more rugged terrain). I had an especially fun time organizing and completing this expedition (as it is my last in the Venturer section) and wouldn’t hesitate in creating another similar experience with new people in the years ahead.

APPENDIX

C4’s
C5
Weather information sheet
GPS track printouts
Participant info sheet
Expedition plan overview

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