Cover Photo: Jasmijn Commeren
Text: Seweryna Lewon
Edit: Sophie Spickenbom
All of the Participants have fully arrived on July 27, with their luggage in their hands and memories in their hearts! The text team has greeted the participants with smiles and – questions! We wanted to find out what challenges the patrols faced during their journeys across all of Norway, so we asked a few participants to share their experiences with us.
What’s your name, what country are you from and what path were you exploring?
Huargo: I’m Huargo, I am from Spain and I was on the Path SØO3: Hovden, an alpine village in the south of Norway.
Dana Johnstone: My name is Dana, I’m from Australia and I was on Path ØS08: Tredalen – Camp in the Norwegian archipelago, it was a path near the coastal region known as Hvaler.
Inês Peneda: My name is Inês, I am from Portugal and I took the SV01 path: Haugesund.
Alice-Colombe: I’m Alice, from Switzerland, I went by the VE13 path, which was called “A true Norwegian trip”. We were on an island called “Smedholmen”, on the west coast of Norway.
How would you rate your experience on the path from 1 (very boring, would’ve rather stayed home) to 5 (excellent, would go on it again), and why?
Huargo: I think I would rate it a 5, but there were some things I didn’t like. For example, we had oatmeal for breakfast and lunch for two days straight. Other than that, the people on the path were awesome! We were joking about the oatmeal together, like “Oh yes, it’s oatmeal again!”. I think I’m very lucky to have had such a group with me. The path was also great, because in Spain the landscapes and weather conditions are different, so hiking in Norwegian mountains was a great experience for me.
Dana: I would honestly rate it as a 5, we had lots of fun activities. Our path leaders Maya and Henry were awesome, if there were any problems – they helped us fix them.
Inês: I would say like a bit above 4, just because there were times when I didn’t have much to do. When we did have activities – I really liked them, I feel like I got to know a lot of people from different places, and overall I had fun.
Alice-Colombe: I would definitely rate it a 5 out of 5, we had an amazing time. We didn’t do a lot of sports activities during our path. It was basically hanging out on an island with people from all over the world. We went canoeing quite a lot, because the island was far away. Just having to spend time with other scouts there and being surrounded by nature was amazing.
What were the main challenges you had during your path?
Huargo: I would say the weather, because I haven’t hiked in snowy areas before, but it was nice. I also fell down once, along with another Rover, but we helped each other in the end. The hike was a challenge for me, but it was great to overcome it.
Dana Johnstone: The main challenge was the weather. When we arrived it was pouring rain, so we tried to set up and not get our gear wet. It was the same when we were leaving – however it was sunny in between which was great for all our activities.
Inês: It is related to one of the activities we did – it was a long hike. We thought that since we came a long way to Norway, we should do something difficult and challenge ourselves. For me personally, there were a lot of difficulties, due to my health issues, but I still completed the hike and I’m glad I did.
Alice-Colombe: Our main challenge was the food – we ate a lot of bread everyday. I feel like there wasn’t any meal without bread. We also had a problem with arriving at the Main Camp – we had to leave from our path one day later than expected. Therefore we didn’t have any meal the last day, so we just ate a bread wrap.
All of the paths were very different, can you share with us how your path helped you grow? Mentally, physically, emotionally, etc.
Huargo: Physically – a lot, because we were hiking a lot. My muscles hurt the next few days, but I just kept going and I think that shows growth, because I was challenging myself. I kept saying to myself: “I can do this, even though it hurts”. Mentally – it was great, since I had my patrol, who supported me all the way.
Dana: I feel that this has helped me grow mentally a lot. It made me feel quite happy to connect with people from all around the world, as I am from a far away country and have never left my country before.
Inês: Mentally and physically I would say that long hike changed me, like, I cried at the beginning of it. I was really emotional about it and I was saying to myself that I have to be able to do this. I went all this way to Norway and this is the challenge I wanted to finish. I was so glad when I got to the top of the mountain – it really changed me and I felt like nothing could stop me. Staying at our campsite changed me emotionally, looking at how people engage in difficulties they have, changed my perspective on different countries. We didn’t act separately, we came together during hard times and that was really beautiful, it changed the way I see the world.
Alice – Colombe: I would say I grew the most before the paths started – when we had to prepare and plan everything with my patrol, with people I’ve never met before. I had to also go out of my comfort zone and meet new people, but in the end it was quite easy, since everyone was very open and friendly. I believe we, me and my patrol, grew all together while organising everything.
The paths require a lot of preparation and skill, they are a great way to challenge yourself and grow in different areas, especially in bettering your leadership skills. What qualities do you think Roverway can cultivate in young leaders?
Huargo: During our path we definitely have improved our teamwork. We were helping each other and just walking together. We had our path leaders for help, but we mostly felt like a family. We were deepening our relationship with each other and I believe that is a good base for leadership – getting to know each other, understanding our differences and how to treat each other respectfully.
Dana: I think that on the path in particular, there was a lot of leadership needed from people, who wouldn’t typically like to be a leader. I feel that Roverway is helping those kinds of people feel more comfortable in leadership positions and gain the skills to do so.
Inês: I’ve actually never been to such a big camp before and on top of that, my patrol chose me to be the patrol leader. They told me that they believed in me and thought that I could do it, but still, I was shaking. But to my surprise, they teach you how to be a leader. You’re not supposed to show up and know what to do. We had reunions, during which they told you how to talk to your patrol, how to communicate with them. In general, I feel like I improved my discipline and I feel like I understood that leaders have a lot of responsibilities.
Alice-Colombe: Independence. Definitely independence, since we had to be on our own, but we knew we had help around us when needed. So, responsibility, taking what we have and doing it on our own.
Since the path programme ended, a lot of young Rovers experienced an adventure that they will forever remember – which consisted of both good and not so pleasant moments. In the end, it’s important to remember the fun moments and even more important to remember the lessons that were learned along the way!