Girls and volunteers across the county enjoyed taking part in Cityscape Adventures. We share their stories …
- Martock and Crewkerne Guides
- Bridgwater Rangers
- Bridgwater Brownies and Guides
- Volunteering at Cityscapes Portsmouth
Martock and Crewkerne Guides
It was an early start for Guides from the Martock and Crewkerne units as we had to be at Taunton station for 8 in the morning. On the train the girls started to eat their packed lunches and snacks while the leaders sewed county badges onto new neckers. This was a last minute decision to help keep track of everyone as we didn’t know each other’s girls. We also gave the Guides a map of Cardiff and details of what activities were where. This information had come from reading the Girlguiding Cymru risk assessment which was useful as the pre event publicity for all the Cityscape Adventures included axe throwing, one Guide wanted to try that, but it was in Portsmouth! We were not surprised that climbing was the favourite choice.
We got to Newport where we had to get off the train (planned engineering works) and onto a bus. The staff opened a gap in the barrier and loaded us and the Brownies behind into a waiting double decker. The Guides were excited to get the back seats on the top deck. It was a slow journey into Cardiff and the leaders used the time to get to grips with the app that was being used to run the adventure. Points were scored for completing different activities and challenges around the city and Bay Area. Approximate locations were marked on the maps provided. There were lots of points scoring opportunities in the city centre but most of the activities were in the Bay, there wasn’t time to do everything. We could make the day what we wanted; score lots of points by rushing around uploading photos and gps locations or chill out and try a few activities, with exploring Cardiff being an incidental effect.
It was gone 11 by the time we arrived. Excitement levels were building as from the top deck we could see other Guide groups. We waved at them and they waved back. We picked up a few points near the station and a coffee and toilet stop before walking down to the Bay. We decided our day would be fun stuff and not chasing points.
First stop was the Millennium Building where the Police and Fire service had activities. The Guides did a fire safety quiz, looked at police uniforms through the ages and took fingerprints which were made into key rings. They picked up loads of free samples, including a plastic police helmet. We had lunch inside. Did you know the iconic letters on the front of the Millennium building are actually windows?
After lunch the Guides explored the police car and then we walked to where the mobile climbing tower was sited. It was a very slick operation, the Guides didn’t have to wait very long for a climbing harness to be fitted and then they could tackle the 7.5m tower. They all made it to the top. We went onto the Urdd centre for our event badges, daffodils made from cupcake cases and a Lego building challenge. Everyone got an extra badge for building Lego and the Guides said that they enjoyed it more than they were expecting. The weather was gorgeous and nobody needed any encouragement that the next activity would be to walk to the waterfront for an ice cream. The final iconic building on our list was the Norwegian church.
It was then time to start making our way back towards the railway station, allowing time for a bit of shopping. Girlguiding Cymru missed a trick by not having their own pop up shop. Craft in the Bay had run out of pencil cases to stencil by this time so we went to the Red Dragon centre across the road where they tried stop motion animation and the “Repair cafe” where common household objects could be dismantled. Our walk back took us up Bute Street which delivered the final food stop of the day – a chip shop.
Our bus replacement service didn’t get us to Newport in time for our planned through train so we had to change at Bristol Parkway on the way home. It was a great day out exploring Cardiff.
Liz Murnaghan – Leader
Bridgwater Rangers
The sun is shining! It is just after 7.30am on Saturday 21st March, as our two coaches pull away from Bridgwater Bus & Coach Station by Asda. Our coach, driven by Paul from Vickery’s, has both our Ranger unit and some local Brownie units, Leaders and of course Pax – our unit teddy bear Mascot. The journey seemed to be quick as Paul kept everyone amused with his comments over the microphone – highlights ranged from: spotting the white car or (even a yellow one at Portbury Dock!), to have you got your passports? Did you pack your euros? And even jokes about swimming back which made us all chuckle continuously! Many of the girls even replied with interesting comments and tones, which made us laugh even more.
The two coaches pulled into Cardiff Bay, and the day commenced for our unit with a unit photo outside of the Wales Millennium Centre. At this point, our Ranger unit was 2nd on the league table! The next steps for the Rangers included understanding how the Goosechase app worked and deciding what activity bases they wanted to stop at – they even practiced their navigational skills by plotting these onto the three maps provided. There was even a debate on how important achieving points versus completing the activities was to the Rangers. Meanwhile l registered our arrival on the link (I realised afterwards that we could have gained a further 100 points if I’d registered using the app).
The unit decided to walk along Porth Teigr to look and gather Goosechase points, and we stopped at our first Base, HMS Cambria (Number 3 of 7 Activity Bases available). Here we learnt ‘Jack Speak’ (which are slang phrases used in the Navy); we scored 8/15 and everyone was thrilled to receive a free torch before moving on. During the rest of the time we spent in the bay, I collected our Cityscapes badges, whilst the Rangers continued with their visit to the Urdu Gobaith Cymru and gained more Goosechase points by building items out of LEGO. We were all delighted to receive a LEGO badge.
Next, whilst the Police Cars were creating quite a stir with the general public outside, we completed the Police & Fire activities in the Wales Millennium Centre before continuing to our final stop at the Red Dragon Centre. Here we completed Silver Racing, and then three of our Rangers climbed the climbing wall for the Everest Challenge. Lunch was eaten in the glorious sunshine whilst we sat at the bay and enjoyed the chance to rest our feet.
Aware of time, we made the unanimous decision to make our way to the Castle – stopping to gather points in St Davids Shopping Centre (which features a rather large LEGO red dragon) and in Cardiff market, where we purchased delicious Welsh cakes. Once we arrived at the castle, we attempted drumming at Activity Base 1 and paused to take a photo with Paddington Bear on the bench, eat our Welsh cakes, before we walked to the coaches parked outside of the Castle Wall at 4 o’clock.
I may have assumed that the journey home was going to be quiet and subdued due to the weary girls and tired feet, but I was proven wrong – the chatter, excitement and enjoyment of the day was clearly audible. At the end of the journey, Paul the driver was given a clap, followed by 3 cheers, and an extra two for good luck! Everyone arrived home, glad to take their shoes off – satisfied with the knowledge that we finished 59th out of 125 on the Leaderboard with 32,500 points. Although our unit all stayed together, we logged quite a variation of steps – from 14,626 to 16,824!
I’ve heard that 1,650 ish Girlguiding members were going to be in Cardiff (although I’m not sure if this figure is spread over one or two days), which demonstrates impressive planning, and is great publicity for Girlguiding as a whole. This was even acknowledged by some of the general public we chatted to during the day!
1st Bridgwater Rangers would like to say a massive thank you to the event organisers, all the companies involved in the various activity bases and also the great leaders we met who had volunteered for the day at the bases. We had an amazing day, and it was fantastic to see and walk past the various sections and units of Girlguiding everywhere we went. Girlguiding at its best!
Our 2 Bridgwater coaches included the following units:
Rangers – 1st Bridgwater
Guides – 1st Puriton, 1st North Petherton, 3rd Westfield & 6th St Francis
Brownies – 1st Combwich, 2nd Puriton, 4th Wembdon, 6th St Francis & 7th Kingsdown
Chris Wheadon – Leader
Bridgwater Brownies and Guides
On 21st March two coaches from Bridgwater Division with 98 Brownies, Guides and Rangers on board went for for a Cityscape Adventure, organised by ICANDO to Cardiff.
We were so lucky to have beautiful weather for the whole day for this fantastic scavenger hunt around the city.
We were dropped off near the Millenium Centre in Cardiff Bay, there was online registration and at 10am on the dot the Goosechase App jumped into life and the game began.
We were pre-armed with city maps which showed the activity points around the bay and the city centre (and a special map for toilets!). Every group could do as much or as little as wanted and go in any direction they liked!
The app provided us with challenges along the way. Some we had to take photographs of the group, some needed you to find a specific name or number (such as a name on a statue) and any activities needed a password once the activity was completed. The app awarded points for each activity completed and gave a live update of your position out of 155 teams.
We moved around the bay which had activities with lego, making cup case daffodils, activities with the police and fire service (both also had freebies for the girls to collect). There was also a climbing wall where we found Girguiding Cymru President Tori who also happened to be the first welsh woman that climbed mount everest! There was so much to do around the bay!
We walked into the city although you could take a boat, train or bus if you wished. More clues to find around the city centre and onto Cardiff Castle for more clues and a bit of Samba drumming along the way. We also went to Bute park to play gold and parachute games! We also had a photoshoot with Paddington Bear (also one of the challenges)
In total my unit completed 29 out of the 98 challenges we really could have gone for a 2nd day to do the rest.
It was a really well run event and with so much to do it was well worth the money, a great time was had by all!
Tamsen Wetherall – Leader
Volunteering at Cityscapes Portsmouth
I had the opportunity to volunteer at Cityscapes Portsmouth with Girlguiding South West England—and it was a fantastic experience.
I led a fingerprinting activity for a wide range of participants, including Rainbows, Brownies, Guides, Rangers, Leaders, and Trefoil Guild members. Across the weekend, I worked with around 1,500 participants on Saturday and 1,100 on Sunday, making it a busy but rewarding few days.
Alongside the activities, there was also the exciting opportunity to meet members of the Girlguiding South West England region chief team, as well as the CEO of Girlguiding, Felicity. These moments added something really special to the event, giving participants a chance to connect with the wider guiding community.
Being part of such a large event was both challenging and incredibly rewarding. I left feeling inspired by the energy, curiosity, and community spirit that makes Girlguiding events so memorable and I’d happily do it all again!
Laura-Leigh Wilkes – Leader
Girlguiding Somerset county 