Of all the Kontiki events I’ve attended, 2025 stood out as the most impressive and enjoyable. My troop and I got to Arrowe Park, where the event was being held, at 12 o’clock to register and claimed a raft construction site. Fortunately, we were able to secure a raft construction site close to our campsite—though the campsite itself was unfortunately positioned on a slope. Despite this less-than-ideal location, we managed quite well overall. For sleeping arrangements, we had one 8-sleeper tent each for the girls and boys, which made for a rather cramped first night when we finally called it a night at around 11 p.m. on Friday evening.
We woke up bright and early on Saturday morning, around 5 a.m. What followed was probably one of my favourite PT sessions in my scouting journey. We got our bodies moving to the beats of DJ Casper’s Cha Cha Slide and the YMCA by the Village People—it was energetic, fun, and definitely memorable. Following that memorable start to the morning, we made our way straight to the raft construction site to pick up where we left off at 6am. After a quick breakfast break at 7 am, we continued building steadily until around 1 p.m.
The raft construction process went smoothly. We sailed through the inspections and earned excellent results. We officially set off on the raft around 2 p.m. on Saturday afternoon, and that’s when the fun really began. We played card games, we paddled around dam, we enjoyed snacks and lunch and completed the on-water inspections without any trouble. We also cooked up an amazing meal for the cooking competition and had loads of fun throughout the day.
As for how we manoeuvred the raft, the process was fairly straightforward. We used two oars and two paddle wheels to navigate through the water. The oars were especially helpful in shallow areas, allowing us to steer the raft and clear away weeds to create a clearer path. The paddle wheels, constructed from wooden slats, were designed with just the right balance—thick enough to generate enough force to propel the raft, yet thin enough for us to turn them round with ease.
As night fell, everyone settled in for an early rest. I was cozily tucked into my hammock for the night—until it was abruptly disrupted by a surprise inspection in the middle of the night. Sadly, that very inspection resulted in our disqualification the following morning. All that hard work, seemingly for nothing.
And yet, despite the disqualification, I still firmly believe it was one of the best Kontiki experiences I’ve had.