JOTA and JOTI at Narrabeen 2009

JOTA 2009 Badge

The Badge is now a "Camp Blanket" badge.

100 Years of Guiding

September 2009 celebrates 100 years since girls appeared at the Crystal Palace Rally and demanded Lord Baden-Powell, founder of the Scouting Movement, provide exciting activities for girls.

Read more about the centennary of Guiding.

International Year of Astronomy

2009 is the Internatonal Year of Astronomy which celebrates 400 years since the birth of the inventor of the telescope, Galileo.

Galileo's invention allowed people on Earth to observe the planets and stars in a way never before possible. It led to the discovery that the Earth and other planets circled the Sun. Before this the common belief was that everything circled the Earth.

2009 also marks the 40 year anniversary of the first walk on the moon. Two interesting NASA facts are that 11 out of the 12 people who have walked on the moon were Scouts, and that two thirds of all astronauts were Scouts!

Year of the Blood Donor 2009

To coincide with the 80th anniversary of blood collection services in Australia, the Federal Government has designated 2009 the Year of the Blood Donor. It's an opportunity to showcase the 514,000 special donors and hear from the people whose lives are transformed by their generosity.

Read more about the Year of the Blood Donor.

Narrabeen 2009

150 Scouts and Guides from Sydney North met for their annual JOTA/JOTI camp on Narrabeen Lakes. This is a fun camp where both Guides and Scouts join together for activities over the weekend. The weather was clear and sunny, but turned to showers on Saturday night and Sunday morning.

The Manly Warringah Radio Society provided radios and operators for local and national hook-ups. This year Echolink was working and provided a constant stream of contacts around the world. The radio club had a new HF dipole antenna which allowed direct contacts across Australia and New Zealand.

We logged 45 QSOs in 10 countries including Australia. We worked all the mainland states, but somehow managed to miss Tasmania. Station count: 6 local, 25 interstate, and 14 International.

Club members Yves, Connie and Tim flew by in a helicopter with live APRS tracking and air-to-ground 2-way radio link.

A network of 15 computers provided Internet Relay Chat using the Scoutlink network. As contacts were made the scouts identified the city and country and put their stickers on our world map. Highlights were contacts on the Faroe Islands, Tenerife in the Canary Islands, and a lone scout on the Namibia/Angola border in Africa.

This year the Electronic Kit was a bit more challenging: an electronic dice with two integrated circuits and a larger number of polarised components. Most were rewarded with a working circuit, a few will complete the task at a later event.

The North Harbour Water Activities team took the Scouts and Guides canoeing on a three hour tour around Narrabeen Lagoon. Fortunately the weather didn't become rough and the tiny ships were not tossed around. This was just one of the highlights of the weekend.