Iruma River

Hello parents and guardians,

This is a quick summary of yesterday’s events at Iruma River. The Scouts present today were Ernie, Zen, Joshiro, and Haku.

After pickup from Koenji Station, we started the drive to the river. Everyone was excited to arrive, and in the meantime we played the Scout’s favorite music, chatted, and tried English Shiritori. Ernie and Mr. Mark had lots of funny songs to suggest, and in English Shiritori, Joshiro came up with many hints for the other Scouts. On arrival we worked together to bring all the luggage down the hill and set it up first, and then we enjoyed lunch by the riverside.

When all the Scouts were done eating, it was finally time to swim! First everyone played in the shallow water and had a good time cooling off. Then we all went up the river to the Jumping Rock, and every Scout was able to try jumping from it, even Joshiro! Ernie was reluctant to jump at first because of the cool water, but after some encouragement he bravely jumped from the highest point and when it warmed up more, Ernie had a blast jumping over and over. Later in the day all the Scouts practiced floating on their backs with Mr. Mark, and Haku, Zen, and Ernie were able to do it easily by the end of the trip.

We took a small break from swimming to start the fire for roasting marshmallows, and Mark taught everyone both how to properly start a fire and also how to stay safe around one. After a bit of waiting, the fire was burning low enough to allow us to roast marshmallows. All the Scouts definitely loved having a treat after a lot of swimming.

It was still early in the afternoon, so after washing up the Scouts went back into the water to play. Besides swimming, we also explored further up the river, had more fun jumping from the rock, and caught some shrimp. Soon enough it was time to dry off and go home. As soon as the Scouts got in the car, they all fell sound asleep. There was still one thing to do before drop-off; we had to fill up the car with gas, and it was Haku’s turn to help. With Mark’s guidance, Haku was able to learn how to pump the gas by himself! With that finished, the event was over, and it was time for all the Scouts to go home.

All the Scouts had a great time at Iruma River, and we hope we’ll see everyone again in the future. Thank you for attending!