The photos from the 2014 Cederberg mid winter trip have been added to the 2014 photo library.

A summary and photos for the Arangieskop 2014 senior scout hike have been posted in the 2014 Photo Album.

We are re-opening our Cub Pack!  It will be open to girls and boys, age 7 to 10, and will meet every Friday from 5:30 to 7 pm at our hall on Bowwood Road, Claremont.  The first meeting will be on 25 July.  We have an adult leader and assistant, and we are looking for enthusiastic boys and girls to join as members, and enthusiastic parents to help as assistants. Please Contact Us for more details!

Luke Neville is our latest Springbok Scout!  Congratulations Luke.  Thanks to everyone who came to the award ceremony last night.

Three tips to solving your boot problems

Blisters while hiking can turn a great outing into a nightmare.

All too often, we blame our boots when we get blisters or get black toenails.

Many problems with “badly fitting” boots can be solved by these 3 very simple, yet overlooked ways of making your hikes more comfortable:

1. Cut your toe-nails really short
2. Use the 2-sock system
3. Use a different lacing system

Toe-nails should be clipped so that no nail is protruding beyond the actual toe. This applies to all your nails, but especially your big toe.

When you have long toenails that go past the edge of your toe, they’ll receive more pressure and put you at higher risk for blood buildup under the nail. It’s important that you cut your nails before your hike. Do so by trimming the nail back to meet the tip of the toe, cutting straight across to avoid other problems, such as ingrown toenails. Make toenail clipping part of your pre-hike ritual to help avoid pain and pressure when hiking on a decline.

2-sock comfort – never ever ever wear cotton socks for hiking. They absorb the sweat which causes the friction that causes blisters. Use a thin liner made of some sort of synthetic seamless material, and a thicker outer sock made of merino wool.

The theory is that the liner wicks away the moisture, and that the friction takes place between the 2 layers of sock – not your foot.

Take your boots off when you have a break, and air your feet and socks.

{note – not all hikers are in favour of this double sock, but if you’re having blister problems, it’s worth a try}

Lacing systems – tying hiking boots has come a long way since we learned to tie the laces on our school-shoes.

We all too often view tying our laces as the method to stop our boots falling off. Not so. This has become quite an art, and can mean the difference between heel blisters, black toes etc. Using this lace-tying system, combined with the double sock system, I walked 1000km in Spain, without getting a single blister.

Essentially, to prevent the boot from slipping back and forward, or your heel lifting out, or your toes slamming into the front of your boot, you need to tie the boot in such a way as to make it more stable and snug fitting. Different versions of the knot are referred to as Surgeon’s knot | Lock knot | double overhand knot. Watch this youtube video for an excellent lace tying instruction – http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SOE28brAcEc

Tam