World Jamboree

Many lessons were learned at the 2023 World Jamboree in South Korea.  

The climate was inhospitable to many Northern European and US Scouts with temperatures exceeding 100 degrees when factoring the high humidity.  Due to lack of adequate resources such as enough medical support, shaded areas, access to water and sanitary latrines, the UK and US contingents delayed entering the 25th World Jamboree by a day and pulled out 2 days later.  The World Scouting Organization evacuated the remaining Scouts and support teams a few days later stating safety concern with impending Typhoon.

The US spent the majority of your World Jamboree at the US Army Base Camp Humphreys.  ISTs and other support personnel arrived prior to the US Scouts arriving, so had significantly more exposure to the Jamboree site than our Scouts and can better comment on how to plan for future World Jamborees or excursions into Tropical and Subtropical climates. 

Heat

It is hard to adequately prepare for the heat and having the proper gear is only plays a small part in preparation.  The heat and humidity in Korea is, well - insane.  Those coming from US National Jamboree in West Virginia in July were surprised to find South Korea was far hotter and humid than anything we experienced in West Virginia.

It takes your body about 2 weeks to acclimate to high heat and humidity.  Since you are only at Jamboree for about 2 weeks, you don't really get a chance to fully acclimate unless you arrive early and spend a lot of time outside.  Some Scouts and Scouters will do better than others, depending on where they are coming from and their genetic makeup.   

Moving Around Camp

At the World Jamboree in Korea, most movement was by foot and events, resources and campsites were spread out over several miles.  It was a little over 3 miles from one corner of the Jamboree site to the other.  Travel took place mostly on the 2 lane road that looped around the Jamboree.  Scouts walking on both sides of the road would share it with busses, ambulances and other vehicles.  Sometimes emergency vehicles would travel at high speeds with little room between them and pedestrians on the road. 

Most of the Jamboree site was sand and grass.  Some areas were flooded, referred to as "bog".  Some roads were rough gravel.  Travel Bags with wheels were great on the main road, but did poorly on the gravel and would clog up on sand. 

Busses may be able to get close to some campsites, depending on where the campsite was located and based on communication with the bus driver.  Carts were available if you could find them.  Scouts should have been prepared to walk up to a mile with their gear. 

Less gear was preferred over having more luxuries. 

Moving Around Camp

At the World Jamboree in Korea, most movement was by foot and events, resources and campsites were spread out over several miles.  It was a little over 3 miles from one corner of the Jamboree site to the other.  Travel took place mostly on the 2 lane road that looped around the Jamboree.  Scouts walking on both sides of the road would share it with busses, ambulances and other vehicles.  Sometimes emergency vehicles would travel at high speeds with little room between them and pedestrians on the road. 

Most of the Jamboree site was sand and grass.  Some areas were flooded, referred to as "bog".  Some roads were rough gravel.  Travel Bags with wheels were great on the main road, but did poorly on the gravel and would clog up on sand. 

Busses may be able to get close to some campsites, depending on where the campsite was located and based on communication with the bus driver.  Carts were available if you could find them.  Scouts should have been prepared to walk up to a mile with their gear. 

Less gear was preferred over having more luxuries. 

Camp Equipment

Having the right gear is always important.  That said, ISTs had to drag their gear over a mile to our campsite.  Trying to carry two heavy bags and 2 carry-ons over rough gravel and then through wet sand in the direct sun in the middle of the day was miserable and dangerous.  More than a few ISTs passed out trying to set up their gear. 

Recommendation - only 1 check-in bag - ideally with large roller wheels or one that can be worn and carried as a backpack

Tent

Scouts had just the right number of tents and should NOT pack one. 

ISTs who showed up early got a Jamboree tent, but had to share it.  Those showing up later had to fight for one and there weren't enough to go around.  Our camp major purchased more and everyone had a place to sleep.  

Brining your own tent meant that you didn't have to share your tent and could easily access your gear.  Cramming two adults in a Jamboree tent is NOT ideal, and has to be hotter and more miserable all around. 

It was possible to purchase a tent, once that store opened up, and either pack it home or leave it behind. 

Recommendation - Adult should seriously consider packing or purchasing a tent. 

Camp Chair

This was nice to have the few items I used it.  For an IST, we may not get back to camp until right before dark.  Sitting in the chair outside of your tent at dusk led to being swarmed by bugs.  The tent was too tight for a chair.  The chair was heavy and added to the burden of dragging all of your gear to camp.

A few of the ISTs hung out camp and a chair was a great thing to have.  Most other ISTs were employed during the day or had better places to hang out.

Troops were provided with chairs at their campsite, so sitting wasn't an issue.

Recommendation - Camp chair not worth it's weight

Lockbox and Locks. 

Theft is always a concern.  A small Pelican Case with lock was nice to have for medications, extra money, passports and other valuables.  Some people locked up their swag.

A steel cable will allow you to lock off of your bags and charging bank together.   

A lock on your tent deterred visitors in camp. 

Recommendation - Small lockbox or use a pelican case as a carry-on;  Extra locks for your check-in bags and one for your tent.

Cloths Pin

Secure clothing to clothes lines or your tent so they don't blow away

Clothing

Uniforms

A full Scout Uniform is required for the opening and closing ceremony, while on tour and when traveling on the plane.

Patches didn't arrive until just prior to the Jamboree. 

For the most part, full uniforms were NOT worn during the event.  Most chose to wear a Scout T-shirt and pants or shorts.  Even at ceremonies, most US members wore a Scout T-shirt due to the heat. 

Recommendation - have one fully decked out uniform for wear and pack a second top if you have one. 

Pants vs Shorts

This is personal preference.  If your Troop is prepared, it will have bucket to wash clothes in.  Some Scouts won't wash their clothes the entire Jamboree and should therefor pack more clothing. 

Recommendation - 1-2 pairs of green pants and 1-2 pairs of shorts; more for Scouts who just won't do laundry

Shirts

Scouts and Adults leaders mostly wore T-shirts.  Having several would allow you to wash one while wearing the a clean one.  

Recommendation - 2+ official Scout T-shirts and other t-shirt

Hat

Nice to have and worn by some.

Recommendation - Hat provided 

Socks

A weeks' worth is nice and a little overkill, unless you get your feet wet a lot.  

Recommendation - 6 pairs of wool socks or Scout socks

Footwear

Trailrunners work well.  You should have shower shoes for the shower to protect your feet from all the fungus there. 

Recommendation - 1 pair of Trailrunners; 1 set of shower shoes 

Underwear

Underwear is honestly optional in the tropics and subtropics.  Wearing moist clothing next to your private parts all day in hot environments puts you at risk of developing a nasty fungal infection.  If underwear is used, it must be changed out daily and washed and dried. 

Pajamas and Sleep Clothes

Having clean and dry clothing for sleep is nice to have. 

Rain Jacket

It rains at National Jamboree.  A rain jacket, poncho or umbrella is highly recommended. 

Recommendation - rain jacket, poncho or travel umbrella

Warm Layer

It may get cool at night.  A sweatshirt can be nice to have late at night or early in the morning. 

Recommendation - one sweatshirt or softshell jacket in case it cools down

Electronics

Less is more.

Laptop

Unless your job requires this, it is best left at home.  

Recommendation - not worth it's weight and one more thing that could get stollen or broken

Cellphone

A cellphone is vital to have.  You will need an international plan or get a sim card at the airport.  Some phones, Google, don't work with the sim cards at the airport - so renting a phone is needed. 

A SIM card for just data was about $30 and a rental phone with a handful of calls to US numbers and a lot of texts to US numbers was around $45.

Recommendation - international phone plan and use of apps that limit international calls

Power Bank Charging Station

The Jamboree provided a small battery charger.  Many of us didn't get this until we left.  A pocket charger is sufficient and can be charged at designated stations. 

I packed a SinKeu 146Wh Portable Power Station with SinKeu 40W Foldable Solar Panel.  This proved to be very nice at National Jamboree, where I could recharge the power station in just a few hours in the AM.  This power station did NOT need to be recharged at Korea Jamboree, although I did charge it once to top it off.  This setup was heavy and really nice to have.  I never worried about running out of power, used it for an AC razor and loaned it to the camp major when his powerbank and phone were dead and he was unable to run operations at camp.  This setup is heavy and took up space.  The solar panels need to be packed with soft gear around it during transport.

Recommendation - Unless you want to charge everyone's phone at camp, a pocket sized powerbank and appropriate charger is all you need...and occasional access to electricity. 

Korean Charger

Korean wall sockets come in Type C (Europlug) and Type F (German Schuko).  Power plug E and F work with Socket C and Power plug C and E work with Socket F.  Voltage in Korea is 220V.  You will want to have a adapter and USB charger that will fit in Korean Outlets.  

Recommendation - carry a type E Plug with USB charger with you

Fan

Some people had fans in their tents.  This is a grand luxury, but required a powerbank.

Recommendation - you can live without this

LED Lantern

I had may favorite LED lantern and used it for an entire month on the same fresh batteries.  It was not used for late night reading.  Late nights were used for sleeping.  A small lantern was far better than using a headlamp

Recommendation - small LED lantern

GPS Tracker

This was packed in Scout Backpack.  This proved very useful on multiple occasions. 

Personal Gear

Wallet and Cash

Wallet with basic ID was carried at all times.  Credit or Debit card might be needed for a cold drink.

Won and US dollar were carried in shirt pocket for emergency use.

Water Bottle

A water bottle was carried at ALL times.  I used a 1 liter metal Klean Kanteen hung from a carabineer from a belt.  If a backpack was worn, it was carried on the outside. 

Most attendees had a large water bottle in their backpack.  Some hung them from a belt or carried it in a cargo pocket.  Others had a fancy holder with strap for their bottle. 

Recommendation - sturdy 1 liter bottle and a way to carry it

Sunglasses

Vital in the blazing sun. 

Phone

Needed for everyday communication. 

Knife

Always handy.  Some countries are going away from knife use in Scouting, so you should avoid bringing a big dagger.  A small lockblade or pocket knife came in handy several times.

Recommendation - small knife

Jamboree ID

Not having this can cause issues.  Wear around neck or affix it to your shirt. 

Necker

It's just part of your Jamboree attire. 

Backpack Gear

Umbrella

Great to use for sun and run

Recommendation - there will be times you'll wish you had one

First Aid Kit

Not used, but good to have.

Extra Socks

Not used, but good to have.

Emergency Meds

Nice to have 

Hand Sanitizer

SO nice to have!

Wet Wipes

Use to clean hands as needed.  Use as toilet paper if needed.  A MUST in developing countries.

Headlamp and LED Mini Light

Nice to have if it gets dark.

Water Bottle

Main 1 liter water bottle always carried.  Extra bottle sometimes carried for more remote trips.  A bottle of Korean Gatorade (Pocari Sweat) was often carried and very nice to have. 

Food and Snacks

Need to have these. 

Swag

When people want to trade, you have something to trade. 

Trading Swag

Swag trading is a personal preference.  There were adults with entire check in luggage with only Patches and Neckers for trade.  Some even brough souvenirs or extra uniforms from home to trade.  

Recommendation - extra necker and a few Jamboree patches for trade

Apps

The following apps were use and more or less recommended. 

Jamboree App 

It didn't work for everyone and had limited information on it.  It did have warning announcements on it. 

Slack

This was the preferred app for team communication

WhatsApp

This allows you to call, videochat or text anyone in the World without fees.  Most were on it, at least by the end of the Jamboree.  It is far more practical and economical than using international calls and messaging. 

카카오맵 - Kakao

Korean mapping software allows you to map out routes in Korea

Google Maps

Excellent mapping app, but does NOT allow you to map out routes in Korea.  It is still very useful, in conjunction with Kakao or other Korean app

Google Translate

Must have app.  Allows you to translate text and images.  This was used all the time. 

Google Weather

Works in Korea.  App give you an idea if it will rain.  No rain means that you may be able to open up your rainfly or even take it off at night.  This will turn a miserably hot evening into just a hot one. 

TrackI

Tracking App used to track Scouts carrying a TrackI Tracker.  The satellite images were different than Google and Kakao and mapping software was sometimes useful as an alternate.  This was very useful when moving around Korea, such as on Camp Humphries. 

Luxuries

• Favorite Snacks

  • Plan on not being able to get your favorite snacks

  • Check customs first to see what you can't bring in (beef jerky)

• Water Flavoring

  • If you have trouble drinking water from Korea, flavoring will help

  • You'll drink so much water that you'll eventually run out of flavoring or get too lazy to take this extra step every hour

• Ear Plugs

  • a must for Opening Ceremony and K-Pop Concert

  • Nice if tent next to you won't stop talking or snore

  • Sharing tent?

• Portable Fan

  • Used in tent

    • Used by some

  • Worn around neck

    • Used by many

  • Old-school paper ones are really nice to have during the day

• Cooling Necker

  • Soak in water and cools body

  • We got some with swag bags

  • Many Europeans used these

• Luggage Scale

  • Helps you avoid insane overweight baggage fees

• Book

  • Depending on your job, some didn't have enough time for sleep while others were really bored

  • For those with free time, a book could be a really nice luxury