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• Top tips
• Kit list: section meeting
• Kit list: camping
• Kit list: day trips
• Kit list: hiking
• Kit list: water activities
• Bags
• General clothing
• Footwear
• Sleeping bags, mats, etc.
• Waterproofs
• Miscellaneous

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Gear Guide

Welcome to our Gear Guide!  We want our Beavers, Cubs and Scouts to enjoy themselves when they join us for camps and activities.  We know that having the right kit to stay warm and dry is an important part of this.  Whether you’re looking to buy new kit or you’re just packing ready for your next adventure with us, we’ve prepared this guide to help explain what you need to bring (and why) so that our youth members come prepared with the right equipment to have the best experience possible.

In this guide you’ll find our top tips for packing and some generic kits lists for different types of activities so you know the kinds of things you need.  As well as sections on the main types of kit you'll need which give you some pointers for what to look out for when choosing/buying kit, and explains some of our dos and don’ts.

We’ve tried to cover a lot of the common questions we get asked, and problems that we’ve encountered – but if you have any questions about packing or buying appropriate kit, please ask your section leader.

Please note that this guide is still under development!

Buying new kit

If you’re concerned about the cost of new equipment, please speak to us as we do have a limited number of certain items that we can loan out.

You don’t necessarily need to buy the big-name outdoor brands, a lot of the own-brand kit is more than good enough for Scouting use!  However, for some things (e.g. waterproofs and sleeping bags) it's worth paying a bit extra to get something that's robust and that will keep you warm and dry. 

There are plenty of places to buy kit, we’ve listed a few places below.  It’s worth talking to the staff as they normally have plenty of experience and can offer some good guidance. 

• Millets - Whitehaven (our local supplier, the staff are really helpful and have a lot of experience equipping people for Scouting – will do Scout discount if you ask)
• Go Outdoors – Penrith (offer discount for Scouts on top of their discount card prices)
• Cotswold Outdoors – Keswick or Carlisle (take your necker and you should get a discount)
• Mountain Warehouse – Keswick (generally do functional kit at a relatively low cost)
• Decathlon - online (another source of functional kit at relatively low cost)