The Roaming Raptors - Explorers Discovering Europe 2025

07/11/2025

Exciting times ahead for some of our fellow Scouts!

Your support would be gratefully received.

Support our 2 lucky Young People who are raising funds for their places at WSJ 2027 in Poland
Newark District Scouts

08/08/2025

2nd place by just one point! It’s been an incredible adventure, one we’d 100% recommend to everyone!

We’ve still got a round up of the final days to do but for now we’re flying home ✈️

Until next time!
The Roaming Raptors 🗺️

05/08/2025

As the Roaming Raptors reach the final stage of their amazing adventure they want to thank everyone who has supported the challenge.

From those who kindly donated prizes for the raffles and tombolas to the generous benefactors who sent money via the gofundme page. From the local businesses who donated vouchers and discounts to the local Scout groups and Newark Services Club who provided space and support for their fundraising events.

To our families for their enduring help and support with the planning, bookings and fundraising - even when we decided we had to visit Liechtenstein and to Tilly Muller, our responsible adult, who came with us but who has given us the space and confidence to lead this crazy journey; straight from work at the end of term! Thank you!!

Without everyone’s generosity, help and support we wouldn’t have been on this amazing life changing adventure!

We’re not quite finished though, we still have tonight’s overnight ferry to Sicily then two nights in Palermo with the core team and the other groups relaxing and debriefing! Then on Friday we finally get to fly - home.

Dwayne Fields

We have tried to tag everyone below 😊

Ann et Vin Wine Shop
The Loose Cannon Newark
Giles & Bella of Newark
Morrisons Community Newark
Millets Newark
Sainsbury's Balderton
Lincolnshire Co-op Community Co-ordinator Newark & Notts
Wood & Toys
Newark traditional barbers
The Works Newark
1st Balderton (Arthur Warwicks Own) Scout Group
1st Coddington Scout Group
1st Flintham Scout Group
Newark Services Club
Boots UK Newark
The Governor's House
One Stop Newark
Asda
Premier B
Natalie Booth
Sarah Forsyth
Newark Brazilian Jujitsu
The Villagers of Syerston

05/08/2025

Day 11 (Tuesday) Pompei 🇮🇹🕶️

The Explorers headed to a very hot Pompei today. After storing their bags for the day and in 37 degree heat they caught a bus from Naples (rail replacement) to Pompei.

They spent most of the day there wandering around the ruins and learning more about its history.

More photos to follow…

Right now we are back in Naples waiting to board an overnight ferry to Palermo, Sicily the final location of our amazing adventure!

05/08/2025

Day 11 (Tuesday) Naples 🇮🇹

While the boys headed to Pompei today, Tilly spent the day touring Naples.

05/08/2025

Day 10 (Monday) 🇮🇹 Rome - 📍Checkpoint 2 - ⛴️ Naples

Before leaving Rome we ironed our neckers as they were starting to show we’ve had them on for 10days!

Returned to Roma Termini and used our Interrail pass for 50% off luggage storage with Stasher!

Headed back into Rome for the day’s challenges…to HOP between 2 landmarks and take a covert photo of another team without them noticing! See our stories for the proof!

We decided to take the metro to the Spanish Steps and do our hopping challenge there!

We then headed for the checkpoint and unfortunately a costly drink stop and sudden queue delayed us 20 minutes and put us into 4th…always a Raptor!

We did spot the Discover Europe 2025 - GMR Explorers so got our covert photo before arriving at checkpoint.

We then enjoyed some shade in the 30degrees before heading for an air con lunch stop… McDonald’s where we found the Red Barrows team so sat and ate with them discussing the past 48hours of travel since we last saw them sharing stories of what we’d been up to and seen.

We then retrieved the bags and headed to the platform to board our intercity to Naples. A quick metro to Toledo and our apartment was 150m away above some lively pizzerias!

We completed our local produce challenge as we headed out for fresh salad and made a chicken Caesar salad.

Early night called as we have to be at Pompeii for 9am! Tomorrow we also leave Naples on an overnight Ferry to Palermo - the final stop in the Discover Europe 2025 challenge!

04/08/2025

Day 9 (Sunday) When in Rome…. 🇮🇹

To pack as much into our day in Rome we decided to use the Big Bus Hop on Hop Off tour to get around, picking it up at Roma Termini.

📍Metro to Termini
📍Big Bus Tour….
📍Saw Basilica Santa Maria Maggiore
📍Colosseum
📍Photo with Arco di Constantino (archway).
📍Went straight into colosseum and did both floors 🙂
📍Walked to United Nations building for Sunday’s flag 🇮🇹 challenge… had to be a country you weren’t in… too many options to choose from here!

🕒 We also ticked off the ‘photo at 3pm’ challenge!

🍦Quick snack/ice cream before hopping back on the bus tour

📍Circus Maximus
📍Mouth of Truth
📍Piazza Venezia
📍Vittorio Emmanuele II monument
📍Fontana dell'Adriatico
🏰 Hopped off at Castel Sant’Angelo - straight into the castle again (avoiding the massive queue!!) 🙌 explored this thoroughly.
📍Saw Where Hadrian is buried - he had it built when he was Emperor! He didn’t just build a wall in England.
📍Amazing views over Italy and the Vatican from the top!!

🇻🇦We then crossed the border and ventured into the Vatican. On Saturday Pope Leo XIV celebrated a vigil and Mass with est. 1 Million young Catholics on the outskirts of Rome. As a result security was tight and we were asked for ID twice by the Italian Police and Military.

After the Vatican we headed headed back into town and after some discussion we found ourselves at a gem of a restaurant and experienced delicious Italian pasta! Mario our waiter was fantastic! 🍝

We were then refuelled to explore the now lit up Rome sites in the dark. We saw the Pantheon, Piazza Navona, and found a Della Palma Gelato shop with 150 ice cream flavours…

We tried between us…
Rice and Milk
Baileys
Champagne
Chilli and chocolate
Rose petals
Dragon Fruit
Green Apple
Biscoff
Tirimasu
Strawberry…

We then saw Trevi Fountain all lit up!

Visited a McDonalds so that Jayan could join the ice cream crew (coffee sundae McFlurry 😋)

Walked across the Spanish Steps and caught the last Metro back to our apartment.

Arrived back at the apartment at 23:53 having walked 25,786 steps! Another 12hour day done!!

Tomorrow we have Checkpoint 3 and as we’re already in Rome hoping for first place! Then on to Naples!

02/08/2025

Day 8 (Saturday) Kandersteg 🇨🇭to Rome 🇮🇹

A full day of Interrail travelling today!

The planned route is Kandersteg 🚞 Brig 🚞 Milan 🚞 Rome but there’s a problem with the line to Milan so the train has terminated at Domodossola!

Time to plan a new route? Updates to follow….

🚌 13.45 rail replacement bus incoming….

🚞 14.49 bus never arrived, back on a train, fingers crossed the line to Milan is now clear of fallen trees!

💺15.20 not moving at Busto Arsizio

16:30 Arrived in Milan!!

⏱️16.58 - 40 minute delay for the train to Rome

🚅 17:48 Train to Rome finally leaves

🏁 20:50 Arrived in Rome ( should have been here hours ago!)

🚙 21:05 Uber to Apartment! Too tired to navigate metro

🔑 21:44 Arrived into apartment

🍕 22:00 went to local pizzeria for dinner!

🚶 23:30 walked back with full stomachs

🧺 23:44 - 1st Load of Washing put on

🥱 00:30 - 2nd Load of washing sorted and wet clothes creatively hung up

🛌 01:00 - Time for bed! 😴

We should have been travelling for 7 hours, we ended up travelling from our first bus at 9:58am - getting out the uber at 9:44 - Almost 12 hours of travelling!!

02/08/2025

Day 7 Kandersteg International Scout Centre the return cable car trip!

02/08/2025

Day 7 - Friday at Kandersteg International Scout Centre 🇨🇭

We started the day with breakfast in the lodge before the core team took us on a walk to the Kandersteg swimming pool. Afterwards we headed back to the lodge to grab warmer clothes, met up with other scouts in KISC including a group of from Lincoln who are summer camping here.

After lunch we went up to Oeschinensee Lake, Kandersteg, Switzerland on the cable car and enjoyed the spectacular scenery! Some of us even braved a dip in the glacial lake… 11degrees according to the board!

Before heading down everyone went on the mountain coaster (toboggans), and we got a second run for free! Thank you! We caught the cable car back down to Kandersteg where we did a bit of shopping for souvenirs and explored the town. Switzerland is expensive!

After dinner in the lodge we ventured out into KISC again for campfire and to meet more scouts…. There was an epic downpour and we got soaked - you’ve never seen so many scouts run for cover who hadn’t got coats…there was a mini stampede!

Evening in the lodge learning new card games with some of the other groups before heading to bed for a long day of travelling tomorrow through Italy!

01/08/2025

On August 1st, 2025, Scouting will be 118 years old. This is because the first experimental Scout camp was held in August 1907. World Scout Scarf Day, which is celebrated annually on August 1st, commemorates this event.

What began over a century ago in the UK has grown into a global movement of more than 57 million Scouts across almost every country in the world. Scouting may have its roots in Britain, but it belongs to the world.

🌎Today, it’s shaped by the cultures, communities, and young people who live it every day – from Nairobi to Tokyo, Prague to São Paulo.

As a cultural export, Scouting isn’t just something Britain shared – it’s something the world made its own. And together, we’re still helping young people gain skills for life, serve their communities, and build a better future. 💚

01/08/2025