Explorer Belt for the layman

For decades, Explorer Belt has been an annual expedition arranged for Senior Scouts in different parts of Europe. The expedition's name is derived from the actual belt awarded at the completion of the endeavour. The setup of Explorer Belt differs between the countries, but the general idea is to promote "adventure and self-reliance in an international context." (Explorer Belt, wikipedia.org).

The Swedish Explorer Belt has been performed annually since 1963, each year held in one or two European countries. The scouts hike in pairs for ten days, but do not know either starting or finishing place beforehand. With ten days and approximately 160 kilometres (100 miles) covered, everybody meets at the finishing place. Stories are shared, blisters are taken care of and ten days of touring begin. We are four bloggers from the expedition, happy to share our stories with you:

I'm Lisa, one of four expedition leaders who have been planning for this since the end of last summer. It gets more exciting everyday and soon we’re ready for take-off! I completed the Explorer Belt challenge in Ireland four years ago and would gladly do it again if I could. 

My name is Elin and during my 19 years in life I've been a scout for nine of them. During my years as scout I've had time for many adventures. For this summer’s Explorer Belt, I’m standing in front of a lot of challenges I haven’t faced with the scouts before. To make it even more exciting, I will go with a guy that I don’t know from before.

Hey! I'm Nils and I'm so excited to finally be a part of the legendary Explorer Belt expedition. Basic info about me: 19 y/o, been a scout for 11 years, lives in Lund, born in Amsterdam, studies Japanese, has several dream jobs where one is "adventure blogger" (so SCORE)!  My favourite crisps are salt & vinegar and my favourite drink is champagne. See you in Britain!

Hi! My name is Anna Jenny, or for short Jenny. I've been a scout for 12 years now, and planning to keep this lifestyle going for the rest of my life. I'm very excited for Explorer Belt and all of the assignments we'll be given. It's the first time I'm going abroad on a bigger international adventure with a scout troop.

You are more than welcome to follow us on our adventure in the United Kingdom!

Below: photos from our meeting in Stockholm.

Scouts making fire with Light My Fire's fire steel.

Scouts making fire with Light My Fire's fire steel.

Singing about a horse with yellow ears at the campfire.

Pre-meeting in Stockholm in May.