Members of Troop 44 after arriving at the Kandersteg International Scout Centre. (Nick Galeano)
Have you ever wanted to stay in a lodge up in the snow-covered mountains of Switzerland, meet the big, fluffy Yeti, and compete with Scouts from Europe and beyond for the most gold nuggets? Well, then the Transatlantic Council Klondike Derby is an action-packed and fun-filled event for you. It happens every January and Troop 44 from Stuttgart, Germany, joined the 2025 edition.
Big, fluffy Yeti posing for a picture. (Nick Galeano)
We were pretty excited when we first arrived at the Kandersteg International Scout Centre. It may have been because we had been cooped up in vehicles for the past few hours, but what really got us excited was the snow. The last time we had been there was during summer camp. Many of us had never been to Kandersteg in the winter. It was my first time attending the Klondike Derby.
After a friendly snowball fight, we received our room assignments. As we became familiar with the large building and the “Pinkies” - that is what they call the staff at the scout center, it was time to make some tough decisions. We had to decide on a skit and a song to perform during Saturday evening’s campfire ceremony. At the end, we put it up for a vote. Because the troop was divided into two patrols, we chose two skits, walked through them and then relaxed for the evening. We needed to recharge our batteries for the next day - the competition day.
Our troop was one amongst many that stood outside the lodge during the opening ceremony on Saturday morning. We received instructions for the competition. There were 15 stations to tackle. Adult guidance was strictly forbidden, so our Scout leaders were not allowed to help us. We brought a sled to carry our equipment such as water, lighters, compass and other scouting essentials. Three of our Scouts had built the sled the evening before using rope to lash down the wood.
A well-deserved break on the sled that these members of Troop 44 assembled. (Nick Galeano)
We found our way to the first station. It was a scavenger hunt consisting of scouting-related questions that provided us with compass navigation instructions. If you answered the questions correctly, you received the correct instructions. If your answer was incorrect, you were given incorrect directions to follow, which made navigation a bit more complicated.
Next, we mined in the snow for gold. We dug through a snow drift in the open-air theater. It was a success. We found eight nuggets!
Members of Troop 44 mining for snow in the open-air theater that is part of the scout center. (Nick Galeano)
With high spirits, we ventured on to the next station where we had to work as a team to accomplish the objective. A team of four scouts had to use giant, wooden skis to move in sync. One foot on one board and the other foot on the other board. The strategy that my team used was to call out commands so that everyone moved at the same time. By the end, we had worked up quite the appetite.
We headed back to the lodge for a hot lunch. After the well-deserved break, we went on to more stations: fire-lighting, wood chopping, pioneering, a crate puzzle and axe throwing. The fire lighting station was a challenge. Through a specific process, we had to first start a fire, turn it blue and then purple using baking soda and cabbage. Next, I went back to the lodge to assist with the Order of the Arrow, scouting’s honor society.
Members of Troop 44 building a wooden structure using rope. That’s what we call a pioneering challenge in the snow. (Nick Galeano)
After dinner, we returned to the open-air theater. It had been completely cleared after the Scouts had mined for gold throughout the day. Once the large fire was lit, the campfire ceremony started. The Yeti made a special appearance. He is actually a friendly fellow who even posed with our troop. First, the troop awards were handed out. Our troop even earned the Scout Spirit award. Then, it was finally time for skits.
All the skits were very entertaining. The skit that we did was called “Dragon’s Breath.” Overall, everyone did a really good job. Once the campfire ceremony wrapped up, we headed back to the lodge to recharge for another exciting day.
Members of Troop 44 getting ready to perform the “Dragon’s Breath” skit. (Nick Galeano)
On Sunday, we took the ski lift to the top of the mountain. I was teaching a couple of my scouting friends how to snowboard. After a while, one of our adult leaders took over teaching so I went off and snowboarded other parts of the mountain with other Scouts. It was a fun day. After lunch, we even had an award ceremony for our Scouts who ranked up. It was probably one of the last lifts we took back down the mountain. We were all exhausted and spent the evening talking to Scouts from other troops.
Monday was departure day. We took a detour through the foggy valleys, up a steep mountain and down into the valley again. Our destination was the workshop at a Swiss Army Knife store. There, we built custom knives. I had mine engraved with my initials. It was a very cool experience. It did not take very long to assemble the knives, and we headed back to Stuttgart.
Members of Troop 44 with the Yeti. (Nick Galeano)
Overall, the extended Klondike Derby weekend was an exhilarating experience. We worked together, had fun together and had a great time. If I can, I will come back next year. So, when you are thinking about staying at a lodge in Switzerland, meeting the Yeti and competing with hundreds of scouts from the Transatlantic Council, consider joining Scouting and going to the Klondike Derby.
