Water Venture Sembawang 2D1N Family Science Camp

[ Media Invite ]

Boon Yee and me attended a 2D1N Family Science Camp last week. The highlight for the kids (Cheekiemonkies mobilised whole family!) must be the water sports.

Boon Yee (no3) and Ash standing next to their 10.8 Standup board.  This platform can support up to 2 adults and 4 kids!

Organised by PA’s Water Venture Sembawang, families got to enjoy a variety of events.

Star gazing, Forest walk, Intertidal walk and water activities.

Water Venture Sembawang is located at postal code 759058. It is about 5km kayak from Punggol Barat Island (scenic view here)

A few tips:

-Nearest bustop is 15mins away Sembawang Park

-You will be getting 3G 4G signals from Digi, Maxis, Celcom. Some signal from Starhub and M1 and zero from Singtel. Switch off your social media  and enjoy more family time 🙂

-We found out Bottle Tree restaurant is on the second floor, in case campers are looking for supper

 

The camping site is very new and just next door to Water Venture. Infact, we are the first group to use their 8-men tents!

Clean amenities, there is a hot water dispenser. No aircon and warm showers 🙂

Families help each other setup their tents, we were unanimous in choosing “sea-view”!

1)When I heard about the 2D1N Family Science Camp activity, I quickly accepted the media-invite 🙂

I really miss our Pasir Ris Camping experience and wanted to expose the kids to more camping fun.

2D1N Family Science Camp
2D1N Family Science Camp

Ice breaking games for families.

We got to illustrate our masterpieces on the floor too, graffiti with license :p

Some other activities include “protecting our eggs”. Basically you wrap the eggs with tons of paper, bubble and throw the bundle down.

We were throwing from table height, and I heard they used to throw the eggs from second floor heh heh.

Our sea activities were delayed by 3 hours, no thanks to thunderstorm and heavy rain. The wind was so strong a few tents toppled over.

We decided the sea was too choppy for a smooth ride 🙂

Our camping instructors and guides kept our moral high by engaging in more games and interactions. Kudos!

The floor is wet, entrance is flooded but fortunately interior is only slightly wet.

 

5pm and we got all clear to Kayak! Hooray, this was supposed to be the highlight for many families and was nearly canceled due to rain.

2) Most choose kayaking, but I really wanted Yee to experience Standup paddling. I thought it would be the standard one-man board, but we end up clustering 6 paxs to a board haha.

The 10.8 board is much more stable compared to one-man board, and once we are comfortable, we all stood up and attempt paddling to Johor (joking!)

 

Image credit Kelvin (Cheekiemonkies)

Ash and Yee decided to paddle some adventure on their own. Although we only had 1 hour of paddling, it was super FUN and I am so glad we proceed even when it drizzles.

Yee has forgotten about his Standup Sitdown paddling experience in Sabah Gaya Island (blog).

Wash up but not ready to slumber yet. Campers take note, it can be cold at around 2 or 3am in the morning, you might wish to standby long pants, socks and blankets.

3) Diy Muah Chee was fun for kids and families. It tasted delicious too!

4) Jungle walk just behind our campsite, hear the crickets and spot the bats. I told Yee it is too bright as we can still see our hands.

5)The last activity for the day was Star Gazing. We spotted Jupiter and the moon’s craters through the telescopes!

I always thought Singapore has too much light pollution and we would find it hard to spot stars, much less planets! The friendly guides shared more constellations in our galaxy.

Monopoly card games and instant noodle till 10.30pm, Nights Out. I believed I KO before the boy.

We all agreed it is more FUN to camp as a big group.

Day 2 arrived with the a beautiful egg yolk! Sunrise in Singapore is always late around 7plus am.

Actually, we got free alarm clocks from Johor’s Mosques. The speakers were relaying their prayers from 6am onwards hee hee.

 

Mist covered shoreline.

Day 2 was the launch of Family Aqua Carnival @Sembawang. Busloads of families were invited to enjoy a day out with sea sport and fringe activities.

Some were queuing for mini banana boats (really cute), while others learn more about conservation.

 

Conservation mascots.

Remember to save water when you shower or brush your teeth ok.

6)Intertidal walk towards the direction of Sembawang Park. When it is low-tide, we can spot more marine creatures along the coast.

 

 

Singapore’s Northern beaches are not really clean and we spotted much rubbish strewn around. Most are washed ashore.

Some helpful folks volunteered to clear a few bags of rubbish.

Perhaps Water Venture Sembawang might consider “beach conservation” as part of future activity? It would be meaningful for kids to understand first-hand how human’s plastic waste end up polluting our sea and habitats.

 

We caught some crabs in an isolated lagoon. None of them become chili crab.

If you are interested in intertidal walks, do pop by SengkangBabies’ offshore island experiences here. (Semakau, Chek Jawa, Sisters Island)

And so we ended our 2D1N Family Science Camp on a high. We were happy with the outdoor activities which were both educational and entertaining.

We heard the next Family Science Camp will be on 09/10 June. Do find out more package details on :

https://www.facebook.com/WaterVenture
-Tel: 6755 0225 (Tuesday-Sunday, 9.30am-6pm)
-Email: pa_wvsembawang@pa.gov.sg
Www.onepa.sg

 

Thank you PA and Water Ventures for the Fun Invite, we hope more families will get to enjoy the great outdoors too.

ps.. our previous PA Water Venture experiences at Marina and Sengkang were soaking FUN too. (Sengkang Kayaking post)

-> https://sengkangbabies.com/sports/paddle-fest-2016-at-anchorvale-cc

 

 

Camping In Singapore, Pasir Ris Park

Camping In Singapore was a new milestone for us.

2D1N at Pasir Ris Park, and the packing activities started one night before.
As first timers, we did not want to forget something, so we brought everything out except the sink :p

Our camping barang barang. Besides the camping equipment, we packed in SPORTs too. Bikes, skateboard and soccer 🙂

Camping site secured, goods unloaded. We got two bikes and a skateboard for our supply runs (water and snacks).

Do a quick sweep for debris or broken glass, ensure you are not under coconut tree’s kill-zone!

Before we venture further, you need to register your camping interest at Nparks website (and get the AXS receipt) beforehand. Registration is free.

Once you arrive in designated “Area 1”, and identify your choice spot, proceed to setup camp.

1)Pull the four corner

2) Slide in the rods diagonally, more hands work faster.

3) The rods-intersection at the top (roof) will meet at 90 degrees, ensure a good knot so tent will not deform. We hold all four corners and bend the rods towards the ground (ready to be hammered in).

4) Knock the pins into the ground (with mallet or shoe) to secure the four corners. It can be windy and we do not want our tent to fly away.

5) Tata, our camping tent completed! The final step is to cover our roof with a “rain fly” shelter (blue colour), in case it rains.

We took 30 min to setup our camp and 15 min to pump the air beds.

Camping In Singapore

Time for some fun sports activities. Add Kites, swimming or hammock for more options. Waterbombs anyone? We spotted some otters too.

Meanwhile, Daddy took a short nap on his comfy sofa 🙂
I jokingly told the kids we had to rotate sentry duty.

Our camping furniture, the 4-legged seat is much more comfortable than the tripod seat. Mosquito coil and headlamp is a must, get an overhead lamp (30W should be bright enough) which can provide illumination from the roof.

Handphone’s flash light might be too glaring.

Our 8 men tent is spacious for our whole family. Enough legroom for 1.8m Daddy too 🙂
We would recommend a layer of tarmac for additional cushioning against rough floor, and perhaps protection against small rain. Have a small mat in front of entrance so kids will not bring sand into the tent.

Airbed is a must (not optional) if you are no longer a teenager, or unless you like the sensation of pricky mimosa or pebbles along your spine!

Toilet and shower facilities. We are in Singapore, so a lot of our creature comforts are readily available, including 4G, food and sanitation.

No wonder some say camping in Singapore is Glamping (Glamour + camp) hee hee.

Our zhi char (煮炒) dinner, delicious chicken wings to sweeten our virgin camping experience.

Surprisingly, the humble Maggi was the highlight for our camping trip. We did not BBQ this round, so a mini “campfire” with army-style mesh-tins got the kids excited!

Yummy Maggi and hotdogs, kids are glutton, blame it on all the nice food 🙂

Hope they do not assume all camping experience are always so “luxurious”, I will only pack sardines and jam+ bread for them next time.

大舅 visited us and brought durian supper haha, muffins from our lunch.

 

YEAH, our camp experience was a major success, securing 90% satisfaction from 5 out of 6 campers. (Shall not let you know who is less enthusiastic about outdoor camping)

Most of us love the GREAT Outdoor and Freedom!

No3 Yee still wish to zen out the morning chill.

Packing up, Pasir Ris Park is still very quiet, with the occasional joggers and cyclists.

 

Thumbs up for our camping experience,  I hope there will be many more “staycations” soon.

Video (Youtube link) : Teamwork 分工合作, we get everything done faster

Additional tips for Camping In Singapore :

– Number 1 rule, do not litter.
– Number 2, do not eat or fart inside the tent

– You can grab most of your camping needs at Decathlon, Beach Road or Winning.

– Camping cost (estimated): $125 8man camp, x1 Airbed $25, Pump $13

– If camping at Pasir Ris Park Area 1, nearest carpark is “Car Park A”  (GPS 1.379728, 103.959770). Car park rate 2230 to 0630 maximum $4, $0.50 per half hour other timings.

– Bring a trolley to cart your heavy baggage and equipment along

– Our staycation was too warm overnight, perhaps we should face the tent-opening towards the sea for additional breeze. Add 3 to 4 usb fans to ventilate the tent.

– This might be common sense, pitch in daylight and under shade. It will be challenging in low light to find the strings, hooks and alignment.

– #CommonSenseToo, ensure tent-opening facing away from BBQ fumes

– Go easy on the tent’s zip and anti-insect mesh, kids might pull too hard and jam the zippers

– Organise the Tent interior, food, toys, beds so everyone know where to find their stuffs. We would recommend phones and chargers to be kept in those waterproof 10l duffel bag (in case in rains at night)

– For security reason, adults should sleep nearest to tent entrance. In case someone goes to the wrong tent or kids sleep-walk or someone thought your bikes are OFO or Obike.

– Families might like to camp within 10 minutes walk to toilets, in case you need the loo at 3am

– Bring your camping permit with you, in case Police spot checks.
– Standby socks and pants or spare blanket in case weather turns cold

– Light sleeper bring ear plugs along. We were entertained by Aloha’s Karaoke till 2am and overly friendly (and loud neighbours) who were fishing till 3am!

– Wake up earlier the next day (like 5.45am) to catch a glorious sunrise

** Camping and hiking list for your reference.

Items to bring for camping
Items to bring for camping

 

First timers will struggle to setup a tent, it is not intuitive for me and there are no user manual.  You might take up to 60 minutes for first setup.

We had to hone our pitching skills at a Sengkang knoll before we went LIVE at Pasir Ris :p

Camping gear Singapore
Camping gear Singapore

Camping In Singapore had not cross our mind earlier, until we saw Tan family’s camping village! (read here and their helpful FAQs here). Hope to join them one day 🙂

– Pop by our first camping experience at White Sands shopping mall here
– More photos uploaded on Facebook album
– Instagram itinerary hashtag #skbCamping

Camping In Singapore is a FUN experience for our whole family. We would like to try camping at East Coast Park or Sentosa (available during 2017 Mar holidays) next.

 

Try water bomb during your next camping Fun water episode here 🙂