Australian Jamboree wraps up in Maryborough

WE’RE DONE! The 26th Australian Jamboree has ended, our Scouts have made their way home, and parents are wondering if they will ever get all the mud out of their child’s clothes.

As our 2609 Scouts, Venturer Scouts, Rover Scouts and Leaders rest and recover from 10 days of fun, challenge, adventure and friendship, we’re taking a look at some of the highlights from the last five days of AJ2025.

Miss the first five? Check out our wrap-up here

Who needs a washing machine?

Pro tip for all the parents at home: the Scouts have been taking care of their gear at Jamboree! This includes learning to wash their clothes in buckets and hanging them out on the line. Maybe they can get the mud out of their clothes instead?

Duty Patrols across the event were having fun doing the housekeeping, including prepping, cooking, serving, washing, wiping, cleaning and disinfecting to keep their cooking and dining areas clean.

Maryborough’s Mary Poppins obsession

Scouts were amused to see the pedestrian lights are a little more magical in Maryborough, with the standard icon replaced Mary Poppins and her famous umbrella. Mary Poppins author P.L. Travers was born in Maryborough and she is now recognised throughout the town, from the lights, to The Story Bank museum and a statue of Travers.

Aside from all the Poppins iconography, Scouts had a chance to explore more of Maryborough, including riding the steam train and ringing the bells at the bell tower.

Future Scouts bring the rain

It was a rainy Future Scout Day last Saturday, where more than 4000 people joined the population of Jamboree to see what it’s all about.

Joey Scouts and Cub Scouts lapped up the atmosphere of the event, with many ready to don their Scout green immediately and start dreaming of their chance to attend. Parents of current participants were also on-site to get a firsthand look at the fun their children have been having.

Welcome to the VIPs!

Along with families, some special guests from Scouts NSW have also taken the chance to get in amongst it. Chief Commissioner Lloyd Nurthen rolled up his sleeves to help make breakfast one morning, before getting dirty in the Your Challenge mud run.

Chair of the Board Anthea Cudworth had a chat with some of the Scouts from 1st Balmain and Drummoyne Scout Groups. This was a return to Anthea’s roots, as she used to be a Scout Leader at 1st Balmain Scout Group.

Chief Executive Officer Carolyn Campbell and Director Bernard Cronan were delighted to see the happy faces of both youth and Leaders despite the heat, damp and mud.

Executive Manager Risk and Safety Michael Scrase spent a couple of days at Jamboree to take a look at how the team was keeping our Scouts safe. He particularly visited the Emergency Response Centre to see how the Safety and Security team were dealing with the storms rolling across the site.

Earlier in the week, Executive Manager Operations Shane Simmons and Events and Partnerships Manager Danielle Cummings visited Hervey Bay with a Group of Scouts to check out the Your Seaside activities.

Kirrawee’s Got Talent!

Congratulations to members of Kirrawee Gang Show who performed in the AJ’s Got Talent final. This amazing group of young people organised their entry themselves, including pre-Jamboree deciding to take their show shirts, planning rehearsals and making sure everyone knew what they were doing.

Other nighttime entertainment over the last five days included performances by renowned ARIA award-winning Australian artists including DJ Havana Brown and Sheppard!

Time to pack up and go home

It was a hot day as Scouts packed up their tents and helped to dismantle some of the mini-city that was AJ2025. With 60 coaches leaving the site between 11.30pm Wednesday and 2am Thursday, it was a time to think back on their favourite parts of the event and dream of their next adventure.

Farewell

The Scouts NSW Chief Commissioner Lloyd Nurthen had a special message for all our youth and Leaders at the end of Jamboree.

Happy snaps

Here’s some more of our favourite photos from AJ2025!

What’s next?

There are so many more amazing events coming up across all levels of Scouts!

For Scouts, World Scout Jamboree in Poland is coming up in 2027! If you want something sooner, or closer to home, State Rally is on in August.

Venturer Scouts, the 40th anniversary of Dragon Skin is on the Easter weekend in April! Or head to New Zealand next summer for Venture’26.

Rover Scouts, if you’re not already booked to go to World Scout Moot in Portugal in July, Way Out West Moot is on in Western Australian in January 2027.

And for everyone else, you can look forward to an all sections camp in January 2026 and the next Cuboree in spring of 2026!