The Bloggers
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If you have 4:06 now is the time to sit and watch beautiful burn patterns on alcohol stoves. Yes, we are getting back into the swing of real pressing issues. Gear! I picked up the Trangia stove recently and other than taking it out of the box have not really messed with it.
And on the heals of this great debate, and to be honest… like a reader suggested… I'm ready to stop talking about this and get back to backpacking and other more meaningful subjects… But on the heals of the debate, yesterday Jason Collins, a professional basketball player in the NBA "Came out" in an interview…
As I hit the publish button on the last post I realized that I never offered a solution. And I am still wondering what that is… but I can tell you that if I were King for the day… or at least the Chief Scout Executive here is what I would do tomorrow.
DISCLAIMER: THIS IS MY OPINION AND NOT THE OPINION OF THE BOY SCOUTS OF AMERICA, TROOP 664, OR THE FINE LEADERS THAT I CALL MY FRIENDS. Having said all of that I am going to briefly revisit this whole "Gay Scout" issue.
Tomorrow starts the National Football League Draft. With much anticipation I'll be watching to see where the best college players will end up. Now, I know you are like me and these last couple weeks have been a fever pitch of following the rise and fall of players as they… or I should say their…
Last night our Troop held it's Patrol leaders council meeting. The meeting was unlike most of the PLC meetings in that this meeting was kind of a reflective meeting as our troop is going through, like most troops go through in the course of time, some transition.
Today I saw a tweet from a guy I follow. He is an AT section hiker and shared this video, a humorous look at the MSR Reactor stove. I have never used a Reactor, but I have seen them and think that they are pretty neat.
Bare with me while I try to collect my thoughts and try to share them in a coherent way… We just wrapped up the first session of Wood Badge course W1-492-13 and as is the case in or of the Wood Badge experience, there are plenty of opportunities to do some reflection and looking inward…
In a constant quest for new gear and nifty gadgets I have found my new favorite knife. I recently purchased a knife that is multifunctional, light weight and durable. From the makers of the Light My Fire Swedish Fire Steel, Meal kit, and ever so famous Spork, comes the Light My Fire Swedish Fire Knife.
We all get to a point when we hit the wall, reach the point of diminishing return, stop having fun. Teen age boys seem to hit that point way before adults and that my friends seems to be normal. So know what we know, how do we deliver that promise without loosing our cool, making…
This year I got a new pack. I traded in my Granite Gear Nimbus Trace for a lighter pack in an effort to reduce pack weight. I read somewhere that it is a good idea when reducing base weight to start at the base..
Well, by now most, if not all of you have seen or are keenly aware of the Hit TV series " Are you tougher than a Boy Scout ". As they get through the first season, the subject of future seasons have begun.
I have listened to the answers of many Scouts as they explain to me during Scoutmaster Conferences the parts and meanings of the points of the Scout Law. I always asks the Scout to tell me which part of the Scout law is most important and what they struggle with daily.
According to the BSA you may not add to nor take away from the requirements when it comes to advancing a Scout. That would include merit badge work, rank advancement and other skills that require the Scout to show, demonstrate, explain, or discuss.
No one really likes the taste of salt… Take your finger and dip it in salt then stick it in your mouth… you really don't like the taste do you.. honestly… But take the salt out of your pie dough and you take away flavor that is pulled out by the salt.
It has been an interesting week or so and the blog once again, while always on my mind took a back seat to the daily working of being a Scoutmaster. As we prepared for the camp out and then went out on another winter adventure the Scouts of Troop 664 kept me busy and looking…
Thank you all so much fo your response to the 1000th Post Give away! It was nice to read all the comments and I thank you all for continuing to read the blog. I hope that you all get as much out of it as I get putting into it.
Josh and My Dad Hey gang… I did not do a Sunday Coffee video this week. Had a bit of a scare today and had to spend a good portion of the day with my Dad in the ER and later at the hospital when they admitted him.
This is my 1000th Blog Post!!! To Celebrate I am having a Giveaway… Watch the video for details but here is the bottom line… Click the Like Button for this post. Leave a Comment for this post. That's all you have to do to get your name in for a chance to win!
I should start by saying no one got hurt, no one died, and no one is going to jail… It was August and we were heading home from Philmont Scout Ranch. Our two crews from the Troop stopped in Grand Junction, Colorado to eat at the Golden Corral Buffet, a restaurant that our Scouts came…
Had all the stoves out today and it got to be about lunch time… Well… Here's some Bonus video of a nice lunch meal on the trail… Oh and the Cheese cake (left over from the Cheese Cake factory).. a great bonus to the lunch. YUM! Enjoy and Have a Great Scouting Day!
This week we talk about cook kits, more to the point of stoves and the pots I use with them. We also get into a bit of Knife talk and have a nice cup of Tea. Enjoy… Have a Great Scouting Day!
Allow me to play devils advocate here for a minute. There has been quite a bit of discussion lately via email and in Scouting circles in which I find myself regarding Scouts in our programs. One argument is that Scouting is for every young man, the converse is that Scouting is not for everyone.
It is the Scoutmasters obligation to work to achieve the Aims of Scouting… that's pretty much it. To do that it should be every Scoutmasters goal to get every Scout to the rank of First Class not Eagle Scout. If you take a look at the requirements to achieve the First Class rank you will…
This weeks Sunday Coffee with Scoutmaster Jerry is full of coffee and adventure.. This weekend our Troop camped out up at White River on Mt. Hood. It was a great time and lots of skills practiced and learned. Sunday Morning around 4:00 AM our Troop encountered an unexpected attack.
There has been much said, yeah.. even here on this blog, about how Scouting has changed to meet the needs of the lowest common denominator. A greater emphasis on merit badge work shops and staying within an arms reach of a cell phone.
Derek Hansen, Scoutmaster, lightweight backpacker, and as his website says "hammock enthusiast", recently sent me a copy of his book "The Ultimate Hang". It is an illustrated guide to hammock camping and a book that even the most experienced hammock camper or backpacker should have on their shelf.
Today's Sunday coffee is gear heavy. eerrrr light. This week I once again received a few pieces of the Birthday list. Dutch Hooks to add to the z line for the tarp and my new stove the solo stove. Here are the links to see these items close up.
This weekend at the Trainers EDGE training we got into a discussion about "letting Scouts fail to learn". About half of the room agreed with the idea and the other half agreed that the Scout needs to learn, but using the term ‘fail' did not sit well with them.
A bit late in the day to get the post out. We just got home from our Annual Red and Green Dinner/ Court of Honor with the Troop. It is always wonderful to recognize the hard work and accomplishments of our Scouts.
Reblogged from Harper Faulkner: I have neglected my duties in responding to so many well-deserved accolades from my fellow bloggers. By my count, I owe you a list of 47,332 things about myself. I had filled five, yellow, legal pads and was up to 41,765 things when I decided that maybe I should just tell…
Its been a few days since my keyboard and I sat together and jotted down some thoughts… It's been a long week and a pretty eventful one at that. Monday we had our weekly Troop meeting, and to be honest..
If you aint cheatin' you aint tryin'"… "it's only illegal if you get caught"… "No harm.. No foul"… These three little phrases raise the hair on the back of my neck. They are attitudes that while seem harmless, they dictate an attitude that it's ok to do wrong.
I have been getting a lot of feedback about the quest to reduce pack weight. Some of it is good, while others, mainly from other Scouters is not. To be honest, up until our Philmont trek, I was in that camp.
Yesterday I stumbled upon a great You Tube Channel. It;s called Scouting lighter. From what I gather, this Scouter put this together as part of his Wood Badge Ticket. So +2 for this fella! A backpacker and Wood Badger!! WhooHoo!
I was up at my local Ranger station up in Sandy to buy new maps of the Mt. Hood area. While I was up there I got into a great discussion with one of the Rangers about Scouts, nope it didn't have anything to do with policy changes it was about Leave No Trace.
Well, I had a great night out in the hammock ‘testing' out some new gear that I finally received from Christmas orders. The Hammock Gear Under Quilt is fantastic!!! Now I wish I would have got one years ago. Anyway..
Yeah.. so I like to talk about gear… it's what I do… Hi, my name is Jerry… and I am a gear junky.. Hiiiiii Jerrrrryyy Hey folks, ever since I was a young Scout I was told to take care of your gear and it will take care of you..
I left you in the last post talking about the "Big 3″ The Pack, the Sleep system, and the Shelter. Now we discuss the "Next 3″. The "Next 3″ components of your gear consist of the Cook kit, the First Aid kit, and Rain gear.
After our last camp out we noticed that many of our younger Scouts seem to have been over looked when it comes to their gear and gear selections to include packing that gear. Now, let me explain here because if you have spent about a day browsing this blog and you know our Troop, gear…
I often preach about how I expect more out of our young men, that nothing in life will be easy, and that there are no participation ribbons just for showing up in life. When it comes to leadership, the Scouts in our Troop hear it over and over again that we all need to "Model…
This weekend our Troop had a camp out. During the camp out we conducted Troop Junior Leader Training and did some Shot Gun Shooting. We even had some time to squeeze in some map and compass work with some of the newer Scouts.
Got an email the other day asking about the lantern that I carry in my pack. Well, I have two.. here is a quick compare and contrast video of the two that I currently use. The Black Diamond Orbit and the Candle Lantern. Have a Great Scouting Day!
Yep… that's a lengthy title and I really do not want this to become a rant, BUT… it seems that I get in an inordinate amount of emails reminding me that we are working with boys and that these boys are not responsible enough to do this or that.
On one hand it breaks my heart when a Scout creeps up to his 18th birthday and has not completed the requirements for Eagle Scout. It reminds me of my biggest regret in not finishing my Eagle and I can see the disappointment in their eyes that they to will not be counted as Eagle…
Well, here is this weeks video. I tad bit different this week. Had to record later in the day, so coffee wasn't going to work.. so I had some calming Celestial Wild Berry Zinger Herbal Tea… boy did it relax.
The application for Merit Badge AKA the "Blue Card, is a little piece of paper that will get even the most level-headed Scouts doing the dance of the blue card. Just sit back and watch as a Scout realizes that he'll be 18 in a few months.
We talk a lot about Character and making men of Character in Scouting. We spend a great deal of time reinforcing the ideals found in the Scout Oath and Law and expect our Scouts to live those values which will lead him to a life in which he will be counted as one that has…
For those of you looking at a quick and easy way to make your pot cozy.. well here's a nice video by a guy that I subscribe to on Youtube and follow in the Hammock Forums. His name is Sean Emery, but he is known as Shug.
Here is a video I shot a while back. The first attempt at anchoring in the video may seem not to have worked… but in the interest of time we did not allow it ‘set up'. A regular or snow stake will stay once snow is packed and allowed to bond to the stake.
