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Campouts, cooking, backpacking and Leave No Trace. The outdoors is where Scouting happens, and these posts are full of gear lists, Dutch oven recipes and lessons learned on the trail.
540 posts · 2006–2020
Showing 451–500 of 540 posts
Your Troop goes backpacking doesn't it? Backpacking is a definitive Scouting activity that requires stamina, skill, preparation yielding adventure and a great sense of accomplishment. What backpackers carry and why is a subject of endless fascination and study. Here's a couple of narratives from two Scouters as to what they choose to carry.
One of my great pleasures in Scouting is backpacking . Our troop has segment-hiked 150+ miles of the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal (C&O) over the last 3 years, one weekend at a time. I would like for us to do more of it, but we need to balance camporees, summer camp, and the other special opportunities…
We've just got back from our holiday in the Lake District . Of course, being the Lakes, it rained, but we weren't too bothered as we had our waterproofs with us so we were ready for anything! As I now have a digital SLR camera, when we go away I take my laptop with me, so…
What's in My Backpack. Most Backpackers are always tweeking their gear, replacing old stuff with new, looking for lighter, tougher, more useful (multi use) and of course just plain cool gear. Recently I upgraded some gear, namely my backpack. After years of carrying my Kelty External Frame Tioga 5500 I have switched to an internal…
The current incarnation of Boy Scout Troop 68 began in December 1979, nearly thirty years ago. The troop had virtually no money and only a small amount of gear that had been salvaged from previous troops. The charter organization was not able to, or chose not to, give much financial assistance to the fledgling troop.
I received a comment on my post about Backpacking Trip planning made easy. The Reader asked a few questions I would love to answer. Here is his comment: Jerry, Oregon must be a great place for backpacking. Tell us how far you have to go to get to the trail heads around you.
Planning for a Backpacking trek can be a chore or a pleasure. Most Scouts shy away from the chore.. SOOOO... here are a few ways to make Trek planning for the Scouts simple and less "Chore like". First and foremost..
I have talked about it before.. but I love to pass on "Expert" advice on backpacking and camping gear. I always tell the Scouts that if you take care of your gear it will take care of you. Your tent is more than likely the most expensive or at least in the top three most…
We have been talking a lot lately about gear. I did a couple podcasts on gear and have received lots of great feedback and comments on what is peoples backpacks and what they prefer to use when out on the trail.
I am officially cross eyed and my fingers are numb from signing blue cards and helping get the advancement requirements from summer camp into the Troopmaster program. So bragging for the boys, here is how it broke down: 59 merit badges earned (complete), 10 partials.
Hello fellow Scouters, Since the Webelos program allows you to camp as a den, why not consider working on your Outdoorsman activity badge at your own den campout? When I was a den leader, I would only work on the Outdoorsman pin at an outing – I just couldn't work on any of the requirements at…
Back from a week at summer camp. The event of the year when everything comes together, a time to practice the patrol method. To live as a patrol, hanging out with friends, testing skills, learning new ones and just plain having fun.
Wow, what a week... Starting last week, we inched up from 40's in the early week, to mid-70's by Saturday...only to have the temp drop to the 40's on Sunday, with rain, rain, and more rain...all the way through Tuesday...oh, did I mention the snow that was falling when I walked out the door yesterday…
Hello fellow Scouters, I learned a great campout cooking technique from our former Cubmaster years ago that I'd like to pass on to you. I love to barbeque, but if the campground I am going to doesn't have a grill, I can make my own out of my existing Dutch oven equipment and enjoy burgers…
The summer has been busy with Scouting and family activities but I finally felt it was time to add another episode to the Around The Scouting Campfire podcast. The show begins with Buttons arriving home from an overnight camping trip.
Around The Scouting Campfire #8: Damp Camping The show begins with Buttons arriving home from an overnight camping trip. A very wet overnight camping trip. He talks with Scoutmaster Steve about a couple of the things he and his troop did during the damp outing.
My first reaction to this title was "yeah, right". I've been a camper all my life spending a thousand or more nights under canvas or on the trail. My camping education started forty years ago with Colin Fletcher's book 'The Complete Walker' and expanded to the classics written by Horace Kephart, Nessmuk and Bradford Angier.
Hello fellow Scouters, My wife makes an incredible chicken pot pie. A few years ago, I converted it to a Dutch oven recipe, so I could have it at campouts. So here's an easy chicken pot pie recipe you can make at your next campout.
A lot comes to mind when I think about spending a week at summer camp. Scoutcraft, beach activities, and friendships are just a few, but there are a lot more. The weather always adds something to the memories of camp.
Here's the latest from Ask Andy - I think his take on Advancement in Scouting is spot on and important enough to publish here in its entirety: B-P described "advancement" as like a suntan: something you get naturally and effortlessly whilst having fun in the out-of-doors.
So I'm back from camp and (mostly) everthings back in order so I thought I'd take some to tell you all about my week at camp. If you have read my summer camp post from before http://boyscoutblog.wsr3.net/2009/06/25/summer-camp-2/ you know what a typical week at camp is for me and my troop.
One of the coolest things about Cub Scouting is introducing boys and their families to hiking . You can recognize the boys in your pack or den who participate in Cub Scout hikes with this new 2009 hiking emblem . It is $1.19 from BSA Supply Group. Link Posted in CUB SCOUTS, Hiking, Patches
In this show we talk about Backpacking gear and how to get Scouts using the right stuff. Show 36 is the first part in a two part discussion on gear. Join me and my hiking partners (the Assistant Scoutmasters of my Troop), as we talk about gear.
Well, another day down and closer to our return! I don't want to make it sound like I'm hoping for camp to be over … I'm not. I'm an enthusiastic camper. While the Scouts are tearing all over the forest and doing energetic things, I'm in the HQ building working on these videos and doing paperwork.
Well, we got to summer camp right on schedule. We left the church ahead of the scheduled time, and had lunch in Hendersonville, NC at a Subway. We arrived at Camp Cherokee in the early afternoon, and after check in and a tour of the camp, we arrived at the campsite and got our gear…
Hello fellow Scouters, This past weekend, I made a cake with my son, who's enjoying his first year in Boy Scouts. We got a delicious Dr. Pepper and cake mix recipe from Scoutmaster Cleary , and since it had several ingredients my son loved (including his favorite soda), it was easy to talk him into making…
Hello fellow Scouters, I had a real positive response to my dutch oven dessert recipe, so I thought I'd share one more. Our Cub Scout den's favorite breakfast was a breakfast one-pot casserole. A portion of it was prepared at home, so it was easy to make at a campout.
Each day, Scouting magazine website features an Outdoor Tip of the Day . ( Link ) Here is the tip from June 12, 2009: " Never cook inside your tent : Fire , melted tent fabric , and carbon monoxide poisoning are all real risks." [ Bold added ] [ Photo: Flicker/lucdgbxl ] Posted in A Camping We Will Go, Camping, CUB SCOUTS, Safe Scouting
Eight lodges have been recognized for their efforts in camping promotion with the E. Urner Goodman Camping Award. The E. Urner Goodman Award was established in 1969 as a tribute and testimonial to the Order's founder, E. Urner Goodman. Its purpose is to encourage and challenge Order of the Arrow members and lodges to increase…
A review of the Trangia Stove from Cool Tools : I've used the Trangia 25-7 UL/HA for a year now, and it's as reliable as sin. Since I got it, I no longer use my MSR Whisperlite stove. This model comes with a frying pan lid (which doubles as a pot lid and serves as the…
Hello fellow Scouters, One of my favorite camping activities is dutch oven cooking. We converted one of my favorite desserts to make in a dutch oven. It's a fruit cobbler dump cake that is easy to make and comes out great!
The June 2009 ( A Camping We Will Go ) Program Helps pages from BSA National are now available (free) for download. Program Helps is a great resource for crafts, games, activities and more for pack meetings and activities and Tiger, Wolf, and Bear den meetings.
The intrepid group of 7 scouts and 3 scouters set out early Saturday morning for an overnight hike on the C & O Canal footpath. There were dire warnings of rainstorms, but they persisted, and did get in a day of hiking.
I love this time of year when I can put away my winter camping gear and break out the summertime camp inventory. Winter camping is not my cup of tea but I will do so but I really prefer Spring, Summer, and Fall camping the best.
Continued... What we accidentally learned was that: 11 year-old Scouts can handle the Wilderness Survival merit badge. This was a great way to stress the importance of the 10 essentials . Wilderness Survival merit badge can be taught well and effectively as a group.
The Scouts are currently looking at various criteria for camping to gain their Outdoor Challenge or Outdoor Challenge Plus badges. One of the areas they are looking at is there various types of stoves available. Last night they tried a Trangia , a Coleman stove , a couple of portable gas stoves and an old Primus stove…
It is time for the fourth episode of Around The Scouting Campfire, a podcast about Boy Scouting with a bit of fun thrown in for good measure. Scoutmaster Steve and Buttons, the radical Boy Scout, have put together a full show for you.
The June 2009 Cub Scout Monthly Theme is " A Camping We Will Go ." Here is the official BSA theme description: "This month Cub Scouts go camping! Have a backyard campout with your family. Pitch a tent or sleep out under the stars!
On a recent campout, the Eagles patrol tried out the Volcano II stove for their meals. They really enjoyed testing this stove while fulfilling their Second Class 'cook over an open fire' requirement. Since the temperature was 10F to 20F below zero the entire weekend, cooking on propane stoves was a real challenge.
Hello fellow Scouters, Several Scouting friends have recently asked me to provide more detail about how I collected ash for my boys. I have previously blogged about why I collect ash. Here is how I used ash to start a campfire ceremony, and how I collected ash and gave it away.
I'm sure I will have a lot more to say on this subject after we hike during the 2nd part of Powder Horn, but one very important detail I learned last weekend is that you must start with the fit backpack.
In a couple of weeks we are going to take the Scouts hiking and they will be carrying their own tents etc. Nothing too unusual about that really. They will be split into two groups and the older Scouts (12+ I think) will go on a longer route than the remainder.
4 Vote On Idea I am the new staff advisor for the Order of the Arrow and I thought of this idea. What if we were to create a national online "Where to go camping guide." It could be such that a person could click on a particular state and see the different camping facilities…
Another fantastic camp out with the Scouts from Troop 664. I took the opportunity to try out a J Falk Wood Fuel Stove this weekend. Jason Klass from Gear Talk sent me one to try out. I really like the stove.
Walter left a note for me on the Visitors page about his view of the OA camping requirement. The Scoutmaster ultimately decides what counts as camping or not. Walter also mentioned that he counts all days of a long-term camp towards OA - so a 10-day Jamoree would count as 10 OA camping days.
The Order of the Arrow is the BSA's national brotherhood of honor campers and has four purposes: Recognize Scout campers Develop camping traditions and spirit Promote Scout camping Promote leadership in cheerful service to others Each troop holds elections for the OA with all scouts present voting to approve or deny the membership of each…
The hiking Stick or Stave or staff traditionally has been a part of Scouting. Baden Powell talked of the hiking stick and its many uses when he started the Scouting Movement. The Hiking stick is made of strong wood, not just any old stick, it is solid and steadfast.
It's time to, if you haven't already, start looking at summer camp ideas for your scouters. Here are a few of our favorites. I just talked to the summer program director last night and it sounds like this summer is going to be a blast!
I remember back in the day that camping was all about sleeping on the ground in a tent, cooking beanie weenies, and stargazing at night. Entertaining each other around the campfire and incinerating marshmallow in some strange sacrificial rite. There's nothing like a marshmallow cooked to a cinder over an open campfire.
See winter camping tips for general advice for cold weather camping. But, when it's really cold, like 20F below zero, there are more weird things that happen and stuff for which you might not be prepared: Shock cords in tent poles freeze and lose their stretch Lips freeze to metal spoons and tin cups Bananas…
