Simsbury Troop 175

Karl's Patriol Takes Grand Award at 2012 Klondike

On Saturday February 4, 2012, 18 scouts from Simsbury Boy Scout Troop 175 participated in the annual Winter Klondike event at Camp Workcoeman in New Hartford, CT. Simsbury Boy Scout Troop 76 did a great job organizing the event. Along with over 300 scouts from other troops in Connecticut, we completed 12 tests of our scouting skills.

We began our day at the Klondike with a pack check to ensure we had the required equipment for the day. Then we were off to our campsite to set up and get ready for the day. At the opening ceremony we were given our instructions and the games began. My patrol began competing at a station that tested our skills in orienteering and lashings. We had to construct two extra rungs for a ladder and then proceed up that ladder to remove the added rungs. Using compass bearings, we had to find an imaginary underground equipment stash.

One of my favorite stations of the day involved sawing a log, practicing knot tying and throwing tomahawks. We sawed through a thick log with a large two-handed saw. Two people did the sawing while the others had to brace the log to keep it from moving too much. Next up was knot tying. We had to throw a rope over a bar 6 feet off the ground and then tie that rope to an anchor on the ground using a clove hitch, tie it to a log using a timber hitch and use the sheepshank knot to shorten the rope to keep the log off the ground. Tomahawk throwing was one of the most fun activities of the day. The task was simple, throw an axe at a log, or so we thought. The six people in my group only had a total of 6 axes in the log with each of us throwing two tomahawks.

The cook-off was the next event of the day. We prepared a burrito dish with green peppers, salsa, ground beef and cheese. I cooked and seasoned the meat over an open fire in a Dutch Oven, while others prepared the green peppers. The judges loved our dish and we received a perfect score.

After the cook-off we were challenged in our first-aid skills, preparing a game bird, and fire building. For the first-aid challenge, we tended to a man lying on the ground who was mimicking the symptoms of a broken leg. We tended to his false wounds by immobilizing his legs with a wrap and two sticks. Next learning the art of preparing a game bird, we filleted it and had it cooked for us. This was an interesting experience, being my first time taking apart a pheasant. Lighting fires is the most practiced skill in my troop.  We always practice with a string two feet off the ground and this made the one-foot string height an easy task. I managed to light the birch bark with two strikes of flint. We quickly burned through the rope and proceeded to our next task.

When we arrived at the next station we were confronted with the tasks of constructing a shelter, setting up a tent while all members were blind folded except myself and creating a pulley system to move an injured victim up a hill. For the shelter construction we tied a rope between two trees and staked a tarp over it, followed by piling leaves over the tarp for insulation. On the blind tent set up I had to instruct my blindfolded patrol members on how to set up the tent. It took us 10 minutes to fully construct the tent. For the pulley system we had to connect the rope to a sled and then feed it through a pulley attached to a tree using a double fisherman’s knot. The rope was then fed through a second pulley attached to the same rope using a prusik knot. We completed this task in less than three minutes.

We ended the day with a one-mile race through the woods with a 6-foot stick carried by my entire patrol. We finished in second place.  After the race, we had a group dinner and award ceremony. We were happy to bring home the 2012 Grand Champion “Boot” Packing Award. All of the preparation we do in troop meetings allowed all of our scouts on the trip to perform well in this friendly competition. I enjoyed using all of the skills I learned and am looking forward to next year’s event.

To see photos from the event, visit the Troop Photo Library.

 

Sumitted by Karl Spooner.

Immortals Don't Get Cold Feet, Or Do They?

The Immortals adventure group of Boy Scout Troop 175 thought that it was cold when they met at the parking lot of St. Mary’s church on Friday, January 13^th. At about 30 degrees Fahrenheit, however, the group would experience temperatures more than 50 degrees colder before the weekend was out.

That Friday night, the Immortals slept in an Adirondack shelter at the Adirondack Loj, a campground at the base of the notch they would be ascending. When they woke up the next morning it was about 10 degrees Fahrenheit. They commenced their trek, hiking about 3.3 miles into the Avalanche lean-to campsite. The snow that covered everything made the scenic trail beautiful, and the highlight of the hike was when the group reached Marcy Dam, a snow-covered lake set against a backdrop of white-capped Adirondack Mountains.

Once they got to Avalanche campsite, the Immortals began to set up camp. They built a shelter out of dead wood, and covered it with snow for insulation. After this, a group of the boys hiked an extra 1.2 miles to Avalanche Lake, where they experienced a stunning view. The lake was set in between to massive walls of rock, and the entire area was covered in two feet of snow. The wind blew so fast and frigidly that any part of the face that was left uncovered turned bright red.

After basking in the beauty of the scene, the side hike group started hiking back. Some of the group decided to run back, while others made their way back at a slower pace. Once the group was reunited, they cooked steaks over a smoldering fire. The wood around the campsite was so cold that it was nearly impossible to heat the wood up to the temperature it needed to burn. Boiling water was exceptionally difficult because the gas stoves ran sluggishly. At this point, it was so chilly (-10!) that toes and fingers were starting to go numb, despite proper equipment. Because of this, once everyone’s stomachs were full, the Immortals retired to the shelter that scouts Adam McIlveen, Andrew Gutierrez, Nick Carabillo, and Zack Zikovitch had selflessly completed while the other group had gone to Avalanche Lake.

The low of -20 degrees Fahrenheit set in sometime during the night, and the effects of this extreme temperature were very interesting. In the morning, there was a wreath of ice around the face hole of every sleeping bag, because the vapor from the scouts’ breath had frozen around their faces as they slept. Zippers on sleeping bags had to be thawed with hand warmers before they would open. When the boys tried to slip their feet into their hiking boots, some found that they were frozen in a position that would not allow feet to enter.

Despite these challenges, the group eventually got their campsite cleaned up, scattering the wood from their shelter until there was no trace of their presence save some footprints. They had fun going back down the mountain toward the cars because they could sled portions of the trail, and on the way they said hello to friendly hikers and forest rangers, all amazed that a group of boys could have survived camping in the Adirondacks the previous night.

The Immortals reached the parking lot, and after a few shaky car startups (all the moving parts were frozen in place) they were on their way home, marveling at the convenience of electric heat.

Submitted by Eric Barch, Immortal Chief

 

Mission Profile a Success!

This last weekend 36 Scouts(9 Teams) in the Leadership Group(1st Class and Higher) competed in our Annual Mission Profile - Rising Thunder,  beginning on Friday night and finishing Saturday night.

 

        The winning team was Team 6 - Jack Vallen, TJ Nicholson, Ethan Meskill and Brian Sennott.

 

          In 2nd Place was Team 5 - Zack Zikovich, Devon Chambers, Alex Stein and Jack Falkner.

  

          In  3Rd Place was Team 2 - Robert Carter,  Brian Hannon, Will Pendergast,  Johna Garcia.

  

         Honorable Mention to Team 8 who placed in the most events Nick Veltrop, Hunter Boyko, Cameron Cantelmo,Will Sickinger

 

       The teams were all very close to the end of the game.

 

      A copy of Rising Thunder is attached for Scouts not yet in the Leadership Group  who would like to learn what a Mission Profile is about.

Download Rising Thunder- Draft1 Nov2

Our Philmont Experience - Version 2

Here is the second of two accounts of Troop 175's 2011 Philmont Adventure as told through the eyes of Drew Veltrop.

 

 7/2/11 12:43 PM:

I am sitting in the plane, we are approximately 38,000 ft. above sea level. Oh boy!

12:48 PM:

Still in the plane.

1:59 PM:

We just got back from eating at the country buffet. Luckily, it was all you can eat. That means you can eat all that you possibly can. That one took me a while to figure out. Anywho, at the country buffet I entertained myself by placing certain items of food on other peoples plates. My most famous instance of this was when I deposited a steaming pile of spinach on the plate of scout from a different troop. I believe he was upset with me.

3:46 PM:

After a good feeding session at the country buffet, we took a walk in the Garden of the Gods. What started out as a jolly stroll soon turned into a massacre by hail. Although there were no casualties on our side, it still felt as if we had been through a war. Luckily, we found shelter under the roof of a forlorn building right next to a parking lot, where we stayed until the hail subsided. It was fun watching fellow tourists have their hopes of a scenic hike ruined by balls of icy death flung from the sky.

7:05 PM:

We arrived at the university where we’d be staying the next few nights not very tired, because it was only 7. So, like any reasonable boy scout would do, we went to the rec center. It was awesome! They had a water-volleyball net, a hot tub that could seat over 40 people, a big pool, and a righteous waterslide! But, of course they had a not-so-fun lifeguard. The lifeguard wasn’t a happy camper and she also took her job a little bit too seriously. If I saw the pool, and began to walk at a slightly advanced pace, I would suddenly hear “NOOOOO RUNNNNNNNNIIIIIIIIIINNNGGGGGGGG!!!! GET OUT OF THE POOL AND TRY AGAIN.” It was fun to mess with her by breaking silly rules, such as: you must be on your back, facing forward whilst you go down the slide. After a night of shenanigans at the pool, we retired to our dorms and went to sleep, thus ending our first day of Blue Sky Adventures.

 7/3/11  5:00 AM:

This is how early Blue Sky made us get up. This was because we needed to get an early start towards the mythical cogwheel ride. After a breakfast that was in the form of a buffet, we set out towards the famed cogwheel.

 8:39 AM:

We arrived at Pikes Peak just in time for our ride up the mountain. Let me tell you that I was very surprised not to find any seatbelts on the train, as the type of speeds that we reached were pushing 7 mph. That’s right, 7 mph and they didn’t even have seatbelts. What a hoot. The view made it all worth it, and there were even donuts that can only be made at a certain elevation, which were delicious. Eventually, it was time to get back on the cogwheel, this time going even slower, and wind our way back down to the base of Pikes Peak. Next was rafting!

 I forget what time this happened at:

            After our exhilarating ride up Pikes Peak, rafting was a nice change of scenery. Before we could get on the river, we had to wait for our guide to get here. To pass the time, we played volleyball, which, needless to say, was fun. Once our guide/bus arrived, we suffered through a safety seminar, and then finally got out on the river. The water was very fast cause it had just rained, so that was bodacious. My codename aboard the raft was Dragon. I could breathe fire. After rafting, we enjoyed some steaks and classic music by Tom Munch. We went to bed that night knowing that tomorrow we’d leave for Philmont, thus ending our final day with Blue Sky Adventures.

 7/4/11   6:43 AM:

We are finally leaving for Philmont! Unfortunately it is a 4-hour bus ride there. Luckily, there were TVs on the bus, so we popped in The Matrix and watched it on the ride there. However, our bus driver refused to turn up the volume, so it was at the point where even a person who was good at hearing would have a difficult time understanding what Neo and his less cool friends were saying. Long story (not really) short, we watched the Matrix but never listened to it. When we pulled into base camp, we had to take care of “logistics” first, afterwards we were introduced to our tents for the night and did some first aid stuff to make sure that we were healthy enough for the trail. Then it was time for lunch. The counselors at base camp have a tradition where they tell some outlandish story and then scream “I wanna go back to Philmont.”

While I agree that Philmont is awesome, their way of selling it failed to inspire camp spirit, which made getting into the cafeteria all the better. After lunch and dinner (doing stuff in between, of course), we attended our respective church services. Needless to say, we sang songs. After church, we went to the trail-bound campfire, which, predictably, was the best part of the trip. After the campfire, we retired to our tents, thus ending our first day at base camp.

First day on the trail:

After a tasty breakfast of cold eggs and damp bread, we waited for the bus to arrive that would take us to the trail. Once it did, we hopped onto to it, much like a goat about to be milked hops up onto its wooden pedestal. When we arrived at the trail Matt gave us some useful information, such as what red roof inn is (two person porta potty) what mini-bears are (rabid chipmunks that try to steal your food) and other not as useful tips. After this seminar, we finally embarked on our actual Philmont journey. To start the journey off, we had to hike a terrifying TWO miles. I did not sign up for something so physically and mentally challenging.

            Well, after the colossal hike was conquered, we set up our tents/bear bags and went swimming in a cool spot we had seen whilst hiking. Needless to say, we got wet. After swimming we enjoyed some root beers at the cantina, milked some goats (which made my hands smell like feces) and finally did our first round of “Thorns, Roses and Buds,” which is where you say something good and bad about the day, and something you’re looking forward to. After this activity which would be repeated every night afterwards, we all went to our tents and slept, thus ending our first day on the trail.

 Second day on the trail:

            After a bland breakfast of cereal bars, we hit the trail, still tired from yesterday’s overwhelming distance traveled. Our first stop was Carson Meadows, where we were introduced to our good friend Tom. Tom made a lasting impact on all of us through his witty puns, hilarious jokes, interesting conversation, and his uncanny wookie impression. Tom led us in the search and rescue program, in which we had to find our ranger Matt, who was about 100 feet deep into the woods. As you can imagine, finding him was no challenge whatsoever, and it only took a few seconds. After search and rescue we continued on the path to Crags, which would be our campsite for the night. Along the way, there was a place called the notch, which had incredible views of the surrounding mountains. Once we fully soaked in the view, we continued to Crags, where we played some Frisbee, washed our clothes in the nearby stream, and had a good time altogether. After another session of Roses, Thorns and Buds, we went to our tents, thus ending our second day on the trail.

Third day on the trail:

            Next up on our epic hajj was Fish Camp. After an incredibly short hike, we reached fish camp and enjoyed a complimentary tour of the old cabin there. The thing that surprised me most was how some one from the 1800’s could still be alive. Once the tour was finished, we continued on to make our own flies for fly-fishing. Sadly, no one caught any fish, which was probably because about 50 scouts/

scout-masters fish there everyday. Other than fishing, we occupied ourselves by climbing, playing cards, or sitting in our tents alone writing all this down. When I finished scribing this vital information, I emerged into the sunlight and did stuff. Thus ended our third day on the trail.

Fourth day on the trail:

            On the way to Apache Springs (our next campsite) we spotted a dead elk, which was cool to see because the fur still clung to the rotting carcass. After a heart-warming picture of us surrounding the dead elk, pretending we were the ones that slew the beast, we continued on to our next landmark; the seven switchbacks of death. To start off with, there were 8 switchbacks, and they were also some of the easiest switchbacks on the ranch. Apache Springs was right up the hill from the switchbacks, so we enjoyed another casual hike. The first thing we did at Apache Springs was our conservation project. I thought we would be doing something along the lines of planting baby trees or flowers, but instead we hacked away at existing trees with a bunch of dull axes like a group of bloodthirsty Vikings. It gives me a warm feeling to know that I played my part in conserving the forest. Needless to say, the last sentence had hints of sarcasm. Our next activity was the sunset hike, in which we walked up a short but steep path to get an amazing view of the sunset. What was once a dense force was now a wide open plain, which made it perfect for viewing the set of the sun. Another thing about the meadow we were in was that it bordered another ranch, so we all had fun by peeing over the barbed wire fence onto the opposing ranch. We then ate our now maddeningly boring freeze-dried dinners and went to our tents, thus ending our fourth day on the trail.

 Fifth day on the trail:

            Today we did not need to hike, as it was our layover day. We passed the time until the teepee tour at 11 by playing stick ball. To my surprise, we never lost a ball, even though some of them were launched into the field where it was nearly impossible to find the balls. Before we knew it, it was time for the teepee tour! It took surprisingly long to tour a place with one room. The guide gave us some history on the Indian tribe, passed around some pelts and arrowheads and even a ceremonial bow. After the teepee tour was archery. We had to move the time slot for archery back by an hour because of rain/lightning. Luckily the bad weather passed, and we were able to get our shots in. It was fun because the targets were not conventional targets, but some kind of rubbery replica of different forest animals, which made shooting at them all the better. Nothing happened after archery because it was to cloudy to enjoy the sunset, so we all went to bed, thus ending our fifth day on the trail.

 Sixth day on the trail:

            Today we faced our first hike that was actually challenging. The camp that we would be staying at wasn’t that far away, but we had just run out of food, so we needed to go out of our way for a new food supply. This made our total miles traveled for the day about 10. Along the way, we stopped at Crooked Creek, where we got another tour of the beaver-trapping lodge, caught chickens that were running (some of them were actually hard to catch because they were so small) and chopping wood. The best part of Crooked Creek was when Mr. Rice shattered the axe he was using whilst chopping wood. Needless to say, the axe was not usable afterwards. Once we had spent a large amount of time at the creek, we continued to hike the remaining miles up to Wild Horse. The only noteworthy part of Wild Horse was John Cahill’s sermon, where we sang songs and such. After this, some of us went to bed while others did the nightly workout, thus ending our sixth day on the trail.

Seventh day on the trail:

            Needless to say, we woke up in the morning. Our first mission of the day was to climb down the mountain we had just climbed up the previous day. As a result, it was all down hill to Clear Creek, where we would be staying a short while, but not the night.

            We reached Clear Creek at around 7:30 AM, and only one of the counselors there was awake. He was from Shelton, CT so we had a good talk about how Connecticut was superior to all other states. At one point, another counselor named Will emerged from their cabin with a roll of toilet paper, and went straight to one of “Red Roof Inns.” Five minutes later, he went back to the cabin and reemerged with another roll of toilet paper and went back to the Red Roof Inn. Will had lots of personality. The main event at clear creek was shooting, so after a supply drop of ammo we went to the shooting range, where we fired black powder muskets. Instead of firing at set up targets, we had to make our own targets by placing a personal object, such as a shirt or bandana out on the field for us to shoot at. I shot my Philmont shirt right in the heart, if the heart were on the right side of the chest.

            After shooting we started the rest of our hike, the part that was actually difficult: the climb up Mt. Phillips. It started off at an average incline but eventually it got so steep that if you lay down on the trail you would most definitely start rolling. It took us an hour and a half to reach the top of Phillips, and we were all sufficiently tired by that time. To make matters worse, it looked as if it was about to rain, so we set up camp and ate our dinners at 1 when it was still light out under the dining fly. After dinner, we all went to our tents, although only a few people went to sleep. After some time, the people that had gone to sleep woke up, and thought it was the next day already, so they started screaming and spazzing out. Since we were all awake, we took a picture resembling Iwo Jima at the top of Mt. Phillips. After that, those of us that hadn’t slept were tired enough to go to sleep, while the people who had already slept were no longer tired, so started doing stuff that made it impossible for us normal people to fall asleep. Eventually, however, I did fall asleep, thus ending our seventh day on the trail.

 Eight day on the trail:

            Our destination was Cypher’s Mine, and luckily for us, it was all downhill. After climbing down Mt. Phillips and some other hills, we reached the camp and found out that we would not need to set up our tents, as there were shelters for us to sleep in. Next up was the mine tour, which was awesome because it was completely dark, other than the occasional shine of a flashlight. When we reached the end of the mine, we had to make our way back without any light, only by groping and feeling the wall. The light hurt my eyes when we finally got out. After the mine tour was the forge. This might have been cool if we could’ve gotten a fire, but we apparently lacked the skills to create one. The final activity of the day was the stomp, which basically was a music party. We all danced and had a good time, enjoying the classic songs sung by the counselors. The stomp ended late at night, so we made our way back to the shelter and went to bed.

Ninth day on the trail:

            We got up in the morning feeling well rested from sleeping in a nice shelter. When we headed out on the trail, we soon realized that it was imperative for the path to criss-cross around the stream at every possible moment. Before we reached Cimmaron-cito we made a stop at hunting lodge for water and what not. The remainder of the trail to Cimmaron-cito took about 40 minutes and was all uphill. It was soon revealed to us that the water here actually did taste like sulfur, which wasn’t very fun. The first thing we did was go rock climbing, which 90% of the scouts enjoyed. The belayers at rock climbing had a tradition of asking what your favorite Disney character name was, and then assigning your name as the counterpart of that character. So when I asked to be Scar, my name was soon changed to Nalla. I forget what other people’s nicknames were because I wasn’t paying attention. When we were finished with climbing, we ate lunch and then went to the climbing gym, where they had a rock-climbing wall covering every inch of the room (besides the floor) so you could climb on the ceiling and do flips off of it. We stayed in the gym until it was closing time, and then went back to camp.

Tenth day on the trail:

            Today was a relatively easy hike, short and downhill. We got there in time for horseback riding, which was why we left early in the morning. My horse was named Apples, and did not like John’s horse who was next to me, because he kept biting and nosing him. It was a very scenic route and we even saw some dead animal skeletons, such as a cow’s head. The counselors who were riding in the woods parallel to us claimed to have seen a mountain lion. Sadly, we never got to go any faster than a slow walk. When we returned from horseback riding, we went to the branding station to get our stuff branded. I got a lightning bolt on my boots and a dragon on my nalgene. After branding some of us went lassoing, in which we tried to get a rope around the head of a metal bull. The guy next to us failed to understand that the bull was not actually a real bull, but a fake bull, so he thought that when its wooden legs were swiveling back and forth; he thought it was trying to escape and proceeded to yell, “It’s running away!” and then attempt to lasso its legs. This went on for a while. When I had had enough of the guy’s ranting, I went to hang out at the campsite, until the chuck wagon.

When it was time for the chuck wagon we all walked down the hill, hungry with anticipation of real food. We arrived in time to see the food being cooked in delicious aluminum bags in pots of boiling water. But all was well and the beef stew was great, probably because we had been eating freeze-dried food for the past 9 days. I made friends with Kid with Mohawk at the chuck wagon. We went to bed early because tomorrow morning we would be waking up at 2:30 AM.

The Last Day:

As stated before, we woke up at 2:30 in the morning. Luckily, it was a full moon that night so it was far from pitch black. Even though it was so early in the morning, we packed up camp in a record 30 (usually takes at least an hour and a half) minutes and were hiking by 3 o’clock. It was awesome to see the mountains bathed in serene moonlight. One of the reasons we got up so early was to watch the sunrise from atop Schaeffer’s Peak. When we reached the summit the clouds were just starting to turn pink, so we got to enjoy the full sunrise. By the time the sun had risen, we were hiking towards the Tooth of Time, which took about an hour.          

When we reached Tooth of Time, we had to put all our smellables in a bear bag, which a this point was getting bothersome to do, so once we did we began to climb up the rocky mountainside. Before we started we passed another troop and asked them how long it took to get to the top. They said 20 minutes, but we did it in 9. That just goes to show you that 175 is the best. At the top, an adult was trying to get us to laugh by talking about photos or something. Obviously he did not succeed. When we were satisfied with the Tooth of Time, we scrambled back down and continued to hike towards base camp. The last stretch of the trail was switchbacks. But not ordinary switchbacks, no these were hell-spawned switchbacks. Normal switchbacks try to reduce the amount of distance you travel by constantly switching back, hence the name switchback. But these ones were determined to make you travel an extra mile per turn, so that you would travel 15 meters down the hill after 30 minutes of hiking. When we finally got down the hill, we looked back and realized that what took us 2 ½ hours could have easily taken 10 minutes if we had disregarded the switchbacks and rolled down the hill like any sensible person. So after 10 + days on the trail we had survived monster switchbacks, mini-bears, invasive Tom and much more.

            To sum up Philmont, it was an experience not to be forgotten and one that has changed all of our lives through its awesome nature.

(Submitted by Philmont Scripe Drew Veltrop)

Our Philmont Experience From Eric's Eyes

Our crew to Philmont boasts not one but two scripes to record our adventures. Here is Eric’s Philmont Journal. You can see photos from the trip in the Troop 175 Photo Library.

 

July 2^nd

Today was a very eventful first day. We got off the plane and met Rob Pardue, our tour guide. He took us on to a bus. The bus driver’s name was Abraham, but we called him “Abe.” First, we went to lunch at the Country Buffet. There we enjoyed fantastic food and many naïve and helpless victims of the Pooter, a farting toy that Joey and Karl brought. Kevin is really bad at the Pooter.

After we were finished eating, we got back on the bus and watched a video about the Air Force Academy. By the end of the video, everyone had fallen asleep, even Abe. We got to the Air Force Academy and saw the chapel, which was really beautiful. The landscape was inspiring, and I think a lot of us are now considering applying, meaning only John.

After the Air Force Academy, we journeyed to the Garden of the Gods, which had spectacular views of red rock pillars. On our hike it started pouring. As we sprinted through the rain pretending to be under enemy artillery fire, we were all wondering if this was going to be what the weather was like every day. Then it started hailing. None of us had brought our rain gear except Isaac, who was entertaining himself by standing in a mud puddle while we all huddled under the overhang on a bathroom.

When we got back to the Visitor’s Center, we witnessed an enchanting Native American dance ceremony. The dancers were named Bob and Debbie, which were not the names that I was expecting. Bob did many dances including the hoop dance and the eagle dance. After that was over we watched a movie about the creation and donation of the Garden of the Gods. Finally it was dinnertime, and we exited the theater to go devour hot dogs, burgers, salad, chips, soda, and a cookie! We had fun having animated conversations with the other crews and admiring the views of the beautiful landscape.

Our last activity of the day, although not mandatory, was to swim at the recreation center of the university we were staying at (UCCS). The pool was complete with a hot tub, volleyball net, water slide, and a friendly lifeguard. She was really cool, and we were good friends by the end of the swim session. Anyways after a bunch of sliding and a few rounds of volleyball later we headed up to our dorm rooms and either went to sleep or wrestled and yelled and ate candy while we were supposed to be asleep.

 

July 3^rd

Today was our last day before Philmont. We spent this riding a cog railway to the top of Pike’s Peak. The ride was made humorous by the guides jokes, which, surprisingly, were actually funny. The one reward is that we can all now say that we have been on to of Pike’s Peak.

After our new tour guide, Josh, finished explaining how a cog railway works, we were driven to lunch at this Italian Buffet (Blue Sky Adventures likes Buffets), and then to the river rafting place. After a quick game of beach volleyball we were outfitted in wet suits, helmets, and PFDs. These made us look very distinguished. After taking a bus up the river, we got into our rafts. My guide was Melissa. We went down many 3.99 rapids, but no one fell out. Actually, Drew fell out, but that was on purpose. On the river we played a game called “Get the Stick out of the Water,” the rules of which are self-explanatory. When we got out of the raging Arkansas River we enjoyed a scrumptious steak dinner and performance by Tom Munch, a singer/songwriter who was a ranger at Philmont when he was younger. I thought that he was very good. When our stomachs were full, we went back to the university and enjoyed the pool and hot tub.

 

July 4^th

Yet another fun day in the untamed lands of the wild southwest! We were outside of the university at 5:30 am MST and had finished breakfast at precisely 6:15 am MST. What was the payoff for this early activity you ask? Why a 4 hour bus ride of course! At least we had the Matrix to entertain us. Except Abe refused to turn up the volume, so we spent 3 hours trying to figure out what the characters were saying by reading lips. It made for a fun game.

At long last, we arrived at Philmont Scout Ranch! We were put through orientation, lunch, and then logistics. We had our bags checked by our ranger, Matt, who is this awesome guy from the Air Force Academy. Jack will be mad at me for calling him awesome just because he’s Air Force not Navy, but he was the man.

Once all of our logistical issues had been taken care of, it was off to church for most of us. After a trek (we didn’t know the meaning of the word trek yet) down the hill, most of our crew broke off to go to the Catholic chapel, but Isaac and I kept walking and came to the Protestant chapel. It was a beautiful amphitheater with a giant cross behind the pulpit. The low angle of the evening sun made everything glow orange. It was a truly awesome sight. The Chaplain was brilliant and truly gave us the sense that God was with us. As the sun set behind the mountainous backdrop and deer grazed behind the chaplain, we got our first taste of Philmont beauty and what it had in store for us.

The service ended and it was time for us to go to the campfire where world-class actors collaborated to create a theatrical masterpiece that told the story of Philmont. I would give the campfire a whopping 6 out of 2 stars! I actually did think that the history of Philmont was intriguing, and found it amazing that Waite Phillips gave up all this land for no other reason than to do a good turn. We finished the day up with the Philmont hymn, which, although it didn’t rhyme, still captivated the essence of the ranch. We chanted USA in honor of Independence Day (started by our crew, of course) and then went to our tents, where Drew and I scribed about the day. Tomorrow’s our first day on the trail!

 

July 5^th

We got up today and ate breakfast, which consisted of this egg thing that nobody ate and then delicious bacon and a salubrious hash brown. We boarded a bus that took us to Zastrow Turnaround, our trailhead. Out we came through the bus doors, ready to embark on our journey of epic proportions. After going through one last orientation, the topic being how to poop in the backcountry (Drew was the first one to use an outhouse, more commonly referred to as a Deuce Plane), we got hiking. I was the first navi-guesser, the person appointed to lead the crew on the trail by reading the map.

So once we had finished our two-mile hike under the brilliant guide of our navi-guesser, we had arrived at Abreu campsite. This was a homesteading camp that I thought was pretty cool. They had chickens and goats and houses made out of adobe. John’s favorite feature was a cantina that served ROOT BEER!!! We headed up to our campsite, Old Abreu, to set up camp, where Matt taught us how to set up a bear bag and all the basics of Philmont camping. Then we donned our bathing suits and sprinted down to a water hole we had seen on the way up. Here we enjoyed sliding down a natural water slide (with no lifeguard to yell at us) and sneaking up on each other under water. When we were all tuckered out from swimming we headed back down to Abreu where we learned how to milk goats, which was pretty weird. We almost managed to cover the bottom of the bucket. We weren’t very good. Night had come upon us so after a round of root beer we went back to Old Abreu where we did thorns, roses, and buds. This was a tradition at Philmont where a crew goes around a circle saying what they didn’t like about the day, what they did like, and what they were looking forward to. Our Chaplain’s Aide, John, led it. With that peaceful ending to our night, we all went to bed, finally realizing that we were in for one of the greatest experiences of our lives.

 

July 6^th

Today was our second day on the trail. We quickly learned that the worst thing about being on the trail is waking up at 5:30 am MST. Our schedule today was relatively empty, but we did have one thing to do in terms of program: learn Search and Rescue at beautiful Carson Meadows. As we ascended the stairs up to the cabin at the camp we got our first glimpse of Tom. He had black hair and a big grin on his face. As we were doing pull-up contests, he decided to show off how he could do 5 pull-ups. When he saw that we were not impressed he said “fingertips,” as if he had done them on his fingertips. Surprisingly, no one from our crew was able to beat the standing record for pull-ups at Carson Meadows. Tom then took us over to a lesson about Search and Rescue. This was both informative and very engaging. A number of events ensued at Carson Meadows that included us searching and rescuing our ranger Matt, and Keegan and Jack arguing over whether Keegan could send a love letter to Jack’s sister. One of the rangers at the camp ended up writing the letter with Keegan’s name signed at the end, which was a good compromise.

After we said goodbye to the rangers there, we hit the trail, heading for our trail camp, Crags. After a switchback-filled scenic trail, we arrived at the campsite. It was complete with some shallow swimming holes, a bridge, and tons of flies and red ants. Isaac, John, and Kevin built a dam and created a pool that was waist deep. After they had had their fun, they had to destroy it due to the effect it would have on countless ecosystems. Everyone went back to the camp, and the clouds opened up just as we were finishing our dinners. As a result of this, we all went to bed at 7:30 pm.

 

July 7^th

Today’s morning marked a sad parting of ways. Because it was the third day on the trail, it was time for Matt to go back to base camp and let us spread our metaphorical wings. So we left, both going down paths in opposite directions after having a final early morning workout session led by Jack and Matt (but mainly Jack). On our way from Crags we saw a deer cross the path in front of us. We also saw many scenic vistas along the switchbacks. The natural beauty out in the preserved wilderness of Philmont is truly indescribable. Everything is awe-inspiringly huge. Not even pictures can show its full grandeur.

Eventually, after what felt like a short time but was really 4 hours, we arrived at Fish Camp. Here we were given a tour of Waite Phillips’ fishing cabin on the river. It was a gorgeous log cabin maintained and kept in its original form, save the solar panels about 50 feet away. What I found really cool was that the children of Waite Phillips had a trap door in their room to escape in case of emergency. Of course, this was an awful idea because bears kept coming in, threatening the children’s lives. Also, the lady there kept trying to convince us that she was Waite Phillips’ daughter and that we were in the year 1927. She couldn’t fool me though, because I looked at John’s watch and it said 2011. Nice try, lady.

We finished touring the beautiful log cabin and were ushered into the old banquet hall and some fluorescent light bulbs were flicked on. I thought it was 1927? It was a lesson on how to tie flies, and all of us who didn’t know before were amazed at how easy it was to do! Basically, all you have to do is wrap items around a hook and secure them with a thread. A lot of people made more than one, and some people made up to four!

We trickled out of the room as we completed our flies at different times. Some of us went to fish and others went to our campsite. Jack, Keegan, and I climbed up a “mountain” while a war on the mini-bears raged below. Mini-bears are the names that Philmont has given the pest (chipmunks) that try to steal food. They act like bears, but they’re small, hence the name mini-bears. After Jack, Keegan and I had finished admiring the beautiful views from the side of the mountain, we came down to find that the war was lost.

We didn’t actually try to kill the mini-bears, it was just fun chasing them and plotting to catch them. I even made a snare with Jack and Joey, but I took it down for fear of actually catching one. Anyways, a competition started up to see who could hit a target about 50 feet away with a rock they threw. Drew won; we found out that he had a great arm. He smashed the target to pieces, violently obliterating it and giving it no chance to exist. He treated it as if it had no feelings. Then, our whole crew burst into song, singing Amazing Grace for no reason whatsoever. We were tired, so after a freeze-dried dinner (chicken and rice), we slipped into our sleeping bags and fell asleep.

 

July 8^th

We arose at Fish Camp at a late 6:35 am MST. We ate a hasty breakfast and got on the trail again. We eventually got to Apache Springs, where we would be doing our conservation project. For this we all needed to wear pants, which stunk because all of our clothes were buried in the bottom of our packs (at that point none of us had changed our clothes). The breeze was blowing on that hot day, and it was one of those days where the moon was bright.

After Mr. Burke had found a place to change into his pants, we hiked up a trail to our conservation site. We learned that conserving meant ripping trees out of the ground to make trails so there was concentrated impact on the forest. So our mission was to spend 3 ½ hours digging up stumps. By the end of our conservation session, we had annihilated three out of six stumps. A nice 50% success rate. Still we were not happy that some of the roots had beaten us and asked if we could stay until we were done, but we were denied. Oh well.

We went back to camp, where some of us tossed the Frisbee around and Justin and Karl taught Drew and I how to play Presidents, a card game. I got first and Drew got second. Not bad for some beginners.

As evening approached from the East, we began our hike up to what the staffers had named “Sunset Hill.” We hiked up a half-mile long path, where we started get glimpses of the spectacle that we were about to behold. As we crested the hill silhouetted against the sun, we all gasped or said “Wow” in genuine amazement. We were at the western edge of Philmont, and the view was spectacular. The sun cast its orange glow on all of the golden pastureland, and it looked like something right off a postcard. We all then felt a strong relationship with a higher power, I think. Keegan and Jack even looked up a Psalm to read and John, as Chaplain’s Aide, did a quick reading of the Bible. The sun dipped below the horizon, so, while singing America the Beautiful, we turned away. We got back to camp and did all the work to earn Backpacking merit badge.

 

July 9^th

Today was our layover day at Apache Springs. This means that we get to sleep in! As we all eventually got out of our tents, the early birds were greeted with the nice surprise of getting to eat Breakfast Skillet, by far the yummiest trail breakfast. There were also many other highlights of the day. While we were waiting to start our teepee tour, we started up a game of stickball with a ball that Joey had. Mr. Rice even joined in, but he used a giant log he found on the ground as a bat.

After a fun game with no clear winner, it was time for our teepee tour. This was not so much a tour, but a talk about how the Hickoria Indians lived while sitting inside a teepee. I guess there isn’t much to tour inside a ten-foot wide teepee. Nonetheless, it was very interesting to learn about the artifacts that had been found on the Scout Ranch and how the Native Americans lived before we came along.

After Paul, our tour guide, concluded his tour, we thanked him and left. Jack, Joey, Isaac, and John took this opportunity to play some kickball, using found objects for elements of the game. Jack drilled a killer home run, knocking it out… of the park.

Later, we went on a 3D archery course (because everything these days is 3D). This was really fun. The course consisted of a bunch of realistic-looking foamy animals that we had to shoot at. Our favorite was the bear, because it was standing up.

Out in Philmont, its weird how our lives are governed more by weather and natural things rather than time. There have been a lot of times when I don’t know what day of the week it is just because it doesn’t matter. Being out here makes you realize how weird society is run. The peace is nice, because it gives us time to think. So because it was raining, after our archery course we just went back to our camp, played some cards, and ate lunch. Then it hailed. While the rain may have put a little damper on our layover day at Apache Springs, the extra day definitely gave us time to think, relax, and enjoy ourselves.

 

July 10^th

Well today was the longest day we’ve had so far on our trek. And of course I mean it felt the longest, because they’re all the same length this one just felt longer. 10-23. We got up at 5:30 am MST, and immediately began rushing to see how fast we could break camp and get on the trail. Others told me that this was awful. I wouldn’t really know because I was basically asleep while I was packing my stuff up. Getting up in New Mexico at 5:30 am MST is miserable because there is no humidity to hold the previous day’s heat, so it is very cold (Karl explained this phenomenon to me). However, since we are all cheerful, enthusiastic Scouts, we all jumped out of our tents with joy. We got on the trail in 80 minutes (an hour and twenty minutes for those who don’t feel like doing the math) and ate breakfast while hiking.

After about 3 hours of solid walking we came to the Phillips Junction Commissary, where we restocked on food. After a couple bathroom runs, we got hiking again, which was pretty steep and rocky. After plodding uphill for a little while, we came to Crooked Creek, where we would be doing our program for the day. First, we got a tour of the homesteading cabin, where we learned that the term “Sleep tight” came from when homesteaders slept on beds of rope and you had to tighten up your ropes to be comfortable. After this, we went outside to chase their free-range chickens. We caught a couple, and then decided to break out lunch. As we were eating, Keegan realized he had left his hat and mug at Phillips Junction; 3 miles back down the trail we had just come up. I got elected as the young scouter to be his buddy on his run back down to the commissary. It turned out to be a very fun run. So we just ran a 10K in addition to what we had to hike that day. No big deal. For those interested, we did recover the hat and mug he had left. Once we re-arrived at Crooked Creek, the crew learned how to split wood, how to make a fence (also known as piling sticks against a post), and then we were back on the trail.

We muscled through another uphill hike, and then arrived at Wild Horse campsite, which was a really pretty grass campsite set on a hill. The climax of the day was John’s service. Because it was Sunday and because John is the Chaplain’s Aide, he organized a church service that everyone attended. Its theme was being grateful for what God has given us, and it was very heartwarming. It was so good that it brought one of our crewmembers to tears. After John’s sermon, we played some cards, talked a little, did thorns, roses, and buds, and went to sleep, ready to climb Mount Phillips the next day.

 

July 11^th

It seems that everyone for some reason wants to keep getting up earlier and earlier. We had to wake up at 5:00 am MST, because we wanted to beat the heat on our tough climb up Phillips. After a quick hike down hill where there were several conversations revolving around Harry Potter and the Lord of the Rings, we came to Clear Creek staff camp, where we quickly learned that the staff was crazy and everything was broken.

For example, the first thing that the ranger at Clear Creek did when he saw Isaac’s itinerary was bite the corner off of it. One ranger named Will left holding a roll of toilet paper to presumably ride a deuce plane. He came back about 15 minutes later empty handed, then left again with another roll of toilet paper in his hand. We were scheduled to shoot black powder, but one of the rifles blew up yesterday, so the range was closed. We wanted to do tomahawk throwing, but they didn’t have any tomahawk handles that weren’t broken. So after an extensive tour of the one room cabin, we decided that we could use our extra time to go and filter water from Clear Creek. It turns out that Clear Creek is not clear at all, so instead of using filters that clog, we just dropped in some purification tablets. Once we had filtered water, the strange staffers at Clear Creek decided that it was safe to open the rifle range!

Karl was very pleased, as black powder was what he had been looking forward to the whole time. There was a huge boom, not too much recoil, and a huge explosion down range. The staff there made us shout something American every time we fired. Such things included “America,” “I only eat red steak,” and “For Russia.” Isaac managed to blow a hole straight through the Ace of Spades.

Anyways, we finished shooting, so we went down to the river, ate lunch, and began the steep ascent to the summit of Mount Phillips. The hike was brutal, but we finally summited the mountain. Then we realized that we had only reached a false summit. Then we summited the mountain for real. After a couple of photos, we went down to our campsite. While scoping out the campsite and trying to figure out which was the best one, we spotted a blonde bear, which was cool and kind of intimidating at the same time. We didn’t think that the bears would come up this high, but they did. We were extra careful about eating crumbs as we had lunch. Then since it was cold and rainy, we all flopped into our tents. After a while, for no other reason than because we wanted to have a story to tell, me and Drew ran out of our tents back to the summit, took a bunch of pictures of us posing on top, went to the bathroom, then hopped back into our sleeping bags. All that wearing only shorts.

Keegan and Jack woke up 2 hours later freaking out because they thought that they had slept through the night and it was the next day. John woke up hallucinating, asking Isaac were he had hid the stranger who had been in their tent a second earlier. Sleep does weird things to people. We all got up a little later and hiked to the summit to see the sunset. All of us were very sleepy then so we got in our comfy warm sleeping bags and dozed off.

 

July 12^th

Today’s morning was awesome because we got to sleep in until 7:30 am MST! After we had gotten everything packed away, we took a short hike to the top of Mount Phillips to admire how beautiful the sunrise was. Then, like so many mornings before, we started hiking. Another reason why today was awesome was because the whole hike was virtually downhill.

After an easy trek, we arrived at Cypher’s Mine. This campsite had the most interesting program by far. First, we actually got to go on a tour inside the mine. The tour was awesome, and it was amazing to think that we were essentially walking through a mountain. The tour guide left us on our own, so we had to find our way out by holding the shoulder of the person in front of us and feeling the wall on our right. Isaac led the way.

Once we were out it was time to go visit the forge. This really demonstrated how useful Scouts are. We had about 15 Scouts trying to get the fire started, and we weren’t able to do it. Nonetheless we still learned the parts of an anvil and learned the function of a forge at a mine.

The next big event of the day was the strong man competition, where members of different crews brag about things that they’ve done that show they’re the strongest man in Philmont. Drew was our candidate, and he was hilarious. He should’ve won, but this guy with a beard walked up said “I’m 16” and won. I don’t understand how having a beard shows you are strong, but it wasn’t up to us.

After the strongman competition we went up into a small cabin to witness the Stomp, which was basically a late-1800’s concert. It was really awesome, and the rangers there were really good at the instruments they played and entertaining in general. They even played songs that we recognized from when Tom Munch played for us when we were with Blue Sky. After the Stomp was over we stayed for a while and listened to the rangers play songs on request like “Hotel California.” The music made the evening a night to remember.

 

July 13^th

Today was my birthday, so we woke up at 5:30 and everyone sang the birthday song to me. Then, they gave me the best present I could ever ask for: a bag of food that I actually like. Inside were Rice Krispies, Corn Nuts, Gatorade mix, and more. Keegan also gave me a bag of chewy Starbursts. I was so grateful to everyone that they had given up these treats so that I could have them. Thanks guys!

We packed up all our stuff, which was made easy by the fact that we didn’t have any tents to put away, and then started walking downhill. After an easy hike, we arrived at Cimarroncito staff camp, and there were mini-bears everywhere. There were so many chipmunks that when the ranger brought us up on to the porch to give us the welcome-to-out-camp talk, we had to leave to guys behind to fend off the mini-bears.

We learned that Cimarroncito had HEATED SHOWERS, a welcome luxury after days of being filthy on the trail. We also learned that Cimarroncito’s program was rock climbing, which was awesome because so many kids in our crew love rock climbing. We brought our packs up to our campsite, set up camp, and ate lunch. By now, everyone was saving food and eating it when they felt like it, so everyone had something that was a little different. When it was 12:45, we headed down to the porch, where they brought us up to the rock-climbing wall.

We suited up in harnesses and helmets, and then listened to the necessary safety talk before we started climbing. Climbing was more challenging than it looked, but not too challenging. It was really fun because the staff gave us climbing names that were based on Disney movies. For example, mine was Sully from Monsters, Inc. They probably named me that because I’m so big and muscular. Drew wanted to be Scar, but they called him Nala instead.

After we climbed up the face, we got to rappel down it further down the wall. We clipped into the figure 8 and the belay and then walked down the wall while holding on to the rope. It was really fun and I felt like Rambo. When I got to the bottom and unclipped, the guy gave me a snack pack pudding cup because it was my birthday! He was really nice.

So, as we finished we left the rock climbing area and went back to the main camp. Here we enjoyed trying to beat the bouldering wall challenge, which was to get all the way around the bouldering wall. Some of us got 7/8^ths of the way there, but none of us made it. Then Isaac informed us that it was time for us to go down and get our food from the commissary. This entailed 4 of us walking 5 miles round trip to load up our packs with our food for the rest of the trek and bring it back to distribute among our crew. Isaac, Karl, John, and I went, and it was really fun. The scenery along the way was really pretty, and because we are all somewhat weird we got into a deep discussion about the pros and cons of building your own sustainable house. Along the way we took some trick photography of us scaling impossibly high cliffs and found a lizard with a blue belly.

When we got to the commissary we got free donuts! They were the most delicious thing I had tasted in a long while. We filled our packs up to the brim with food and then hiked back to Cimarroncito. We got back, dumped the food in a pile in the middle of the campsite then ran off to take hot showers, which were HEAVENLY. After that, we spent some time in the rock gym they had there then went to bed, realizing that our trip was soon coming to an end and feeling mixed emotions about whether we wanted to leave or not.

 

July 14^th

We started today just like every other day by waking up at early, packing up, and leaving. After an easy hike we arrived at Clark’s Fork camp. Today we were all looking forward to program because it was horse riding! This was really awesome.

First, we all got assigned horses (mine was named Snip), and then learned how to mount them. Once we were all on top of our steeds, we were led out of the corral and on to the trail. Drew’s horse (Apples) ended up being a total bully who bit other horses. Drew seemed pleased by this. Once we were on the trail, we started to enjoy the fact that we could get around without actually walking for once. It was really fun trotting down washouts and just looking at the Philmont landscape. The sight of an almost endless supply of open land was a weird and great sight. Before we knew it, we had been led back to the corral, and after a group photo of us mounted on our horses, we ran back to the main camp and made for the branding pavilion.

Here we branded everything that we were allowed to, including boots, hats, and even water bottles with the Philmont symbol and other symbols. After this, we kind of did whatever we wanted for the rest of the day. Whether it was napping, roping fake cattle, playing chess on the porch, or tossing the Frisbee around, it was very peaceful.

Then, at 6:00 pm MST, it was time for CHUCK WAGON DINNER. We were all expecting delicious hot, steaming food, so imagine the looks on our faces when we peeked into the boiling pots and saw a bunch of plastic bags sitting there. But to our delightful surprise, when the food was dumped into our bowls, it was salubrious beef stew! After we wolfed this down and had had our share with seconds, we were also each treated to one slice of pound cake! That night was a great night, just because of the food.

When we got back to camp, we organized all our packs and rid ourselves of all extra weight, so that we would be ready for our 2:30 am wake-up. Our hike tomorrow is 11 miles, and we would like to come in before noon, hence the early wake-up. So anticipating the grand finale of our adventure the next day, we all fell asleep.

 

July 15^th

We woke up in the dead of night, and were immediately awake. Contrary to what some crewmembers had thought, the early wake up was invigorating rather than exhausting. We broke camp faster than ever in a record-smashing half hour. Everyone could feel the excitement in the air; we were on a mission.Under the moonlight and the brilliance of a full sky of stars, Isaac snuck up to the porch and signed us out, leaving the time of departure blank. He was startled to turn around and see a man sleeping on the porch. What a sketch. And then, our hike began.

We hiked through the twilight. The most beautiful parts were when we were hiking along ridgelines and we could see the landscape stretched out beside us. It was turned kind of blue from the lack of night, and the silence was complete. Everything was asleep. Just as dawn started to break we came to Shaffer’s Peak. Where we ate breakfast and watched the sunrise. We took tons of pictures to preserve the beautiful memory.

After the sun had risen substantially and everyone’s stomachs were full we got back to hiking. It was a weird transition to be adjusted to hiking at night under the full moon (without headlamps) to hiking in the bright orange of the morning. We came up on top of a ridgeline where we had 360-degree views of the ranch and our first glimpse of the prize: Base Camp. All along the ridge we caught glimpses of the Tooth of Time, our next destination, as well as smoke that had drifted from some forest fire.

We eventually got to the Tooth of Time, and essentially ran up it. The view was spectacular. It was pristine untouched land for miles around, except for Base Camp in the distance. After sitting around for a while and eating lunch on top of the Tooth, that sight of Base Camp spurred us to keep on moving. After a short time, we came to the Tom Trail, a series of switchbacks that cut back and forth pointlessly across a hill with a very low grade. Our dear friend Tom cut the trail. Eventually we did make it down the endless switchbacks, and our bitter moods were soon changed ecstatic when we saw a sign in the distance. We all started speed hiking towards it, thinking about our great times on the trail but also thinking about pizza and cots. We finally reached the sign, led by our fearless leader Isaac.

After a final picture on the trail under the sign that read “Welcome Back- You Made It!” We came into Base Camp walking tall with pride. After dumping our packs in our tents and picking up our other gear out of the lockers, we caught a bus to Cimarron where we had the most heavenly pizza ever. It probably wasn’t even that good, but compared to what we had been eating it was divine. We also went to an old-fashioned ice cream parlor, where we, needless to say, had ice cream. We also had fun playing awful songs that we had never heard of on the jukebox.

We went back to camp, and our last planned activity at Philmont would be to watch the closing campfire, which was actually held under a pavilion due to the weather. The acting was about as good as the opening campfire, but we enjoyed just sitting there laughing at it together. The dull parts were made exciting by Isaac’s brother, Jake, who entertained us with stories that he had about all sorts of topics. We sang the Philmont hymn, and then were off to sleep in tents one last time.

 

July 16^th

Today was our last day at Philmont Scout Ranch. We boarded the bus and started driving. After a couple of hours we stopped at the Country Buffet again to get some lunch. The food was marvelous. Once we got to the airport and through security, we entertained ourselves by playing on the escalators and/or treadmills. It would have been awesome to have escalators on some of those hills at Philmont. When it was time to board, we all got on the plane. As we soared home, we were all thinking about the great times we had had at Philmont, and how our lives would never be the same because of it. We landed and came to a cheering group of parents, where we were happily reunited with them. While we are all very glad to be home with our families and electricity, there will still always be part of u

Summer Camp

  Summer camp this year was tons of fun for myself and everyone around me. At camp this year I was the senior patrol leader with Zack Zichovich, and we worked well together to make sure everything at camp went great.  Some of the activities we did at camp were shooting sports consisting of archery and rifle shoot.  Some of us event made it into the camp competitions on the last day. 

Another activity that we did was coal burning, which is when you take a piece of wood then you put a hot coal on it, then you blow the coal it heats up and burns the wood away creating a crevice.  After your crevice is to the right depth you carve the rest of the wood to shape it like a spoon and you have make yourself a handy tool. 

Also as you might already know we every year compete in a water polo game against 76.  This year we dominated wining 6-2 and taking the championship paddle for the 3^rd year in a row, even though 76 put up a great fight and played a great game.

You can see photos from camp in the Troop Photo Library by clicking on this link and this link.

(Submitted by Nicholas Carabillo)

Hike Up Mt. Greylock

Troop 175's May troop trip was a backpacking trip to Mt. Greylock State Park in northwestern MA. The Mt. Greylock campground has been converted to backpacking use only which reqires a 2+ mile hike in.

All participants were able to practice and improve their outdoor skills, including orienteering, bear avoidance, water filtration, and backpack menu planning.  We summitted Mt. Greylock, the MA highpoint.  Side trips included additional summits along the Appalachian Trail or short hikes to nearby March Cataract Falls and Roaring Brook Falls.

The 2011 Philmont Crew started the hike a day early and hiked the long way to the top, also summitting another nearby mountain before making the top of Greylock.

The two hiking groups met at the cabin at the summit to watch an Native America blessing of the mountain before hiking back down to the campground.

After a backpacker meal and deciding to invest in Jetboil backpacking stoves for the troop, the troop settled in for the night.

Sunrise means breaking down the camp, packing up and heading home.

Check out the photos of the trip in the Troop Photo Library.

Immortals Backpack Trip - The Long Trail

The car ride to Vermont was a great way to start our weekend hike. Everyone was laughing and having a good time. We stopped at Burger King on the way for food, which was excellent! I ordered a tasty cheeseburger and strawberry shake, which cost no more than $3, what a deal! Joey Dunn enjoyed a nice bucket of chicken fries, which I had never heard of before.

One hour later, we arrived at the parking lot where we would spend the night. As daylight was already slipping through our fingers, we set up our tarps and sleeping sacs immediately. While I was rolling out my sleeping bag, I imagined a fellow hiker pulling into this parking lot and seeing a bunch of people sleeping. Boy, would that be a shocker. Luckily, no such thing happened and after camp was secured we engaged in a competitive game of midnight frisbee (with a glowing frisbee, of course) in which much fun was had.

The next morning, we set out on the trail with an attitude to climb a mountain. Once we conquered the mountain we sat and rested for a while, climbing the watch tower and tossing the frisbee around. After we were restored, we took a side hike to the chairlifts, which looked righteous when not covered in snow!!!  Returning to the trail, we continued our crusade (now going down the mountain) to our campsite. Now downhill, the trip was much easier. On the way we saw literally thousands of moose feces, which was needless to say smelly. As we drew nearer to the campsite, everyone was sore, tired and eager to kick back. I thought it was the best thing ever when we got to the campsite... until the curse of the black flies descended upon us.

I was unable to count the amount of black flies there, partly because they flew in seemingly random patterns, but mostly because there were just too many to count. The bugs got to the point where we grew to hate them. Nick Carabillo even said "I wish these bugs would all drop dead". And I agreed with him! The next day we made the decision to morph 2 more days of hiking into one day of MEGA HIKING, as the prospect of dealing with another day of the black flies was simply too much.

On the way, we stopped at what would have been our campsite for lunch, and I could not have been more happy that we weren't staying for the night, as there were about twice as many black flies here as there were in our previous one. I am not quite sure how i knew this, because I was still unable to count the amount of flies. 5 miles later, we emerged on the road bitten, blistered, beaten, battered, and other adjectives that begin with the letter "B".

To sum things up, everyone had fun on the trip, despite the bloodthirsty bugs which tried to bring our spirits down.

Submitted by Drew Veltrop

 

Check out 575 photos from the trip in the Troop Photo Library.

Onion Mountain Conservation Project

Onion Mountain is Troop 175's home camping area and as such one of our responsibilities is to help maintain the trails.

The Philmont Crew spent a day clearing the trails from fallen trees up to two feet round with two-man handsaws and brut force.

Special thanks tot he Simsbury High School Crew Team for lending us their two-man saws for the event.

 Check out photos from the event in the Troop Photo Library.

Snow Shoeing to Lonesome Lake Lodge

Thirty scouts with leadership positions in Simsbury Boy Scout Troop 175 participated in the troop’s annual Junior Leader Training weekend in March at the Lonesome Lake Hut in the White Mountains of New Hampshire.  This is the fifth year since the troop began these focused leadership training trips as a way of building scout and life skills.  These experienced scouts and 14 adult leaders hiked nearly 3,000 feet to the Lonesome Lake Hut, maintained by the Appalachian Mountain Club, using snow shoes with full packs.  Led by Senior Patrol Leader Rob C, and Asst Senior Patrol Leaders Keegan R, Jon E, Tommy A, Isaac P and Eric B, the scouts also brought up sleds of equipment necessary for the training sessions for the weekend as well as their food and other supplies. The theme of the training this year was "negotiation.”

According to Scoutmaster Brad Mead, negotiation is something that we do every day, but it is a skill that is not taught in school. We thought it was important enough to develop a program around. 

Joining the group this year was Dr. George Gramatikas, an experienced international explorer, accomplished business executive who is skilled in the art of negotiation.

The group started the weekend with a negotiation game that required the scouts to acquire information from their fellow scouts by teaming and trading clues in order to decode a puzzle given to everyone at breakfast.  During the hike up the mountain and all day long the scouts worked on finding a solution to the challenge. The adult leaders were also in possession of information that could be useful and negotiations were brisk in all directions. Just before dinner the Life Scout team of Eric B. Isaac P, John C, Nicholas C and Zack Z turned in the final solution. That evening after dinner scoutmaster Brad Mead went through a presentation on Meyers Briggs Personality Profile Indicators, which all the scouts and adults who have been part of the Leaders trips over the past five years have participated in.  The scouts learned how different personalities create challenges and opportunities in negotiation.  Dr. Gramatikas then conducted a survival game that required teams to work together and negotiate for better outcomes.

Check out photos from the trip in the Troop Photo Library.

 

 

 

Do you know where the highest mountain summit in Connecticut is? It is Bear Mountain in Salisbury, Connecticut. This mountain is a part of the Appalachian Trail. On our April trip we will be hiking this mountain. This is a place with a lot of exciting history.

You can read more about it in this article.

Boston Freedom Trail Trip

The troop outing in March took 48 scouts from Simsbury Troop 175 to the heart of Boston, where we tooka guided tour of the Boston Freedom Trail (Boston Commons, Old North Church, Paul Revere’s home, Bunker Hill, the USS Constitution, Sam Adam’s grave, etc.).  We also spent two nights Sayre Scout Reservation in Milton, MA.

To see photos from the event, check out the Troop Photo Library.

 

 

Sailing the Ocean Blue

Eighteen Scouts and parents from St. Mary's Boy Scout Troop 175 spent their school vacation week learning how to sail in the tropical paradise of Caribbean. The group left Simsbury and flew to St. Martin where they picked up two Katana 47 ocean sailing catamarans. Both boats were self sailed, one by Scoutmaster Brad Mead and the other by Dave Fletcher, a Troop Committee member, both very experienced sailors.

Upon arrival in St. Martin, the group was taken by van over to Port Royal, the harbor on the French Side of the island. Each Yacht can sleep 10 people, weighs about 12 tons, has two engines and can sail at speeds in excess of 15 MPH in a stiff wind. The boats were also air conditioned, had water makers on boards and extensive electronic navigation and radio equipment. The group was briefed on the boats and the surrounding islands and possible routes and then the skippers were taken through a very extensive mechanical and safety briefing on each boat. The group then took a van to the local giant supermarket and provisioned both boats for the week with food, drink, snacks and a seemingly endless supply of Mountain Dew.

Keegan Rice as senior Scout on the trip, organized the boys into groups to unload and stow all the groceries. The charter officials then came on board and assisted in piloting the boats through the draw bridge into Marigot Bay and into a marina for the evening. The next morning shortly after sunrise the boats were off to Anguilla, the next island about 20 miles away. The winds were strong and the seas were following  so the boats moved very quickly through the ocean. The skippers would instruct each scout in the basics of sailing and then turn the wheel over to the scout to sail the boat. Standing nearby the skippers would coach the boys in the art of steering feeling the waves, the winds, the currents and the ocean. None of the scouts had sailed before and the thrill of steering a $750,000 boat through the ocean at a high speed was evident.

Upon arrival at Anguilla the boats were anchored side by side off of a pristine white sandy beach called Cove Bay Beach . The temperature was 85 degrees and the water clear blue. Using the buddy system the boys swam into the beach to play in the surf. That evening the chicken barbeque was cooked up on the ships grill with all the Scouts and adults participating in the cooking and eating.

The next morning at sunrise the boats pulled anchor and set sail for the island of Saba , 40 miles away across open ocean. Once the again the Scouts took turns sailing as the boats sailed at top speed to this ancient volcano. Saba was the island backdrop used for the original King Kong movie and has about 1000 inhabitants. It is famous for its clear waters and snorkeling. The winds however began to blow in excess of 30 knots and the group was forced into Fort Bay, the harbor for the island. Both boats had developed operational issues that needed some mechanics attention so the boats were moored and the group hiked up the volcano to the village two miles up the trail. Upon return the winds were still blowing so the boats spent the night in the harbor rocking and rolling. The next morning the winds had died down and the boats were repositioned to the west side of the island where the best snorkeling was.

One of the boats wrapped the mooring rope in its propeller. This required Scoutmaster Mead and Keegan Rice to go over board with knives to cut it loose. Once freed, the boats were finally moored and dinghy's dispatched for snorkeling in the caves and rocks off of Wells Bay. Colorful fish, turtles and eels were all part of the experience. That night the boats stayed at Wells Bay and once again the wind blew at gale levels making sleep impossible and requiring the skippers to check the moorings frequently. The boats had a joint pasta dinner and then a massive card came before spending the night rocking and rolling again.

The next day the boats began their sail in very high winds to St. Martin but this time the waves and the wind were head on. Along the way one of main Jib Sails ripped out in the high winds and the sail was quickly brought down , a new sail put up and the mainsail reefed for storm conditions. By this time both boats had lost their starboard engines to various mechanical problems and skipper Fletcher’s boat had lost its radio transmission. While equipment failures on these complex boats are common as more accumulate it is best to get into port. Skipper Mead brought his boat finally into Phillipsburg the crew repaired various things on the boat and then went ashore to go shopping on the Dutch part of Sty Marten. That evening the group had a restaurant meal on solid land. Skipper Fletchers Boat had made it all the way to Sandy Beach on the north side of one of the other islands, also calm water and they spent the evening swimming and also doing boat repairs.

The last day both boats spent the morning swimming at their different ports and then sailing back to Marigot Bay the home port.- both arriving just about sunset on another very windy day. Both boats united in the marina and the group went out to a final dinner at a local restaurant.

The Scouts did really great" said Scoutmaster Mead. "This was really hard sailing in open ocean conditions and everyone kept their head in the game and got home safe. A sailing ship moving at high speeds is a challenge and when the weather gets rough it can be also be dangerous unless everyone is careful. The guys did really well. Our Troop really likes to do adventure trips and many of these guys have been with us on our Kilimanjaro Climb,our exploration of the Amazon Jungle and last summer’s expedition to Alaska. They learn to take their scout skills and use them in real challenging situations."

Crewing with Skipper Mead was Keegan Rice, Mike Vallen Sr. Jack Vallen, Nicholas Carabillo, Ann Carabillo, Eric Campion, Noah Campion, Jason Child, and Zack Zikovich. Crewing with Skipper Fletcher were- Andrew Fletcher, Ron Falkner, Jack Falkner, Tom Nicholson, TJ Nicholson, Ken Gutierrez and Andrew Gutierrez.

 To see photos from the trip, please visit the Troop 175 Photo Library.

 

 

 

2011 Deep Freeze: a challenge and a lot of fun in the snow

When we approached the gate to the Tunxis ski trail the snow was fresh and deep.

The large Klondike Derby dogsled came in handy, and from my estimation it racked up about 5 miles from the many trips it had to take from the trailer to get all the equipment into the campsite. The deep snow was up to our knees and made the hike difficult, but eventually we packed it down by walking over it so much.

We tried to get some trucks up the trail, which turned into a competition of Ford (Mr. Gilmore) vs. Chevy (Mr. Bushey), but they couldn't get very far. I think Chevy won but Ford went first and helped Chevy go farther by blazing a trail.

Once we got everything set up it was time to build snow caves. They ranged in size from three man tent size structures to caves where the occupants’ feet were sticking out of the door for the whole night. Also a group went up the hill and began to put the outer bark on the Wigwam… okay, we used tarps, zip-ties and bailing twine; a 21st century wigwam. When people had finished building their sleeping quarters, a couple of younger scouts started sledding down the Treacherous Tunxis Sled Run, which became very popular and more and more people joined the activity.  

Working on the Indian lore badge was a challenge in the cold and snowy conditions. A couple scouts tried their hand at flint knapping (making arrow heads) and got some decent results. Others built the Wigwam, and cooked some American Indian food. This included pop corn and one squash. I will be continuing this badge, I will just need to look at the troop schedule and see how I can fit classes in. Those of you who have done some work on the written part make sure you fill out the official work sheet from meritbadge.org or open the attachment to print it out.

Christopher Reilly was caught in a surprise “real avalanche.” The snow on the metal roof of the cabin got warm enough from the fire inside to slide off all at once in a giant wave that covered the whole cooking area. Unfortunately Christopher was directly in its path. He was completely buried, but the quick reactions of Ryan Jano got Christopher out and back on his feet in seconds. He shook it off and warmed up a little in the cabin, and soon was back in action.

Sunset came quick and we ate dinner. Bill Meskill made some excellent tacos that the adults all appreciated. The patrol leaders made soup and spaghetti with meatballs, both of which were delicious. After, some went back to their snow shelters to put the finishing touches on them, while about ten scouts went up to the Wigwam to sleep there. The adults went into cabin to hang out and get warm.

The temperature was going down so it was time to climb into a warm sleeping bag and get some sleep. The crew in the wigwam was listening to the Packers Falcons football game on a crank handle radio brought by TJ Nicholson and eating popcorn. Unfortunately, the Packers won.  Most everyone stayed sort of warm enough overnight to get some sleep. The Scouts in the wigwam kept a fire going all night by waking up in shifts. However, because of and underestimation of how much fuel was needed, they had to collect and saw some more logs at about 4:30 in the morning. Mr. Mead woke those who weren’t up at 7:00 a.m. with traditional cheery bull horn wake up call.  We ate a quick breakfast, packed up and hiked or sledded out.

To see more photos from this trip, go to the Troop Photo Library.

Breaking Dawn Mission Profile

Every year Scout Troop 175 takes its boy leaders and challenges them with an 18 hour exercise that tests their skills and ability to think strategically. Known as a “Mission Profile”, scouts are broken into teams of four and given a scenario which includes a series of challenges that earn currency needed to win the game. This year’s profile was named "Breaking Dawn" and the goal was to find out who held a yellow golf ball.

Many of the teams were led by members of the Troop Immortals, a group of high adventure advanced scouts.  This activity was a tryout for those who would like to become members of the Immortals team. 

32 scouts, representing the leadership of the troop, gathered on a Friday night at the Horace Moses Scout Reservation in Russell Mass. At 7 Pm they were split into predetermined 8 teams of 4 Scouts each and handed their Mission Profile Books which described their tasks for the next day.

The first activity, or “revolution” began at 7 am the next morning when they set off in the dark on a five mile orienteering course using compasses and maps. At the same time, teams had to decide how and where to build a log bridge over the narrow river running through the camp and build a large tower that could hold two scouts on a rope suspended inside the tower for 30 seconds at least 4 feet off the ground.

Each project was a race and winners were awarded "Money", Hershey bars, eggs and clues to the identity of the adult who held the yellow golf ball needed to win the game.

During the day, other challenges had the Scouts immerse a volunteer member in the 40 degree river fully for ten seconds after building a damn and digging an immersion pool, rescue a scout in the woods at night and bring him back in stretcher, use a treasure map to find their food for the day and then improvise all their cooking equipment from the woods around them. During the day they also had to set up secret camps in the 1600 acre reservation and try and find the other team camps.

The activity was non-stop from 7am until 9pm with teams accumulating items they would need to learn the identity of the holder of the yellow golf ball. Many of the clues and instructions were won by doing well in the various competitions but these clues were coded into a cipher that the scouts had to break using their math and logic skills.

All information and items were able to be traded among the teams so their negotiation skills became very important in accumulating the right set of equipment or getting information necessary to win the game.

At 9pm, the last activity or “Final Battle” took place in the dark. An epic game of capture the flag challenged scouts to find the secret campsites of the other teams and run off with a color coded glow stick that served as a flag. At the same time, scouts each had a color coded piece of tape on their arm that, if removed by another team’s player, required them to report to the adult’s campfire and earn the right to rejoin the game by singing a song, telling a joke or cutting some firewood. The team that brought in another team’s flag and 10 “scalps” or tape taken from another team’s player, earned the final final information needed to break the code.

At 11 :15 PM the Blue Team led by Immortal Chief Keegan Rice with Hunter Boyko, Justin Farrell and Matt Zikovich entered the Base Camp area and presented their solution to the judges and won the game. Right behind them placing second was the Yellow Team led by Immortal Eric Barch and his team of John Cahill, Ethan Meskill and Tristan Chambers. Within five minutes, the Red team came in third led by Immortal Jon Epstein with Zack Zikovich, Jason Child and Andrew Gutierrez.

       "These types of complex games test the boys not only on their Scouting knowledge but also on their ability to bring their teams through a series of successes and setbacks and keep driving towards the goal" said Scoutmaster Brad Mead. "By 2pm they have had a long exhausting day and there is still another nine hours to go. Half the Mission takes place in the dark. The scouts have to improvise everything on the spot and under the relentless pressure of time and not letting the other teams beat them. Overlaying all of it is the ability to form alliances with other teams, buy and sell information or disinformation, tools,food and develop a strategy that gets their team to  the goal before the other guys. It’s a "thinking man’s" game and a thousand different ways to win- or lose."

The adults cooked up a midnight buffet for the very hungry and tired teams and the next morning over breakfast a complete recap of strategies, hits and misses , was discussed with the adult leaders before heading home.

 

 

To see photos taken at the event, please visit our Troop Online Photo Library.

Click here to download the BREAKING DAWN Mission Profile

Presidential Traverse

A Presidential Traverse is a strenuous and sometimes dangerous trek over the Presidential Range of New Hampshire's White Mountains. Contained almost entirely in the 750,000-acre (3,000 km²) White Mountain National Forest, the Presidential Range is a string of summits in excess of 4,000 feet (1,200 m). To complete the traverse, one must begin at either the northern or southern terminus of the Presidential Range and finish at the opposing end.

Seven Scouts led by Rob Carter the Immortals Chief completed the very challenging Presidential Traverse. They began at the northern end of the White Mountain Presidential Range at 4:30 AM and traversed 9 Peaks, 19 Miles and 8500 feet of elevation change in 13 hours and 13 minutes finishing at Crawford notch at 5:43 PM. Hunter Peacock escorted the group from the trailhead to the top of Mount Washington 10.6 miles. Brad Mead  and Ryan Mead took the group from the top of Mt Washington to the end of the Traverse.

Scouts completing this extraordinary journey were: Rob Carter, Keegan Rice, Jon Epstein, Gabe Benjamin, Jack Vallen, Eric Barch and Isaac Peacock. These are the Iron Men of Troop 175 

Rendezvousing with the Traverse Gang  was another group of Scouts who climbed to the top of Mt. Washington via the Tuckerman's/Lions head trail and then back down the Boot Spurr Trail. They completed 10 miles and 4,000 feet of vertical gain. The group was led by Bruce Spooner, Jeff Mead and Ryan Mead(who then joined the Traverse Team))and included  Karl Spooner , Justin Farrell and Sam Spak. Will Kelsey accompanied the group on the descent.

It was a great day to be on the mountain. Congratulations to all.

Fun Fishing For Flounder

Recently we had a fun trip to Rhode Island.

Friday night the troop arrived around 8:00 at Aquapaug Scout reservation. The Scouts set up their tents and started their fires. About half of them decided to sleep under the stars. Of course around midnight the storm changed that plan. They quickly learned that you should always have a plan B option. Fortunately John Cahill had set up his big tent so most of them did have a plan B.

Saturday we boarded the Admiral Frances around 8:00 am and set out to catch buckets of Flounder. It was beautiful day and the boat ride was enjoyable, especially to the group on the top deck who had a one legged balancing contest. It was windy so the wave action made this contest a challenge.

Dan brown caught 2 flounder and held onto the largest catch of the day till Will Kelsey bumped him into second place by 7 ounces. Steven Banulski fulfilled one of his lifelong goals and caught a flounder. Also we did get to see a hump back whale surfacing several times in the distance. We then went over to an area near Scarborough beach called Black Point. The boys had fun climbing on the huge rocks,checking out the tidal pools and some took a dunk in the cold ocean water. We continued our hike over to Scarborough beach where they built a dam out of sticks seaweed and rocks. Next we headed went down to swim in the lake. We had a first aide demonstration by Jake Van loon assisted by Mr. Peacock on Adam Mcilveen because of a piece of glass left behind that found Adams foot.

check out the Scout Photo Library for more photos.

Tuckerman Ravine Trip This Weekend

Tuckerman Ravine, on the east side of Mt. Washington in the White Mountain National Forest, is famous for its spectacular scenery, deep snow, and challenging terrain. Thousands of motivated visitors make the six-mile roundtrip to the floor of Tuckerman Ravine every year. That is where you will find many of the scouts of Troop 175 this coming weekend.

The climate on Mount Washington and the Presidential Range can rival the severity of the greatest ranges in the world. Arctic temperatures, hurricane-force winds, snow and icing are possible in any month. Mt. Washington's weather can challenge the best mountaineers and, particularly during winter months, it can have climatic conditions that forbid travel on the mountain. Having the right equipment, knowing your limits and turning around before pushing it too far in wild weather are very important to the safety of your trip.

Mount Washington is the highest summit in the Presidential Range (6,288 feet/1917 meters) and the highest peak in the northeastern United States, and it has earned itself a fierce reputation. Be prepared for extreme wind, precipitation, and cold throughout the year. 

According to the National Forest service, Tuckerman Ravine has LOW avalanche danger. Natural avalanches are very unlikely and human triggered avalanches are unlikely except in isolated pockets. Normal caution is advised.

"Be Prepared" is not just the Boy Scout Motto it is a requirement for everyone making this trip. Be sure to read the equipment list carefully and try not to bring any extra weight if you can avoid it.

Junior Leader Training - Survivor Profiler Test

  The theme of our Junior Leader Training Trip to Zeeland Falls Hut in the White Mountains this year is "Survival".

People respond very differently in an emergency and most respond poorly. Our goal this year was to understand that response, determine its components  and then shape it so that our Scouts will be in the 10% of the population that responds correctly and can not only save themselves but also those near them. Every aspect of this trip is designed to condition those responses. 

To see what kind of a survivor you are likely to be, take the Survival Profile Test.

First go to www.survivorprofiler.com/getcode/ and enter your email address. You will receive a 10 digit code.

Next, go to www.survivorprofiler.org and register as a new user and take the test.

The Profiler test will define your type of Survivor Profile developed by a team Psychologists.  It is a very sophisticated test and Troop 175 will use it as part of our junior leadership training program.

Take a Hike

Scout working on the hiking merit badge enjoyed a beautiful Saturday hiking the Tunxis Trail on a trip planned by Ethan Meskill. The end of the trail was very challanging, but everyone had a good time.

Check out some photos from the hike in our Troop Photo Library.

January Deep Freeze Trip

The January Troop trip saw 23 scouts and 15 adults spend the night at the American Legion State Forest in Barkhamsted, CT. Activities included scenic hikes on miles of trails through varied terrains, snowshoeing, cross country skiing, ice fishing and constructing and sleep in survival shelters.

To see photos from the event, go to our Troop Photo Library.

Troop 175 Year In Photos

The events of troop 175 are usually well covered by several photographers. Take a look at the different events and relive some great times.

Jam Fest 09

Monadnock Dec 2009

Onion MT 09 - Weblo Challenge

Wellfleet Weekend - October 2009

Immortals profile Nov 2009 - Operation Swine 2

Block Island Sept09

Simsbury Flyin 2009

Summer Camp 2009

Canadian Algonquin July09 - Summer canoe trip in Canada

Court of Honor June 2009 - Picnic and pool party at the Mead's house

Eagle CoH 09 - Five scouts from Troop 175 receive their Eagle Rank

Adventure Race 2009

Memorial day Paride 09

Maine Whitewater May 2009 - Immortal's Trip white water rafting

Simsbury Land Trust 09 - Community Service Project

Housatonic May 2009 - White water canoeing

Housatonic May 2009 Album 2

Swim Night April 09

Tuckermans April 2009

Cort's Car Wash

JLT Carter Notch March 2009

Ski Trip Feb 09

Ice Fishing Feb 2009

Winter Camp - Lewis & Clark Long Hut

Teepee Living

Starting the year off right, the senior scouts of Simsbury Boy Scout Troop 175 spent the night camping outdoors at Onion Mountain in Simsbury. 17 scouts braved the freezing cold weather to build a 30 foot diameter, 15 foot tall teepee using downed trees and tarps and spent the night outdoors. Troop 175 is an all weather camping troop and plans camping adventures throughout the year in varied enviroments.

To see additional photos,  visit the Troop Photo Library.

The Polar Bears of Mt. Monadnock

32 Scouts and 10 adults set off on the white dot trail on a Saturday in December to summit the most frequently climbed mountain in the world. The temperature as we set off on the climb was 25 degrees, so we had plenty of layers on. Wearing layers, and being able to add and subtract them as necessary, is one of the most important things for comfortable winter hiking and camping. When we had gone a mile we were warm enough that we stopped and took off at least our most outer layers, but by the time we reached the summit everyone had put everything back on since, the wind was about 30 mph and the wind chill factor made it feel like 9 degrees.

 

Being prepared for the weather was very important on this trip. To get up and down the icy trails more easily many scouts used some type of extra traction on their boots. Micro spikes worked the best, although some used yak trak pro (they tended to come off once in a while). The biggest challenge for some was keeping their feet warm. I’ve found that the best way to keep feet warm during winter hiking is to have properly fitting boots (not too tight) and to have two layers of socks on. The first layer of socks should be made of thin wicking-type material to keep moisture away from your feet (not cotton). The thicker second layer should be made of wool or merino wool (which is softer and less itchy) for warmth. It is very important to bring several pairs of extra socks, and to change your socks if they get wet.

 

Overall, everyone did great on the climb, and the weather was perfect for a winter day.

Mt.

Monadnock

was a great winter hike and we will have to do it again in the future.
For photos from the trip, check out the Troop Photo Library.

Webelo Challance a Success

Webelo's from many different Cub Scout Packs around Simsbury spent the day with Simsbury Boy Scout Troop 175 getting a better understanding of what being a Boy Scout is all about.

The annual event featured the Scouts from 175 demonstrating their pioneering skills and building a set of rope bridges, including the famous "Spiders Web" and the always popular zip-line ride.

The I'm On A Boat patrol put together a typical Boy Scout campsite, including a shelter and camp table.

The fire building competition allowed both Scouts and Webelos to use flint and steel to start a fire and burn through a piece of twine 10" above the ground. Isaac Peacock set a new troop record and had a burn through in 60 seconds. Mike Ryan also beat the old record, turning in an outstanding time of 74 seconds.

The Iron Chef competition brought the Troops cooking skills and creativity to light with some outstanding uses of scout staples macaroni and cheese, chicken, Bisquick, apples, and spices. The "Top of the Hill Gang" took top honors with a simple yet excellent chicken with bacon meal and a Dutch Oven apple pie to finish the meal.

The adults in attendance were treated once again to one of Master Outdoor Chef Dan Osbourne's BBQ spectacular. Pork, chicken and beef along with a number of sides and salad made their way to the plates of hungry parents.

In one of the most anticipated events of the day, Webelos and Scouts worked together in a massive Capture the Flag game. Yellow Team was able to find and capture the Red Team's flag in both games.

The Webelos also participated in a "lost fireman" drill as the Scouts met a requirement for the Emergency Preparedness merit badge. Scouts were told there was a fireman lost in the woods on Onion  Mountain and they had to find him. Using a map of the park, they formed a search line until they found him. The scouts then evaluated his injuries and built a stretcher to carry him to safety. Thanks to the Simsbury Fire Department for the use of their practice dummy.

The night ended with a traditional Boy Scout campfire with a skit, joke telling and Steven Banulski's famous ghost stories.

By all accounts everyone involved had a blast. Check out the photos from the event at the Scout Photo Library.