Here’s an inspirational video for the 100th Anniversary of Scouting.
Archive for category Backpacking
100th Anniversary Video
Oct 19
C & O Canal Hike
May 26
The intrepid group of 7 scouts and 3 scouters set out early Saturday morning for an overnight hike on the C & O Canal footpath. There were dire warnings of rainstorms, but they persisted, and did get in a day of hiking. In addition to the weather, there were problems with staging the transportation at the ending point of the hike, so it was decided to essentially make it into a day hike. Everyone had a great time, and all want to return to do justice to a longer trek next time.
YIS,
Dick
A Busy Saturday
Apr 20
Wakeup came early on Saturday. I was up at 6:30am, getting ready for the final day of our big fundraising event … mulch delivery. Sales were up this year, with quite a few repeat customers. I arrived at the church to meet the rest of the Troop at 7:45 and we quickly got under way loading the smaller pickups and trailers for local deliveries. The two large Ryder trucks left for our supplier to pick up more 2-cubic foot bags.
This continued, over and over again, all day, with the full trucks making the rounds, the Scouts delivering the bags at each customer’s house, and then back to resupply with more mulch. There were a few breaks when the trucks had to pick up another load and for lunch, but everyone kept pretty busy all day. The final bag of mulch was placed in a customer’s driveway at 6:30pm that evening.
That wasn’t the end of the day, however! Myself and Bruce, along with four Scouts were at Sandy Bottom Nature Park at 7:30pm for the Pack 11 Arrow of Light and WEBELOS crossover. Of course, I forgot the Troop flag and had to run back to the church to pick it up 
. Anyway, to make a long story short, we welcomed three new members into the Troop, finally getting home at 9pm, making for a very long day.
The first weekend in May, we’re backpacking on the C&O Canal … leave early Saturday morning, drive to the DC area, on the trail around 10am, camp Saturday night on the trail, and then backpack to the destination for the trip home on Sunday. Springtime is just full of activities!
Yours in Scouting,
Dick
Shipman Adventures
Apr 1
Last weekend, the Troop made its way to Shipman, VA, which is between Charlottesville and Lynchburg on US 29. It was sort of an introduction to basic backpacking and primitive camping for the newest members of the Troop. They backpacked in about a mile and then set up camp around a small lake.
For most of them, it was their first experience with dehydrated or freeze-dried foods, but the general consensus was that it was edible and really wasn’t too bad. I think they sampled chicken & rice, beef stew, spaghetti, and a few other entrees in addition to GORP, energy bars and the usual backpacking fare.
As you can see in the video, we had a perfect camping spot … a small pond with grassy banks in the middle of a wooded area. Saturday all day was gray with occasional drizzles, and then late Saturday night into early Sunday morning, we had some heavier showers. Of course, as we were breaking camp, the sun came out and the clouds dissipated … typical Spring camping 
.
The area we camped in is private property and we are indebted to the owners for allowing us to camp there. Nelson County is bordered by the Blue Ridge mountains, and is the location of Walton’s Mountain, for those of you that remember the TV show or the book. Nearby is the Wintergreen Ski Resort.
It was a great weekend, but the Scouts were glad to get home Sunday afternoon. This month, we have a planned trip to backpack a section of the C & O Canal, and of course, the Section SR-7A Conclave is being hosted by our OA Lodge at the end of the month.
Yours in Scouting,
Dick Barnes