AnniePoo

I should clarify: We ate lunch and supper as a big group, but people ate breakfast at different times after they got up. We had cereal, fruit, and oatmeal available, and typically pancakes or french toast and sausage or scrambled eggs. And coffee, of course. If you have the right equipment available, it's easy to cook a lot of that stuff quickly on somewhat of a make-to-order basis. It worked better for us to allow people to sleep in if they wanted, as long as we had people that were willing to cook breakfast over a period of a couple of hours. Plus, not everyone likes to eat breakfast th

When I was in the pack, we cooked and ate as a group. Mix of foil pack, dutch oven, griddle over the fire, and griddle over camping stoves. I picked the menu, purchased the food, and brought the cooking equipment. Parents and scouts helped with cooking & cleaning duties (age appropriate duties for the kids). Note that we always had healthy snacks out for the cubs, and then didn't expect them to eat a huge supper. Snacks were stuff like fruit, veggies, and pretzels, and we rotated between them throughout the day. Because the kids were running around all day, we figured that snacking

"That was the best trip I've ever been on!"

I'm out of the pack now, but the Cubs always like an outdoor pack meeting with a bonfire. Boy Scouts helped with fire management & safety.

That's fantastic that your troop has access to sea kayaks and an experienced paddler to teach them!!! We're kind of on the lower end of the paddling spectrum. Hubby and I have ten rec kayaks that we use extensively with our troop (small windy rivers and also the lake that our Scout House is on). We also have access to others that we can borrow for larger groups, as well as numerous canoes. We're going to try whitewater kayaking at a different council's scout camp (Gardner Dam) next spring, and are planning a sea kayaking trip (rentals with a guide) to Apostle Islands within the next

My background is in food microbiology/food safety. In most cases when you want to disinfect a already "cleaned" food prep surface, 1% bleach (i.e. about 1 part bleach + 99 parts water) is appropriate. There needs to be some sort of contact time, however, for the bleach to do it's job. Hence, the bleach step should be after the wash and rinse steps. The time it takes for the 1% bleach solution to air dry should be sufficient. And don't measure exactly 1 part in 99 parts -- guesstimating is good enough. A cap of bleach in about a gallon is close enough. Please note that higher levels

Depends on the Boy Scout. We have three ASD Scouts in our troop, and IMO only one of them has the social interactions skills to work with Cubs, whether the Cubs are ASD are not. ASD covers a very wide range.

Our troop has a variety, including some Alps Mountaineering tents. My personal recommendation for a 4-man tent that will stay dry and is VERY durable is the REI Camp Dome 4. I have 3 of these personally, which I've used used extensively with Boy Scouts and for many years in Cub Scouts. They stood up to two years of camping with my Webelos den, with hardly a scratch.

For car camping, I think that 4-man tents are the most versatile, fitting 2-3 scouts. (We have separate tents available for backpacking).

Hantavirus has been reported in numerous U.S. states, but is cases are significantly more prevalent in the southwest. Please be cautious about activities with scouts in areas where rodent droppings may be present. Additional info is available at CDC's website at: http://www.cdc.gov/hantavirus/

Got back yesterday from a 12-day trip to Glacier National Park with 21 troop & crew members. Included backcountry trips. Had a blast.

We have three Noah's tarps in our family camping stash, too, and the troop has used them car camping also. (Bringing all three on our troop/crew trip to Glacier NP -- leaving tomorrow).

We've switched to 12 x 12 EZ-ups. Take 5 minutes to set up and 5 minutes to take down.

The behavior of the scout in my den with ODD was waaaayyyy beyond just a disobedient child, a kid without limits set by parents, or a severe case of ADHD, etc. I've dealt with a lot of kids with behavior issues in scouting over the years, and this kid was on a seperate level. It was clear to me before I heard of ODD that his kid had a different process going on, and a clearly organic one.

I had an experience similar to 5yearscouter (undiagnosed ODD, clueless parents, etc.). Fortunately, about a year into Webelos, the boy and his family moved out of town. I've dealt with a LOT of kids and a wide variety of behavior issues, but this kid's behaviors were serious and getting worse quickly. First and only time I was glad a kid dropped out of scouting. For anyone that thinks that ODD is just a badly behaved kid, look up additional information about ODD. It's pretty bad.

"Besides, maybe you don't realize it, but it's really obnoxious for the trip leader to have to deal with Scouts coming and going other than with the group." While as a trip leader I strongly agree with this, it sounds like this was unusual case, with school (correctly) being a priority. However, I don't buy the argument about the small backseat. As long as there are enough seatbelts, you can cram kids in a vehicle. We've had many trips where gear was packed on and around the kids. Sure, they may not have as much room as they typically do in the back of the family's ginormous SUV,

I was our primary pack camping person back in the Cub days, and organization of our pack family campouts was similar to that of Scoutfish. We camped primarily in group sites at state parks, which worked well since there was usually good trails, nature programs, etc. Food/camping -- having each family fend for themselves seems unnecessary and waaaayyyyy to disorganized. If you're personally not willing to take this on, see if you can find a parent that is an experienced camper that would be willing to plan just the food and meals, and coordinate cooking (with volunteers). We charged $5

Timely subject -- I got back an hour ago from a week at BS camp with our troop. We have a no-cell-phone policy with the boys, and they do just fine with it. I agree that if you allow a homesick child to call home, they will be going home. Also, scouts don't get to use my cell phone to call their parents to bring them non-essential stuff that they forgot. I bring extra bug spray, suntan lotion, pillows, flashlights, etc., as well as cards, some other games, comic books, etc., so if they forgot their favorite pillow, that's a bummer! We'll let a (non-homesick) scout call his mom or dad if th

She needs feedback, but the only way for her to do that is to put it in a manner that is readable. I really mean that. Ninety percent of people on online forums will not read a wall-o-text such as was in the original post. Thus, if she doesn't calm down and do a rewrite, her message will not reach her intended audience. That's the reality of the internet.

I agree with JMHawkins on this one.

Since 1919. We're already planning a big event for 100th anniversary.

The space bar and return key are your friends. The caps lock key is not your friend. Really.

I'm sorry, but your post is impossible to read. I gave up after the second sentence because my eyes were hurting. We are willing to read and comment, but you first need to re-write with (1) paragraphs; (2) no ALL CAPS (it is considered to be "yelling" and rude); and (3) readable sentences.(This message has been edited by AnniePoo)

Absolutely, although the meetings are more informal. Our Scout House is on a small lake in town, so the kids go fishing, exploring, paddling, etc. We are in a cold climate, so there are many outdoor activities we can only do easily and/or safely in summer.

Poor listener and/or poor communicator.