le Voyageur

Prefer the dining fly, one which is made of a waterproof ripstop nylon compostion. Besides protection from rain, I can rig it as a sail for the canoe. As for skeeters, no see ums, and other biting bugs, a head net and DEET works fairly well....

Well Fuzzy... By the by, you think you could spare a bit of Blue Berry Cobbler, and a cuppa of Joe after that rather large serving of crow I've just had?

Hey OGE! Great to hear from you, had a great summer, thanks. Hope you summered well too. Great to be home, those Ruby Red Slippers do work:)....

Use to think that those backpacker coffee presses were for yuppies, and greenhorn...well (head hung low, eyes askance, swinging foot a wee bit), I was wrong. Got a small one from Campmor - now I suffer every morning on the trail with great coffee, and one pot dedicate to boiling water only. Well, all that I can say is that this old dog has learned a new trick...

Cleaning out the closet, came across 4 pairs of Scout short last worn over a decade ago. Since, IMHO that they are very ugly and useless (had to have them for Wood Badge), the plan is to take them to the next Round Table. Should be able to pawn them off on someone who is desperate to show off thier knobby knees. In the meantime, I'll be making another set of more functional breeches for the uniform. Kinda thinking about a bit of Mic Mac embrodery along the bottom, and sides. Should have the uniform police hollering big time, hey...

Well, last year Outdoor Thinker was pacing the deck to get back to summer camp....well, it won't be much longer for her, and those of us who'll be working campstaff... I'm leaving Monday, headed to Maine, so, here's wishing each all a great campstaff summer...be sure to rondy back to the cyber campfire at the end of your tour with your stories and adventures....bon chance, and en roulant

Whenever I'm in bear country, I prefer to travel with someone who runs slower then me.... However, back on topic...I agree with RobK and others who advocate teaching using the right tool for the job. Tend to think we should include in the mix an introduction on how to use draw kives, adzs, froes, axes, and wedges, sort of a 101 course on Backwoods Handtools

Quite a few years back I was given a huge sheath knife for an xmas gift....never used it, and it's stored either up in the attic or down in the celler. Should I come across this thing I'll send it to FOG gratis as I've no use for it. I doubt the thing could even spread peanut butter...

Get a copy of Guide to Safe Scouting from your council....however, BSA dose not expressly bans sheath knives, but suggest they not be used. However, for myself, large sheath knives, bowies, machetes, etc are the signs of the greenhorn...

This new law may seem to be a case of to much time on these lawmakers hands...however, consider the reason why this trend of very baggy clothing came about...it was a way for gang bangers to hide guns and drugs, and to circumvent probable cause for a search. However, gang bangers, not being too swift begin to give away the game when the various P.D.'s became aware of how they communicated on the streets by what they wore, or how they wore those baggy pants. For example, A Blood would advertise that he was carrying drugs by rolling up the right pants leg a bit, the other side was reserved for guns... Needless to say, back in my days when working Shore Patrol in a very large West Coast city whenever I saw someone in very baggy clothing wearing bright red or blue bandannas I was very glad that I had Mr Colt and a few of his buddies on my side should they be needed...

ScoutLdr... I agree with you a hundred percent, medical records should, and must be kept private. However, there is an exception to that standard. As a staff EMT this summer I'll be needing to share with our guides information about any and all medical conditions that their crew members may have before they head out, and how to handle it in the field should it become a problem.... But, for a base camp, such a procedure is really ever needed....

I'm somewhat rusty on my NCS requirements that need to be met concerning this issue....what I would suggest would be for your D.E. to contact the the C.O. of the base and see if he can get a Corpman or two who would enjoy going TAD for a few weeks.

On rivers and lakes hand and paddle signals are an absolute must. However, they are not covered in neither the Canoeing, or the Whitewater mb's, and few summer camp canoeing instructors are even aware of them. On the other side of the coin is the loss of Morse code...even though I know it, but, due to changing times this code has become worthless due to a heavy reliance on electronic devices by scouts, and scouters...and efforts to teach even the most basic of three shorts, three longs, three shorts for those scouts striving for the Wilderness Survival mb has been for the most part a waste of time on my part...

I wasn't aware that Hoppy had quit posting on this forum, what a loss as I really enjoyed his postings. Hopefully Hop will come back... As to FOG, I sent him a PM with an invite to sign on at another forum that would of provided him with not only a greater latitude to express his views, but also conversing with folks who are less than politically correct. Hopefully, he'll pay the site a visit...however, since that forum is an adult only site I won't post that adress here....however, if you're an adult and might be interested in this site, and would like to talk bare knuckle about current events, politics, and etc with no holds barred shoot me a pm....

hmmmmmmmm....maybe I'll order a set. Might need it if I get a job parking cars on the Hollywood strip... more serious though, this Yank see's one hideous set of duds. Wonder what the Aussies feel about them... well mates, pass the Vegimite please...

Well OGE, during my early days as a pork eater (novice voyageur) I was a river guide for the Sun God Ra.....was known as Tuque Uncommon being always paddling in de' Nile....

of ladies casual wear shoes for my own personal use...here's the why (no, not having a gender identification crisis)..decided to volunteer a wee bit of my time as a docent (fancy French term for tour guide) at a 1730 era Quaker site on weekends. Now the problem is that my kit is geared for the French Canadian voyagers, lots of bright colors which just didn't fit in with the drabness the Quakers preferred. So, it was off to my favorite suttlers i.e. Goodwill and Wal Mart to search for items to tone down my Frenchness. Nothing really suitable at GW, but made a killing at Wally World. In the ladies department found a casual shoe (Faded Glory's Maude) little changed from the orginal since it's first introduction in the 13th century, and worn by both genders of the working class up into the early 19th century...it'll save wear and tear on the mocs. The other great buy was 12 yards x 60 heavy weight ticking (dark navy stripes on a pale blue background) at 2 bucks per which will be turned into slops (breeches). Should be able to make 6 pairs, of which I'll donate a couple to the other docents (most wear modern garb) who may be interested in dressing out for a better presentation. So far, my new Quaker kit is starting to take shape, and looks late 17th/early 18th century. Will need to tone down the newness in the slops, but several washings in a light bleach solution, and a weak tea dye will cure that problem. Plus a rubbing of sandpaper for wear and tear in areas that would be found in garments worn by 18th century farmers... For tomorrow, be off to buy another set of shoes at a thrift store. These'll be a primative handmade wooden shoe that most folks associates with the Dutch, but was simply another common shoe worn in these swampy areas....well, back to the sewing machine to finish up a few items....

In my neck of the woods and my era, dude has always been an insult; meaning, besides being a city slicker, but also a gelding. To be called one, or to call another male "dude" during one's times of studhood was an open invation to a Donny Brook...needless to say, the local denist and sawbones loved us idiots....

On a side note, one technique that makes for a very unique patrol patch is the use of applique using simple folk art; or native American designs as seen in molas....

Used a canoe to jack up a car to change a flat.....here's how...made a rope cradle for the boat, suspended the contraption from a tree, rigged a three to one pulley system to car and boat, then filled the canoe with water....simple

3 pencils, dowels or of similar nature can be duct taped into an emergency sextant. At arm's lenght one angle points to Polaris, the other at the horizon line. Will allow one to sail a constant east-west lub line.... For sheer desperation when flying IFR and the VGI goes south, using a pen as a bob will help as an indicator to keep the nose up, and the wings level to avoid a spin and an auger into the deck....

Aye, aside yon pocosins, me glebe lands rest beneath the hoary breath of a winter passing.... hmmmm, me English seems to be just fine, hey...

In a nutshell, what is happening is called Peak Oil. In any closed system (our planet), all systems (resources) are finite. It seems that we have either reached the top of the bell curve for available oil (the current levels held by OPEC are highly inflated), or now pass it. What this means is that the days of low prices are forever over. As oil resources slide down the right side of the bell curve, oil becomes more and more expensive to extract with the cost being passed on to the consumer...as it stands, there is really nothing no politician can do, or promise to reverse the trend, the age of oil will eventually come to end....

Mike, you're talking about Flower of Sulfur which can be found at most drug stores....great for ticks and chiggers

The answer is yes.....and they know full well that I'm not a base camper. Well, if they're wanting new blood for thier programs, then so be it....time to move on to someplace else as I see it. However, kinda looking at this as a good thing, since I'm really getting the urge to attempt one of my more crazier solo expeditions that I've been putting off..