krikkitbot

Well, It does say he was 78. Maybe he should have had a smaller camper or maybe he should have had a bigger pop-up tent. I feel bad questioning him since he was still giving back to scouting but... I'll leave it at that.

Driving near Philmont a couple of weeks ago my SUV (no trailer) was blown into the left lane. I think you can still see my grip marks on the steering wheel.

Grilled cheese sandwiches would have been fine. I'm talking sloppy joes, meatball subs, raw chicken breasts for tacos, etc. We have been to other camps where we do patrol cooking. This was just more complex meals at lunch time than usual... and cheese, did I mention the vast supplies of cheese? Some of the boys decided to make grilled cheese sandwiches with the leftover cheese.

I think the scouts did a good job managing things. There were a few who ran late for some classes because they didn't get things done but I think that was more on the scouts than on the program. It is a bit of a full schedule. I personally would recommend scouts giving themselves at least one block off so that they can goof off and be kids. That would also help with the cooking and the cleaning.

Our troop recently returned from Medicine Mountain Scout Ranch in the Black Hills. I had never been there before but I had heard, and read, a lot about it. I was a little leery given what I had heard and read. Here are my impressions: Food: Great selection and quantities. We never ran out of food. The scouts ate until they burst. Lots of protein, lots of vegetables, lots of fruit, and lots of cheese. Seriously, South Dakota must be a dairy state given how much cheese we received for every meal. My only criticism, and this was also expressed by the scouts, was that the lunch meals involve

In my troop I see palms as almost a rubber stamp. The kids who have eagled and want palms but are not engaged, show up have a BOR and get their palm. They are not working towards any additional MBs other that the ones they had already completed before getting to Eagle. On the other hand, I see a few Eagles who don't care about palms but are there every week still providing leadership. The SM will usually arrange a BOR for them and tell them to go sit for it. It comes as a surprise to them that they are up for a palm. I like the second group better because they are still engaged. They go

Congrats! May the odds be ever in your favor! oh wait, that's a different tap out.

Our troop has troop tents for the scouts and adults usually provide their own. We seem to be of the philosophy that bigger is better. Heck, if the scoutmaster could, we would have a 15-man tent to put all the scouts under one roof... almost did too. I tried to propose that we have small 2-man tents and I was met with major resistance because that could lead to higher instances of inappropriate behavior (read between the lines), so the committee wants nothing smaller than a 4-man tent.

I would say line up the long side with the sun's path. You can use tarps to create walls that you move from side to side.

Hey, that was me! What makes you think flea/tick collars around one's ankles are not dorky as well? Since it's hard to prove a negative, we will never know for sure but I never had a tick as a youth.

I decided to get a pair of closed toe sandals for summer camp. I opted for KEEN even though Merrell makes something that looks like a running shoe in the front half and a sandal in the back half. I was concerned about having burrs stick to it or pebbles that could not be shaken out. I know, I know, sticks and stones... I'm so used to sandals that I have even worn sandals when climbing things up to a 5.7 or so. Now to find out who will make a stink out of my "closed toe shoes" first, camp staff or other parents.

The thread about ticks made me remember, when I was a scout in the South, we used to put dog tick collars around our ankles. Depending on where you are camping, it might not be a bad idea.

It's a little more complicated than that, isn't it? Because the bare minimum for Eagle Scout is probably the equivalent of a starter role in a sport. Look at how many kids start scouting that chose to not even do the "bare minimum." If the bare minimum was just showing up, we would all have troops full of eagles. Hell, I'd be an eagle scout too but no such luck.

I remember reading somewhere that one cannot add or subtract from the requirements so doing the bare minimum is meeting the standards set.

I like to use a tin of Altoids with a nail hole punched in the lid.

Wow, I am running out of popcorn reading this thread. I may need to break open a bag of marshmallows. Belladona, congratulations to your son.

Steel wool and a battery. My son amazed non-scout friends by starting a backyard fire with that. One of them tried to pretend that he knew that worked but it was clear he was impressed too. I like to carry a film canister (how quaint) filled with cotton balls smeared with vaseline. Those work great too.

From a scouter perspective, not necessarily scoutmaster. I have seen some parents/sons who are together all the time while at scout activities. I had to recently ask my sons if they feel like I'm around too much or if I give them enough space to do their own things. They both said they feel comfortable with how much space I give them. So that was a comfort. To qwaze's point. I think they are both used to being first at the meetings and events and last to leave.

Judgemental much? How is that any different from the countless Eagle Scouts who got to 20 nights and stopped going camping after earning their camping merit badge? Should they give back their badge if they don't get tp 100 nights by the time they turn 18? Let this kid get his nights camping. I'm sure he can find a way. Is he OA? Maybe he can Elangomat a couple of weekends and get more nights. Has he gone through NYLT or NAYLE? More opportunities there. We are here to help scouts achieve their goals even if their goal is to do the minimum required at the last possible moment. We are no

Well, the troop committee decided to call off the event. The DE was trying to take too much control (funds, troops involved) so the committee decided it wasn't worth the effort. Fortunately, we were not counting on this money so all we lost was a few months of planning.

Our troop has nearly a 1:1 ratio of scouts to adults. I'd like to change that but I can't. SM insists that an adult be at each class that the scouts have. Last year I didn't go because of the high number of parents going. The year before I made sure I was in training classes that were offered by the camp. This year, I am going because there was the possibility that I would be taking over the troop but that seems less and less likely. I plan on making myself as scarce as possible while at camp since I already paid and there are no refunds but given the high number of adults and all of the a

Let kids be kids, for crying out loud. Scouts in our area are making them themselves. Some they are 3D printing and talking about how they do it. Some others are carving them out of wood. Like all fads, this too shall pass.

Depending on your weight, it might not worth it. Some folks I know bought a thermarest one and ended up basically sleeping on the ground. Probably about 215# people.

Has anyone mentioned that it is written one way in one publication and another way in a different publication? What about that there are 2 clauses, not 3? Just checking. //I present my horse for sacrifice

But it is no longer a unit fundraiser. It is a group of friends who happen to love our troop and will do all of this work and give it to the scouts in the troop for their needs. That's my idea, anyway. It's either that or drop the whole thing and let the district do it on their own.