mrkstvns

Hands up! Who's going to be in Michigan next August for NOAC 2020? Details: https://oa-bsa.org/noac2020

I've been a counselor for Communication merit badge for over 5 years and I often get scouts asking me to sign off on requirement 5 because they attended a neighborhood homeowners meeting (HOA). I generally tell them, "No. That's not a public meeting, it is a private organization." Do any of you folks who are Communication MBCs count things like HOA meetings? How about counting it towards Citizenship in the Community? REQUIREMENT AS WRITTEN: 5. Attend a public meeting (city council, school board, debate) approved by your counselor where several points of view are given on a single issue. Practice active listening skills and take careful notes of each point of view. Prepare an objective report that includes all points of view that were expressed, and share this with your counselor.

"There's more than one way to skin a cat," is an old saying that most people who don't live on the bayous might think refers to some sick kind of feline cruelty. Those of us who do love being out on the bayous for some good canoeing, fishing and all-around outdoor fun will tell you that old saying has nothing to do with furry little pets and everything to do with good, southern eating! On our troop's last fishing adventure in the wetlands of southeast Texas we caught a few good-size catfish --- mostly channel cats. We had a lot of fun out on the water, but when we hauled our catch back to camp for cleaning and cooking, I got an eye-opening experience: there really IS more than one way to skin a cat! Up until this trip I had always done it one way, and only one way. After all, it's the way my grandpa did it, so I just KNEW it was THE right way! A couple other scout dads did it other ways, and by George! Those guys got their cats in the pan even quicker than me! Hmm. Not only is there more than one way to skin a cat, but it's even possible to teach an old dog (like me) a new trick! So here's 3 ways our ASMs "skin the cat"... My way: The way I've been doing it for years... 1. Clamp or nail the cat's head to a plank at the cleaning station (could be to a picnic table or even a tree). 2. Take a filet knife and cut a slit through the skin, top to bottom, just behind the cat's head. 3. Make a place to grip the skin by slicing with the knife far enough to get a good grip. 4. Use some pliers to grip the cat's skin. 5. Pull down from the head towards the tail. 6. Slice off the head and gut the fish. 7. Cook however you like your fish... The Filet-Way: Another ASM is a good ole boy from Louisiana. This is the way he's been doing it for years... 1. Take a filet knife and cut behind the head, at an angle from the dorsal fin to the pelvic fin. Cut into the flesh, but not through the spine. 2. Cut along the spine from the cut line you made towards the tail. 3. Pull the filets back and cut the meat off the skin. 4. Cut away the small piece of rib cage. 5. Cook however you like your fish... The "Vietnamese" Way: One ASM is from Viet Nam....he said this is the way it's been done in the old country for years... 1. Gut the cat. 2. Cut shallow lines through the skin in a criss-cross pattern. 3. Slap that fish on the grill and cook it your way. 4. The skin will fall off the fish as you eat.

Good question. It's often tough to come up with the kind of activities that truly represent an "adventure" for the youth. If you can't do that, the kids won't want whatever it is you're offering. I think BSA's "Powder Horn" training is a good way to find out what some of those "adventures" might look like in your area. Hopefully your local Powder Horn is a good one. Some are not that good and will not give you enough of what you need to keep the youth interested. The challenge for Powder Horn organizers is to keep the boring, lame nonsense out of the program. This is important. When I see a Powder Horn program that includes "Scouting Heritage" or "STEM activities", I'm switched off of their program like a porch light at bed time! ONLY give me stuff like sea kayaking, mountaineering, air boats, reef diving, etc.

Many thanks to all the scouters who posted suggestions for camps to add to the list and for those who posted comments about how camps implement their "Patrol Cooking". I searched out the web sites for all camps offering some level of "patrol cooking" and foiund quite a lot of variability, from camps doing an outstanding job and fully embracing the patrol method, to camps that do little more than provide some instant oatmeal and tell scouts to heat their own water. I read your comemnts....I read the web pages....I looked on other scouting forums....I downloaded the Leader Guides for all of these camps. Camps that do offer patrol cooking didn't make "the best" cut for various reasons. Some had patrol cooking in only a couple sites and only by special request. Some on some days of the week, but not others. Some required troops to bring their own food (which is just plain lame). Some offered patrol cooking for a meal or two per day, but otherwise pushed scouts to their mess hall. Some did not offer real cooking at all, just mixes or cold sandwiches (which is also totally lame). All this info led me to a picture of which BSA camps are truly THE BEST for troops who want Patrol Cooking... SIX BEST BSA SUMMER CAMPS FOR TROOPS EMBRACING PATROL METHOD: Troops that fully embrace the Patrol Method and want a high-quality summer camp experience should seek out these 7 camps... Camp Dietler (CO) Camp Freeland Leslie (WI) Camp Bell (NH) Camp Liberty (PA) Camp Sabbatis (NY) Camp Baldwin (OR) Voyageur at Many Point Scout Camp (MN) BSA SCOUT CAMPS OFFERING SOME LEVEL OF "PATROL COOKING" Troops that want some level of "cooking" during their summer camp experience should look into these camps (quality may vary): Camp Liberty, Heritage Scout Reservation (PA) https://www.lhcscouting.org/choose-your-adventure/boy-scout-camping/camp-liberty Rickenbacker Side, Bear Creek Scout Reservation (TX) https://www.alamoareabsa.org/camping/scouts-bsa-summer-camp/ Camp Dietler, Peaceful Valley Scout Ranch (CO) http://www.denverboyscouts.org/camp/boy-scout-adventures/peaceful-valley-scout-ranch/camp-dietler/11110 Camp Waubeeka, Curtis Read Scout Reservation (NY) http://www.wpcbsa.org/Read Camp Freeland Leslie (WI) http://www.freelandleslie.com/ Soaring Eagle Boy Scout Camp, Ben Delatour Scout Ranch (CO) https://longspeakbsa.org/programs/camps-camping/ben-delatour-scout-ranch/bdsr-camps/ Camp Marriott or Camp Bowman, Goshen Scout Reservation (VA) https://www.gotogoshen.org/ Camp Bell (NH) https://nhscouting.org/camps/camp-bell/ Ed Bryant Scout Reservation (WI) https://www.glaciersedge.org/1468 Sabbatis Adventure Camp (NY) https://www.campsabattis.org/ Cole Canoe Base (MI) https://colecanoebase.com/home.php Voyageur at Many Point Scout Camp (MN) http://manypoint.org/about-us/voyageur/ Camp Baldwin (OR) https://scoutcampsnw.org/camps/camp-baldwin/

Crossroads of America Council plans to sell Camp Red Wing, which has been used as a BSA summer camp since 1925... https://www.thestarpress.com/story/news/local/2019/09/20/crossroads-america-votes-divest-three-camps/2384372001/

Sounds to me like you're on the right track... Activities would, of course, be the best draw for kids, but if space limits what you can do, perhaps a good video loop showing kids really doing fun things might be the ticket. A pack info sheet is a good idea, but I think having it be short and compact is good with lots of pictures and few words, but with pointers to a pack web site where more complete info can be found. A URL for sure, a QR code might be nice for the folks who know how to use 'em on their smart phones. Make sure some kind of pointer to your pack (like URL) is on all the hand-outs. Enthusiastic scouts at the booth can work wonders. When my son was in cubs, the parent night was probably THE most important outreach effort. The pack was chartered by the PTO and while we had a couple kids who were home-schooled or in private schools, the vast bulk of the pack were students in the chartering school. Good luck!

A Boy Scout in Corvalis Oregon knew what to do when he saw the collapsed man... https://www.kptv.com/news/boy-scout-uses-cpr-training-to-help-save-a-life/article_51eb31e2-db42-11e9-803d-6fa28bfc5f63.html

Nope. Our ink never freezes, but it has been known to boil on a warm summer day.

Absolutely. There are 2 "worst practices" that I've seen council/district staff do: 1. Far too short time slots. 2. "Double-up" merit badges --- you can't even adequately cover 1 MB in the inadequate time alotted....so let's have you cover *TWO*!

What do you really need to bring with you when you're hiking in a populated area? I'm working with a small group of scouts on the Hiking merit badge. For each of the hikes that the scouts do, they're supposed to prepare a hike plan that includes, among other details, a list of things to carry on the hike. All of the hikes will be day hikes. The group plans to start off fairly easy with a couple of urban hikes, then on to more "rugged" hikes in area forests, rocky hills, etc. We're in Texas, and a very popular urban hike is to go around Lake Lady Bird in downtown Austin. It is a VERY easy trail that's 10.15 miles, making it ideal as the first of the 10-mile hikes. The only real hazard is too many Austinites out walking and biking along the trail.. As our group discussed the hike plan for the day, a couple of scouts trotted out the equipment lists that they downloaded from various hiking and BSA sources. These were good for a few laughs as many were chock full of completely unnecessary and utterly useless items that would do nothing but weigh down the scout. We discussed how backpackers discard things that are unnecessary, how LNT tells us to plan and prepare, and how "being prepared" means that we assess our situation and bring only what might be useful because everything else is simply excess weight that makes us overly exhausted by the end of the trip. We discussed how, 1) we are in the city, 2) our route is a well maintained, wide, flat path, 3) there are multiple public restrooms along the way and multiple water sources --- the longest distance between 2 water fountains is 2.0 miles. Therefore, any "hiking essentials list" that was compiled for backcountry hikes in the frozen tundra will be about as useful to us as a pack of soggy matches. Here's what we came up with as our "urban hike essentials" list: Bring: Very small, light, comfortable day pack Map Cell phone Sunblock Light First Aid kit (be prepared for blisters, scrapes, beyond that is luxury) 1 Lire of water (leave extra bottles and hydration packs at home....we have water sources all along the route) 8 ounces of trail mix or other snacks Cash (it's an urban route, we might rest near stores, food trucks, etc.) Sunglasses Hat Leave at home... Flashlight or Headlamp (except for night hikes) Compass (We're in the city...the year is 2019...) Knife (useful in the woods, not so much downtown) Matches/lighter (Might be helpful if somebody asks us for a light.) Extra clothes for layering (we're in Texas. We're hiking in the day. We take layers off, not put them on.) Poncho (unless the weather forecast is for greater than 30% chance of rain) Tarp or space blanket (What are we going to use that for? To camp under the bridge like a hobo?) Walking stick or pole (Flat. Paved with pea gravel. Groomed by city. What's the purpose?) Signaling mirror (We're in the city...the year is 2019....we have cell phones...) Bottom Line... Be realistic. Consider your location, the weather conditions, etc. Pack for your hike, not somebody else's.

Thank you, perdidochas. I looked at the reviews on that Sawyer Mini and am impressed. While it looks a bit more complicated than the Lifestraw, the increased flexibility of the device coupled with a significantly longer lifespan looks like a winner to me. I see that REI sells the Sawyer Mini as well as Lifestraw, both for the same price. I'll be buying the Sawyer filter....

I REALLY wish there was a good, effective way to find the short-cutting MBCs and get them out of the scout program. To be fair, sometimes the real culprit isn't the MBC, but the camp director or even worse, the council program staff.

Any of you folks have knowledge and experience using Lifestraw ? I've heard a lot of good things about it, but when I look at the specs for it on the REI web site, it only talks about filtering out biological contaminants (like bacteria or parasites). That's great, but how does it do in waters that may have chemical contaminants or heavy metals? I do most of my camping and hiking in Texas where quite a few of the waterways where I like to play are listed by the state's environmental quality commission as contaminated with appropriate health advisories against eating fish caught in those waterways. If the fish can be contaminated with PCB, dioxin, mercury etc., then I assume I don't want to be drinking the water there myself, even with a Lifestraw. Is there a filtration device that can handle chemical contamination?

Good news in New York where a Boy Scout was ready to help deliver his new baby brother... https://www.ny1.com/nyc/all-boroughs/news/2019/09/18/boy-scout-helps-deliver-mothers-baby-brother-queens-new-york-city Interesting! That's one emergency case that I never recall being part of any First Aid class in scouting.

Another stolen Boy Scout trailer was recovered, this one parked behind a house where thieves were in the process of repainting it. Interestingly, the trailer still held the scouts' camping equipment, and some "extras"....namely meth paraphernalia. Sounds like Walter White may have moved on from using RVs. Story: https://www.mansfieldnewsjournal.com/story/news/2019/09/17/boy-scout-trailer-recovered-galion-no-arrests-made-yet/2354081001/

Do Sea Scouts have any requirements to learn navigation using a sextant? Seems like a cool skill to learn, even if it is unlikely to ever be needed in a world where ships can rely on GPS.

Precisely! Same with Scout Handbooks for rank advancement. I can sign off a scout's completed work on any campout, high adventure base, road trip etc. No need to worry about flaky internet, lost cell signals, forgotten wifi passwords, dead batteries or all the myriad complications that can occur when scouting is actually an adventure. Let the advancement chair worry about Scoutbook! I don't want to even see it, myself....it's a messy complication that wastes my time.

Most of the summer camps our boys have attended in recent years use some kind of electronic reporting method (sometimes as simple as a spreadsheet emailed to troop). Scoutbook or report, either way it saves you the problems about errors on the cards, unsigned cards, etc. (BTW: Often the unsigned card signals a "partial" --- look at the list of completed requirements). I do still see the blue cards being used at merit badge university workshops and the like. My son's eagle coach told him to have proof he earned his MBs, but that a report from Scoutbook would suffice (which is good, because he only has blue cards on maybe half his badges ---- though he did save all the completion cards that he's received when awarded each MB).

Recognized by Governor, to be honored during a Baltimore Ravens game...story: https://www.baltimoresun.com/maryland/carroll/news/cc-scouts-pantry-governor-20190917-d6ffrvu2c5hznlu2dnxcv5v3be-story.html

Yes, booking a trip there would definitely put a vote of confidence in the people trying to recover from all the devastation. Might be wise to have a "Plan B" in mind though, just in case their recovery is slower than they hope...

That sounds really cool! I've always like the mock emergencies our troop does, but being able to integrate with pros can really open up a kid's eyes to what "be prepared" might mean to them down the road... Thanks for the links!

BSA's Sea Base "Bahamas Sailing Adventure" might be imperiled next year due to the destruction of their facilities on Abaco Island, Bahamas. They're trying to recover. There's a story on scoutingmagazine.org about damage: https://blog.scoutingmagazine.org/2019/09/12/how-you-can-help-sea-base-bahamas-after-devastating-hurricane-dorian/

Thanks, Cleveland! I learned a lot from your post,. Never having been a GSUSA leader, I never really knew what kind of rules they followed. "...twice as long as our Guide to Safe Scouting."... Hmmm. I was about to post some snide comment about all the rules BSA scouters have to follow, but for now, I will just be quiet and thank my lucky stars that I don't have to read TWICE as many rules!

You and me both. When I see scouters bragging about their slovenly uniform habits and then making stupid statements about "uniform police" and the like, I have to wonder why they ever joined scouting in the first place. The uniform is one of the methods of scouting. Just like patrol method, just like advancements, etc. It contributes to developing strong values in youth. When somebody sees a scout uniform, they know it represents values like "Trustworthy, Loyal, Helpful, Friendly, Courteous, Kind, Cheerful, Thrifty, Clean and Reverent." The scout uniform has stood for those things for more than a century. Times may change, but those values are still valuable. Perhaps moreso than ever as we live in a society with fewer role models who actually exemplify role models worth emulating. U.S. Marines wear their uniforms with pride because they know that it's not just clothing, it's a symbol of who they are and what they hold dear. That's the same reason that the best scouts and scouters wear their complete, proper uniforms. Thanks Latin Scot for saying what needed to be said!