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Anyone Do the Philmont PSR-PASS Adult Orientation


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It is well worth attending the course at Philmont, especially since you are within driving distance.   First, you get a small experience of an actual Philmont trek.   Go through pack shakedown with ra

It really is!  So much has changed since I was a youth.  I've been trying to get back for decades but work and family commitments did not permit.  Then, lo and behold, events lined up and I found myse

We didn't hang bear bags, we hung dinosaur bags.

It really is!  So much has changed since I was a youth.  I've been trying to get back for decades but work and family commitments did not permit.  Then, lo and behold, events lined up and I found myself as part of a 2018 contingent, and my work scheduled allowed me to attend PSR-PASS.  

 

A good rule of thumb that applied to me:  if the last time you camped at Philmont, the standard was to cook all of your meals on fire, you'll learn a lot at PSR-PASS.  :)

 

My crew photo was in black & white. Cooked on a wood fire. Pot bottoms coated with Ajax cleanser for easy cleanup. Baker tents with no floors or screens.  :blink:

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My crew photo was in black & white. Cooked on a wood fire. Pot bottoms coated with Ajax cleanser for easy cleanup. Baker tents with no floors or screens.  :blink:

Schiff,

 

Baker tents--wow!  That is certainly "back in the day."  Those weren't very light either, if memory serves.  We were issued well-designed nylon red tents, each with a separate fly that could be used by itself on warm nights.

 

BW crew photo and wood fire:  check and check.

 

Ajax:  we used tetrox, which was applied in the same manner.  We were warned about the gastrointestinal danger of even a little bit getting into the food. 

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Schiff,

 

Baker tents--wow!  That is certainly "back in the day."  Those weren't very light either, if memory serves.  We were issued well-designed nylon red tents, each with a separate fly that could be used by itself on warm nights.

 

BW crew photo and wood fire:  check and check.

 

Ajax:  we used tetrox, which was applied in the same manner.  We were warned about the gastrointestinal danger of even a little bit getting into the food. 

 

Yeah they were heavy, but then I think everything we carried was heavy by today's standard. It was also cheaper yet sufficient, well assuming you can "cheerfully" accept blisters. :)

Edited by RememberSchiff
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  • 3 months later...

None of the adults in our 2017 crew attended PASS at Philmont. One guy did it locally. I wish he would have gone to the real deal, as he filtered much of the info through his prior experiences, which were not remotely comparable. Short version, he ended up making a few poor gear choices based on false assumptions. We tried to reason with him, be he wouldn't listen. End result, we all had a good trek, but he said he would have been a lot more comfortable had he listened. I think spending time on actual Philmont trails during PASS would have brought a lot of clarity to him. The local PASS training just couldn't bridge that gap for him.
Even though I've been to Philmont twice I would love to do PASS at the ranch. It would be a great experience, I'm sure. Too bad life and other commitments likely mean I'll never do it. 
Honestly, just hoping I can make at least one more trek before I'm done. 

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5 minutes ago, Gear-Report said:

None of the adults in our 2017 crew attended PASS at Philmont. One guy did it locally. I wish he would have gone to the real deal, as he filtered much of the info through his prior experiences, which were not remotely comparable. Short version, he ended up making a few poor gear choices based on false assumptions. We tried to reason with him, be he wouldn't listen. End result, we all had a good trek, but he said he would have been a lot more comfortable had he listened. I think spending time on actual Philmont trails during PASS would have brought a lot of clarity to him. The local PASS training just couldn't bridge that gap for him.
Even though I've been to Philmont twice I would love to do PASS at the ranch. It would be a great experience, I'm sure. Too bad life and other commitments likely mean I'll never do it. 
Honestly, just hoping I can make at least one more trek before I'm done. 

What poor choices did he make?

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48 minutes ago, 69RoadRunner said:

What poor choices did he make?

Taking things that were bigger and heavier than necessary. For example, I think his 75L pack itself weighed 6.5 Lb empty. No one needs a 75L pack at Philmont, let alone one that is so heavy.
Or taking things he just didn't need, like two trekking poles. He only used one and carried the other the whole trek.
Or his mess kit that he hauled around, even though he only used the plate.

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75 pound packs?  Our "target" at Philmont was 40 (not including shared cooking gear I think, although my memories of 1974 have faded a bit.)  I understand the more typical weight these days is 50, which sounds like enough to me.  (When I went I weighed about 145 pounds, so the idea of a 75 pound pack seems a little ridiculous.)

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On 10/28/2017 at 6:06 PM, desertrat77 said:

Ajax:  we used tetrox, which was applied in the same manner.  We were warned about the gastrointestinal danger of even a little bit getting into the food. 

Also known as the tetrox trots

When I was enduring the cubs program and trying to not let my head explode, we were going to cook spaghetti for the den on an outing (family camping!!!) and heat the large pot on the fire.  Guy whose pot is was got concerned about soot.  Said let's soap the pot...crickets from the group.  I told them to hang on, put on liquid dish soap, heated it, did a second coat, then we boiled and ate.  It was like I was a wizard as the black soot on the bottom just washed away.

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An older scout in our troop said on his Philmont trip the previous Scoutmaster had a pack that weighed 70 pounds, fully loaded. I had to wonder if he packed a dutch oven. 

After meeting him, I'm impressed that he made it. 

My goal is to teach less weight = more happiness. 

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