A little history on Camp Turrell...
Camp Turrell sits on a huge deposit of slate in what (I think) is the southern end of the Catskills Mountain range. The property was originally owned by a slate mining company back in the late 1800's, and mined and delivered slate up through the 30's. (I think, my memory is a little hazy....) The slate was mined and delivered by railroad to New York City, where it was used in the building of the steps of City Hall and several other municipal buildings. To this day, there are huge deposits of slate that never made it to the railroad, as well as some of the original machinery used in the process.
The land was then purchased by the Boy Scouts sometime in the early 70's and the first Summer Camp program was held in 1976. Originally, when a troop went for camp, they had to put their troop gear onto a old military truck, and it was driven while the troop hiked their personal gear on their backs up to their site for the week. As time went on, the camp built an administration building, a commissary and kitchen, medical house, and several pavilions. On about 1000 acres with a 96 acre lake, Camp Turrell offers all sorts of merit badges, from swimming and soil & water conservation, to one of the latest, photography and graphic design.
On top of all that, they have a lot of non-merit badge related activities, including rock climbing, rappelling, and mountain bike treks!
Troop 101's history with Camp Turrell...
While I am not entirely sure when the first year was that 101 had summer camp at Turrell (we've been in business for 75 years!) I can say for certain that when I refer to Turrell as our "ancestral" home, I mean it. I've been with the troop for 20 years, 7 as a scout and 13 as an adult, and of that time we have been there all my time with the troop, and I know longer than that. Many of our former members and several of our current adults have worked camp staff, and our committee chairman was on one of the first (if not the first) summer camp staff!
Over the years, we have helped on several camp improvement projects, ranging from expansion of the chapel to the construction of the archery pavilion... and the requests never stop! Just this weekend we got asked to build another 1/4 mile marker bouy! There aren't many places that 101 hasn't done work in up at Turrell!
We also know many of the places that not many people get to see - as our pictures from the weekend can attest to! Even though there is 1000 acres to the property, we use only about 15 acres for camping - but 101 has been to all the outer regions - and they are beautiful.
Our trip this weekend...
This was actually a special weekend in that we had all 3 Scout organizations together for one trip! For those who don't know, our little church hosts not only Troop 101, but also Pack 101 and Crew 100. (Pack as in Cub Scouts and Crew as in Venturing Crew). We had three members of Pack 101 with their dads on their bi-annual camping trip. We all got to make mountain pies on Friday, and s'mores with lunch on Saturday. They got to do a little fishing (though they didn't catch anything) and everyone survived Friday night, in spite of the chilly temps (dropped into the high 20's). Hopefully they all had a good time while they were with us despite having to leave earlier than expected on Saturday (Cub Scouts only stay one night on a trip - its also the reason we don't have many pictures of them).
While they traveled with us for part of it, the troop and crew managed to wander the entire main camp area, along with making side trips out to the other side of the lake and down to the gorge.
All in all a wonderful weekend - weather was great, and it was nice to get back to our roots. Looking to the future, it appears as though the Crew will be joining us for the foreseeable future on all our trips, which will make lighter work for all of us, and hopefully opening up more time for having fun and adventure.
What's coming up next month? We're going back to Turrell - but we won't be anywhere near the main camp area...
Now to repack and get ready for the next excursion...in 3 weeks!
On a final note... If you or someone you know is interested in Cub Scouts, Venturing or even Boy Scouts, drop me an email and I'll introduce you to the leader of whichever organization you need. (The Crew adviser is my assistant Scoutmaster...)
