Yes, that's right - the boys had to take all those skills they've been learning and actually apply them to something other than getting their next rank. Friday night we headed to our old stomping grounds of Camp Turrell and stayed over Friday night at the lower camp, Camp Kluge. This is the winter camping area for the Dow Drukker Scout Reservation, which is what the property that contains both camps is actually called.
Friday we stayed in the lean-tos at Camp Kluge, and we had some snacks and played a few games of capture the flag. In the morning, we cooked breakfast and packed up all the equipment we would need, including food and water, and headed up the mountain to Astronomy Hill. The only thing at Astronomy Hill is a fire ring, and a lot of bugs. That's it. Whatever we needed had to be strapped to our backs, and hiked in. To accomplish this, all the group equipment we needed was divided between everyone's packs, and we started out on the yellow trail. (The Yellow Trail links the lower camp of Kluge to the upper camp of Turrell). The weather was well into the 70's or 80's and by the time we reached the top, everyone was huffing and puffing. The distance was not far, probably no more than a 1/3 of a mile, but the vertical climb is pretty steep, with most of the old time Scouters referring to it as "Heart Attack Hill". (Happily, once we unslung our gear, had a little water, we were all fine - no heart attacks.)
However, the top of the hill in an open clearing is much warmer and brighter than in the shade of the trees at the bottom. The temperature steadily rose, while the group worked on their individual shelters. Everyone made sure to take breaks, and all were helped by their respective leaders.
We had 4 scouts with us, who paired off, and 4 crew members, who with 3 being Eagle Scouts were left to their own devices. The fourth, Natasha was assisted by Crew Advisor McLarty.
After working hard on their shelters all day (with one collapsing because of a weak limb) we had a great meal of steak and potatoes with snacks and we sat around the fire watching the stars. The sky was clear, and we could see not only constellations, but also the Milky Way, several satellites, and even a shooting star (we don't call it Astronomy Hill for nothing.) Despite being quite the cosmic experience (pun intended) it really illustrates the amount of light pollution that a city can create.
In the morning we had a light breakfast, and returned our shelters back to the wilderness from whence they came. The trip down was considerably easier thanks to gravity, and the fact that we had ate all the food and dumped all the water we had.
It was a great weekend, we all had fun, and it showed us where we needed to work on our field craft. The one issue we did have - and here is warning to all those who enjoy the outdoors in the summer - due to the mild winter we had, the tick and insect population is through the roof. We had to make sure that we were well covered in insect repellent, and despite this we were constantly picking ticks and spiders off of us and our gear.
In fact, many were reporting finding ticks still on them several days later. For those concerned, you can generally feel ticks walking on your skin - they like getting into all kinds of places on your body, and are really easy to pick off and kill (burning or cutting in two is the best method.) When you get home from your event or trip, immediately take a shower, and look through your hairline as well as all over - when they stop moving they can latch onto the skin, and it takes a pair of tweezers to get rid of them. As for your clothes and gear, wash everything in hot water, and dry in the dryer. The heat will take care of them. Make sure its taken care of quick - otherwise they will find their way onto pets, into clothes, and you'll be back where you started. They are more of a nuisance than anything else.
At any rate, we headed home, cleaned everything through and through, and now its time to stow the gear, and get ready for the next adventure.
Pictures can be found here. Let us know who you thought had the best shelter! The winner gets a little something at the end of the year party! (Keep in mind the one with the beautiful slate wall is studying to be a landscape architect.) Enjoy!
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