Hello everyone. I am going to be be taking over as the new webmaster. Thank you.
We arrived at Camp Resolute around noon on a Sunday, and after the health forms, swim tests, and unpacking of the first day, we quickly settled into a comfortable routine. After the torturous (actually somewhat pleasant) Polar Bear swims in the morning, we would have a sumptuous breakfast, participate in the flag raising ceremony, and go off to merit badge courses.
People in our troop took the merit badges of Swimming, Archery, Archeology, Rifle Shooting, Pottery, Canoeing, Art, Fire Safety, Leatherwork, Woodcarving, Emergency Preparedness, Wilderness Survival, Environmental Science, Fly Fishing, Kayaking, Camping, Shotgun Shooting, Cooking, and Indian Lore. After our three merit badge classes, we would have delicious lunches (one day it was chicken fajitas) then go back to our campsite for a siesta.
After our rest, older scouts would go to an afternoon merit badge class while the younger scouts would work on pathfinder skills for the Boy Scout ranks of First and Second Class. From then on we would have free time to enjoy the fried dough and slushees of the trading post or to swim in the lake at the camp. Lake Resolute had a variety of swimming platforms. Finally at the dining hall we would get dinner and dessert, both excellent, and then go back to our campsite for a final time. Lights out was at 10:00 pm.
On the first and last night, we had the opportunity to attend a campfire where the counselors would perform various skits and ceremonies. Also, on other nights we performed sporting events. There was the aquatics meet, where we competed in several water related events, and the Apache Relay, a race around camp by swimming, running, canoeing, kayaking, and wading. Our troop came in third. There was also a triathlon that some scouts participated in.
Over all, camp was a fun experience, and it gave us scouts plenty of fun free time, as well as earning valuable merit badges.
Here are some troop pictures from the closing ceremony. You can click on any of the pictures to see them bigger.
After the long drive to our location, we unloaded our canoes into picturesque Lonesome Lake. The water was a pleasant temperature and the wind was mild. Still, after an hour of canoeing we were glad to stop at a small island to rest and have lunch. The small island had a large rock on it which was a pleasant challenge to climb.Our group left to find a prettier island, and shortly we found a considerably larger island with outhouses. When we had put our tents up (by a cliff with wonderful views), we went for excursions around the lake, paddling happily about until it came time for dinner. After yummy pasta with alfredo sauce, we happily went to sleep.We had left some of the pasta uneaten, however, so the following morning there was a layer of it encrusted in our pot. We learned to clean up our cooking gear before we went to bed. That morning, we paddled around a little more and after some splash fights in the water went home a bit wet. The trip was very tiring but also a good learning experience in paddling techniques and food storage.
By Mark
The purpose of the bike trip was for us to bike to various towns on Martha’s Vineyard from a campsite. First, everybody congregated at the church on Saturday morning, where we then drove for a while to reach the ferry that would be taking us to Martha’s Vineyard. The ferry was more than three stories high, and had a variety of good foods at the snack bar. After the short trip, we arrived at the town of Vineyard Haven, where we rented bikes and then took a short but scenic route to our campsite, which was near an enormous construction site. Once there, we quickly set up our tents and other gear, then had lunch. After lunch, we decided upon a visit to the highlight of the trip, which was the fudge and candy shops in the nearby town of Edgartown. After a surprisingly long and scenic bike ride involving bad map reading, we reached Edgartown. Now that we were there, we indulged in the scenic views and food present. We then took a much shorter return journey to our campsite, where, after having a delicious dinner of steak tips, we went to sleep. The next morning, we quickly packed everything up, and took a shorter bike ride to the town of Oak Bluffs. Once again, we enjoyed refreshments and then biked back to Vineyard Haven, where we gave up our bikes grudgingly, before getting on the ferry. It was then just a short ferry ride and long car ride back to home. Overall we had ridden 27 miles.
The Survival weekend trip technically started after everyone arrived at base camp, with the new scouts staying there, however for us older scouts the real adventure did not begin until farther down the road at a second place, when the hike would begin. Now, the main part of the trip is the competition, where scouts compete to see how much they could “survive” in the wild, with no troop gear used. There is also a hike beforehand to practice backpacking hikes. The hike would be five miles long, with about half of it being a loop and the rest of it going to the campsite. Everyone got their packs and all their other stuff and the maps that would be guiding us on the hike. We then marched to the head of the trail we would be on. Everyone got their compasses out, and since the younger scouts needed the requirement, they would be guiding us.
So we walked the trail for about and hour and a half, going the wrong way no more than once or twice. After about two and a half hours, we got to the halfway point (we were back at the beginning) and we stopped to rest and have lunch. From then on, we walked along the shore side of a lake for a while, and then, as is inevitable when we are almost at the destination, we got completely lost. Finally, after some help from passing hikers, we blundered onto the campsite. Once there, we had some more food, all the scouts were assigned to their campsites, and the different groups began to build their shelters, using tarps and ropes. Soon the scoutmasters came around for scoring the quality of the shelters. After that, all the groups had dinner at their campsites, with a delicious variety of food being served. The scoutmasters again came around for scoring; although this time they could use their sense of taste. Later that night, everyone came to the group campfire, including the new scouts, and watched skits, jokes, and songs organized wonderfully by the master of ceremonies. Finally, everyone went back to base camp or to their self made shelters, and fell asleep. It was a cold night, but overall pleasant.
The next morning, everybody got up and packed up their personal gear as well as their shelters. Once that work was done, the entire group went to the main campfire, where we would be watched as we cooked breakfast. The breakfasts were just as good as the dinners, and were also scored for quality. Once our mess kits had been cleaned up, the winner of the competition was announced. Everybody did a camp wide clean up, and then we brought all the gear down to the cars. So ended our survival weekend trip.