Shooting Trip, March 2011

Published on April 30, 2011 in Outdoor Activity. 0 Comments

On the morning of the shooting trip, we had a relatively short drive to the rod and gun club in the adjacent town of Maynard. Unfortunately the pond was still icy so we wouldn’t be able to go fishing, but we still had the chance to shoot. All the patrols set up their tents and brought over picnic tables to eat lunch at. We then started cleaning up trash that was around the campsite, and some people even found a beaver lodge. After that some people walked on the roof of the shooting lodge, which was fun. Once everybody was done cleaning up, we had lunch, which were bag lunches brought individually.

After lunch, we walked down to the shooting range. There, we got instructions on the safety of using a shotgun, and walked over to where we would be shooting. We would shoot the gun with our back to a shed, aiming out over a pond next to the range. Inside this shed was a machine that flung clay pigeons (brittle clay disks) through an opening next to us. We would shoot along the path of the clay pigeon as it traveled away from us. Shooting was loads of fun, and although the gun did have mild recoil, it was easy to hit the target.  We then went track shooting, where the clay pigeon launcher shot the projectiles in various directions. After that, everybody traveled back to the campsite and rested a bit.

We then commenced to go to the rifle range. This, unlike the shooting range, was indoors, and we were to aim at specific target boards, which would be scored. The rifles hade less recoil than the shotguns, but it was still a pleasant challenge to aim them and hit the target. Afterwards we had dinner and dessert, and then performed at a campfire. Finally we went to bed. The next morning, everybody shot semiautomatic shotguns. The semiautomatic shotguns had much stronger recoil and sound. Finally we had to bid adieu to the shooting refuge and go home.

Ice Climbing Trip, February 2011

Published on April 30, 2011 in Outdoor Activity. 0 Comments

The Boy Scout ice climbing trip started right after school ended on Friday afternoon. At that point, everyone went in the assigned cars in the parking lot, and we began the long drive up to the ice climbing location. A few hours later, we stopped at a McDonalds to have dinner. After that respite, we got back in the cars and drove for another hour or so until we reached the hostel where we were staying. We went inside, set all our stuff up, had an after dinner snack, and after a bit went to bed.

The next morning we got up at seven and had breakfast, which was cereal. Afterwards, we went to the ice climbing place to get outfitted with crampons and ice axes. We then got back into the cars, and it was a short drive to near where we would be climbing. After the hike there, our counselors showed us how to use the crampons and ice axes to climb the ice.

To climb the ice, you first stab one of your ice axes into a crevice as far as it can go. Once you have both ice axes in the ice, you lift up one of your crampons, kick it into the ice as far as it can go, and then, taking care to stand levelly on your crampon, kick the other crampon into the ice. You then take out one of your ice axes, stab it into a higher crevice, and so on and so on. This may sound boring, but it actually requires all your focus and energy to climb. Two words that would be apt to describe this experience are exciting, and cold. Of course, we warmed back up when we got down from the cliffs.

We got practice by scaling the relatively steep trail to the cliffs. Once there, our counselors showed us how to climb by climbing one of the larger cliffs as an example, Afterwards, we started on some much smaller cliffs to the side of the large cliff. Later, after we had started climbing increasingly larger cliffs, we stopped for lunch, which was sandwiches, apples, and cinnamon rolls.

From then on, some people climbed the largest cliff, which was fifty feet tall or higher. Finally, fog started heading in and it was getting late, so we walked back down, took our crampons off, and got in the cars. We then drove back to the gear rental place, put on our proper shoes, and got back into the cars for the long drive home. We stopped at Friendly’s several hours later to have dinner (and dessert) and then got back in the cars. We finally arrived home at 11:30 at night.

Freeze out trip, January 2011 by Mark

Published on April 30, 2011 in Outdoor Activity. 0 Comments

For once, this trip started not on Saturday, but technically on Friday. This is because the people who were going to be camping went beforehand to the site to set up all the tents and troop gear. This meant that when we arrived again on Saturday we only had to dump our personal gear at the site and then go to the opening ceremony. At the opening ceremony, a bunch of troops from all over the region came, and the flag was raised and people were introduced. After that, we went to the events.

The first event we went to was the lashings competition, where we had to make several lashings around wooden poles provided. That event went well, and after that we went to a fire transfer event. In the event, one would have to lash poles together, tie twine on the end of the pole, then get the twine lit by a candle sitting ten feet away, using only the pole. We then had to move the burning twine back to light a closer candle. The event was very difficult, but unlike some other groups, we succeeded.

After that event, we went to the rescue mission event, where we made a splint and a stretcher out of rope and poles. From that event we went to the fire starting event, where, as you may have guessed, we made a fire. From that event, we went back to our campsite, where we had lunch. Coincidentally, our next event was at our campsite, where we did an entire flag raising ceremony. That was the final event.

The next thing we were going to go to was the sled race. Racing groups were released every two minutes, and had to complete a course with one person in the sled with a ticket and everyone else pulling. At the end of the course, the person in the sled would run up to the gatehouse and give the ticket to the people who had organized the race. The race was extremely tiring, but we passed two teams in the course of it, and did far better then previous years.

After the race, we went back to the campsite, and we rested for a bit, and then had an extensive snow ball fight in the woods. At that point, we started preparing dinner, which was pasta with olives and mushrooms. Once we ate dinner, some scouts left for the night, while the remaining scouts cleaned up. After that, everyone got the hot water bottles to put in their sleeping bags, and everyone went to bed.

The temperature sunk to 4 degrees below zero that night, but we stayed toasty warm in our tents. The next morning, we packed up the personal gear and troop gear, and went to the closing ceremony. At the closing ceremony, awards were given; our troop got three ribbons, and came in 4th by 2 seconds in the race. After the closing ceremony, we brought the gear down to the cars, and all went home.

Mic-Running at Town Meeting, by Mark

Published on January 21, 2011 in Notices. 0 Comments Tags: .

Our Boy Scout troop doesn’t just do camp outs and outdoorsy service projects; we also do some indoor civic service projects. In this case, our town had a special town meeting, and as is typical, the town asked our Boy Scout troop for volunteers to be the microphone runners. Being a microphone runner means you wait and bring the microphone over to people in the audience who want to speak. So, we went to the special town meeting where we meet the moderator, who gave us the microphones we were going to use. Through the meeting the four scouts that were there handed the four microphones to at least ten people. It was cool to not only observe town meeting but also be a part of it. It was also cool to get to stand up by the stage and walk around during the meeting. All in all, mike running was fun and taught a lot about town government. For instance, when people go to our town’s town meeting, first they go to the local high school, register and get a voting card. Then everyone goes into the school auditorium and finds a seat, with non residents sitting in the last two rows. Then the meeting is called to order. People receive warrants showing the issues being presented at the meeting. Then people begin presenting on the issues. After the presentations, people could ask questions on it, which is what the microphone runners were for. Finally, the issues would be voted on.

Recent Service Projects, by Mark

Published on October 15, 2010 in Notices. 1 Comment

Our troop not only does campouts, it does service projects also. I will talk about two we did recently. One was helping a certain Scout in our troop, Leif, with his Eagle project. We went to Round Hill conservation area in Sudbury, and spent two hours clearing part of the area of unwanted small oak trees and larger trees. Then we used weed wrenches, axes, and clippers, to get out the giant roots of the larger trees. We then packed all the stuff into two large pick up trucks which hauled it away. It was pretty easy and straightforward (except for the roots).
A more recent one was at Curtis middle school, where people from town dropped off Styrofoam products for recycling. We then took the Styrofoam products and broke them into smaller parts. There was a period of two hours for people to hand things in. It turns out breaking up Styrofoam is actually fun, as is having Styrofoam swordfights. There were also cookies and munchkins. Again, quite straightforward. These are some of the service projects our troop does.