Scoutmaster Musings

Here's a few news blips about Scouts this week. The good, the bad, and the ugly.

• Most Pathetic - troop treasurer embezzles $16K from scouts.
  This is a way too common occurrence. A few tips to help prevent this sort of thing:
  • Use checks rather than credit cards.
  • Require monthly financial statements, verified by a second person checking the bank statements.
  • Require multiple signatures on transactions.
  • Require receipts for reimbursements.
• Most Inattentive - someone steals $3.5K from scouts in a cigar box left unattended.
  The story says it was full of donations which should be a mistake since scouts do not solicit donations.
• Best Eagle Project - Eagle service project to create book-exchange free libraries.
  When I hiked the Ice Age Trail last year, I saw a few tiny book-swap libraries in front of people's homes right on the street. This might be a cool idea for an Eagle candidate in your troop!
• Best Memorial - scouts and friends finish Eagle service project for deceased scout.
  When a youth dies, there's not much we can do, but this troop paid their respects by completing his project for him.
• Silliest - scout leader hottest husband in country?
  Silly, just silly. :-) Not so much the story, because he sounds like a great guy, but the whole idea of hottest husband contest.
• Best Campout - assisted living seniors.
  This troop found a great way to interact with older community members in a meaningful way.
  

If you'd like to see your scouts "In the News" locally, check out these tips and pointers. We could all use a little good press out there.

Scout On

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Hiking 4 miles just as the sun came up today offered me a cool, crisp, clean, clear hour outside. I was reminded that fall is just around the corner and summer is fading quickly as schools are open and wearing white is now a no-no.

As I was sitting outside at lunch, writing my latest story and noticing this little guy soaking in the sun's warmth on a flower stem, I also thought of all those scouts that have put off their 2nd Class and 1st Class nature requirements over the summer. Depending on where they live, they will soon be in for a difficult time completing them. Identifying 10 wild animals and 10 native plants is still easy to do around here now, but with leafs dropping, birds migrating, animals hibernating, and snow covering the ground, it will be nearly impossible in two months or less.

If you've got scouts hoping to reach 2nd or 1st class before spring, some encouragement to look for animals and plants might be just what they need.

Scout On

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I've posted my trail journal, photos, and map from my short Appalachian Trail excursion. You can review it all at AT Hike page.

I've been out walking 4 to 8 miles on the local trail this past week to keep my knee moving. It's feeling much better and I will be spending days over the next month taking in some local hikes around the Twin Cities. I have a book titled "60 Hikes Within 60 Miles" for Minneapolis and I'll check out a few of those.

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I think a good question to ask yourself when you are participating in a recreational activity, such as a long hike, is: "Is the effort I'm expending worth the enjoyment I'm receiving?"

Most outdoor activities include some strenuous effort that result in rewards. For example, hiking to a mountain top, or paddling across a lake, or climbing up a cliff. Parts of the activity are grueling work, but the rewards of beautiful views, exciting rapids, or new terrain are worth the expected work.

When the answer to the question is "No, the effort is more than the rewards," then it's no longer recreational. And, I feel, it's time to stop. That happened to me earlier this week, for the first time on my long hikes.

My left knee became painful the second evening of my hike, most likely because I was pushing too hard on very rough, very steep, downhill portions of the trail. The next day, the discomfort grew until it hurt on every step - up, down, or level. For 3 more days, I continued on with the hope it would eventually work itself out but it maintained a fairly consistent irritation.

So, when I arrived in Duncannon, PA on Sunday night, I had a plan to visit a doctor in the morning and then make a decision. If the knee should feel better in 2 days or less, I would continue. If it would take longer than that, I could not afford to sit in a town for 3 days or more because I would miss my already small window of completing the trail before winter weather.

Monday morning, the doctor checked me out and said it looked solid with no major tearing and I could continue to walk on it - but recommended slower pace and even terrain. She said continuing my hike on the trail would most likely not make it worse, but it would not get a chance to heal and the pain could take a long time to abate.

This is when the question came up. A 2 hour debate with myself and I concluded: "No, I'm not enjoying this." The ongoing discomfort from the past 4 days would continue for the near future and I would not have fun.

I arranged a 20-mile shuttle to Hamburg, PA where I caught a 1,106-mile greyhound bus ride home. Late Tuesday night, after 24+ hours touring the country, I was home. I took yesterday to rest and come to grips in my head with my first long distance hiking failure.

Failure is the description that I keep coming back to for this hike. I had a goal to walk a certain distance in a certain time and reach the trail end. I failed to do that, actually didn't even come close. So, my trail record is now 3 wins and 1 lose. I completed the AZT, SHT, and IAT. I didn't complete my first effort with the AT.

It's pretty easy to start coming up with better ways to look at failed goals to make them not seem so bad. I hiked 123 miles in 5 days. I walked in 3 states - WV, MD, and PA. I learned a lot for future hikes. I met some interesting people. But, for now, I'm just sticking with 3-1 and admitting to myself that, however I look at it, I didn't reach my goal.

I'll share tomorrow some of the things I learned on this short trek and my plans for some shorter hikes the rest of this year.

PS: This picture is the last one I took on my hike. I am resting on a mountain before the final 600-foot steep, rocky, drop into Duncannon.

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The shelter I stayed in last night was 1.5 miles from a scout camp. The visitor registry had dozens of entries from scouts that had hiked there over the summer for their advancement requirements. Lots of fun to see. Other than that, haven't seen any scouts on the trail. But, met a hiker who is an Eagle scout.

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I walked 68165 steps on the trail today.
I traveled about 32 miles today.
My first day on the Appalachian Trail has been spectacular! At Harper's Ferry, this sign started my journey at about 6:30am and I'm now settled in Cowell shelter almost 32 miles from my start. Check out my current location on the map. I've already met more hhikers than on my entire AZ Trail hike, but nearly all are day or short-trip folks. I found one guy that has been hiking the whole trail and is now following behind me. Another guy, Rising Star, let me hike with him to this shelter. He's a wealth of information, having hiked arund here often. He's heading to NY, but we'll separate tomorrrow. The cicadas are amazingly loud tonight as the sun has set and things cool down.

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Tomorrow starts this year's long hike for me. I'll be taking a plane to D.C., then bus, metro, and train to Harper's Ferry, WV where I'll find the Appalachian Trail.

The trail runs from Springer Mountain in Georgia to Mt. Katahdin in Maine which is about 2180 miles, but I'm only doing the northern 1165 miles this summer/fall - that's why I'm calling this my "Half Hike". Other commitments both in the earlier summer and in October have allowed me only 55 days to hike so this is how far I figured out I can go - at a pretty brisk pace.

About 2000 people or so start hiking from GA to ME each year and they all start around the same time. This creates a big bubble of people moving up the trail. Since they have different paces, the bubble spreads out the farther north it moves. I will be starting my hike at the very tail end of the bubble, and hopefully will catch up to hikers every day. I'm excited about this, but also a bit concerned...

Who will I most likely find on the trail? Well, those that are slow, injured, or got a late start. Possibly people not having a really good time. But, they've all made it over 1000 miles, so I plan to be as encouraging as I can, and learn as much from them as I can quickly.

I'm starting on a fairly easy area of the trail so I have a few hundred miles to "warm up" before reaching what seems to me like the most challenging part - the White Mountains. Since I'm hitting these barren mountain tops late in the season, I will see cold temps and possibly snow. I'm hoping for a warm, dry Indian Summer in the northeast! :-)

As usual, you can follow my progress here since I'll be carrying my Spot tracker that will blip to a satellite every 15 minutes or so, and I'll be blogging every day.

I've made it possible to read comments you leave here on my cellphone and reply to them - assuming I have coverage out there. Just a 'howdy' can be a real boost when I've been plodding down the trail for days on end, so I look forward to hearing from you.

Also, I would appreciate it if you could tell any hiker friends you might have about my hike so they can follow along.

Finally, anyone living anywhere near the Appalachian Trail is welcome to contact me and hike along. An unexpected night off the trail at someone's house has always been a great surprise!

Hike On

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With the blog being dormant for the past few months, I've had a few folks ask, "Where are you?" - not many, but a couple.

Well, that little thing called 'life' has gotten in the way of blogging. And, unfortunately, not much of life has involved Scouting. Passing on the scoutmaster position to another volunteer, giving unit commissioner a try, and helping with a new troop (that didn't work out) all resulted in my actual scouting time dropping to nearly nil.

But, I have trained about 150 Scouts and Scouters in Red Cross Wilderness First Aid this year, helping them prepare for those high adventures. I even did a crash course for a troop 2 days before their plane left for SeaBase and they had missed the step about certification being required! It all worked out.

There have also been some Leave No Trace talks and lightweight backpacking presentations to some scout troops interested in those things.

So, I've been doing Scouting support, but nothing really too interesting that would help you all deliver a better program.

Now, I'll be gone hiking for awhile. Last year, I did the 1,100 mile Ice Age Trail through Wisconsin and before that the 800 mile Arizona Trail. This year's adventure is what I call a "Half Hike" of the Appalachian Trail.

I'll tell you a bit more about it tomorrow, but just wanted to let those two people know I'm still here. And, I'll be blogging from the trail starting in a couple days.

Scout On

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Tired of selling wreaths, nuts, mulch, or whatever it is your scouts sell to raise funds? Looking for something new to try?

Country Meats might be that something new you need to reach a new audience and fund your adventures. To get the word out, Paul @ Country Meats is contributing 2 dozen smoked snacks to my monthly contest as one of the prizes you could win. That will be a tasty treat for the scouts on your next campout.

I met Paul online a few weeks ago and then chatted on the phone. He's a friendly, sincere, hardworking guy that runs the family business in Florida. He has a great story to tell on CountryMeats.com and their smoked snacks are really super! Paul sent me samples of their 14 flavors, ranging from sweet to mega-hot, and I really liked them all.

Paul's hope is that Scout troops will take advantage of the Country Meats fundraising program, and he's made it simple and fun to test drive. Click to his company website and you can request a free sample of the snacks to satisfy yourself that they are as good as I say.

He also has a patch collecting incentive program that rewards scouts with unique patches as they sell more snacks. Scouts and patches - good idea! More important than the patch program, the percentage of funds that your troop receives seems very generous to me. It shouldn't be too difficult for a few scouts to raise a few hundred dollars.

I can see these being a big hit outside a Gander Mountain, Cabela's, Bass Pro Shop, or any outdoors store on fishing or hunting opener.

Oh, one other thing - as you flip through your next Scouting magazine keep an eye out for the Country Meats ad. They're supporting the BSA through advertising also.

Scout On

PS: The new Ghost Fire flavor was my favorite, but it might be too hot for some of you. :-)

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Two people have already won a Scout Ring from Joy Jewelers. On Sunday, the third and final winner will be selected. It can't be you unless you enter the drawing.

The Joy Jewelers scout rings make a cool recognition item. Rings for Boy Scouts, Wood Badge, Sea Scouts, and Venturers can all be customized for the individual.

Just enter your email address on my Contest page for a chance to win a $250 ring, a $25 scout shop gift card, or a $50 ClassB.com coupon.

Starting Monday, a new prize will be available but I'm not telling what it is yet. You'll have to check back to see. I will say that I've tried it and it's Very Tasty!

Scout On

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Jodi asked about uniforms:
"I am 6'9" and have yet to find official pants that don't hit me mid-ankle. Even the un-hemmed ones go to a 38" inseam when mine is 42". The shorts are almost obscene, but I've bought a pair of official pants, then cut and hemmed them to an appropriate shorts length. My shirt is somewhat loose/baggy, but it's the size that was long enough and I plan to have it tailored a bit when I can. The socks never fit either. Belt, neckerchief, and hat are all totally fine. What do you recommend for those who cannot find official clothing? Thanks!"

Uniforms that fit can be a big/small problem for scouts and scouters on either end of the growth charts. Fortunately, even the tallest scout had a uniform - it was custom tailored for Robert Wadlow around 1931. Robert was 7ft. 4in. when he was 13 years old and here he is in his uniform.

I don't know if the BSA made Robert's uniform or not, but they're available to help you now. If the range of standard uniform sizes don't fit you, you can still be properly uniformed by contacting the BSA for a Made-to-Measure uniform. I've been told by the ScoutStuff folks that it takes about 12 weeks to receive a custom-made uniform, so plan ahead and Be Prepared!

See this ScoutStuff.org page for their contact information.

Scout On

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I completed Second Class requirement #6 on my hike this morning - identifying 10 kinds of wild animals. In just a couple miles, I saw a: chipmunk, grey squirrel, rabbit, red-wing blackbird, Canada goose, mallard duck, cardinal, baltimore oriole, goldfinch, and robin. There were many more birds and animals flying and scurrying about, but those are my 10.

Actually, I complete that requirement nearly every time I walk around at this time of year. It's pretty easy to complete this nature requirement since the animals are out enjoying the warm spring weather. Finding animal evidence in the dead of winter can be much more challenging, at least here where it's all covered under feet of snow.

What do you notice in the accompanying photo? The top half is a photo of a Canada goose on its nest I took while hiking this week. She knows I'm there and is trying to be invisible while keeping an eye on me.
The bottom image is the same nest the next day. There are broken egg shells, but no birds. Canada geese leave the nest almost immediately after hatching so I expect the parents and goslings are out and about somewhere around here.

When doing your animal identification, or any outdoors activities, remember to respect the wildlife you find. I took those pictures from the other side of a small pond, probably about 60 feet away.

Give animals lots of room, take pictures from far away, and don't harass them at all. Especially this time of year, babies are abundant and some adult animals are very protective. For your own safety, as well as the animals', keep your eyes and ears open for signs of wildlife and don't invade their space.

Respecting Wildlife is one of the seven principles of Leave No Trace which scouts should follow on all outings.

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