Cub Scout Camping Trip

After a Spring and Summer full of rain, we finally got to go camping last weekend -- well at least Collin and I did. This was the first of hopefully several Cub Scout camping trips.

Did I forget to mention here that Collin was a Cub Scout now? I was a Cub Scout for about 6 months when I was a boy, but my den was boring and I didn't have many friends that were in it. Collin has a great den with several of his friends participating. He is learning a lot, and frankly so am I.

This campout was a Rocket Academy at Sid Richardson Scout Ranch on Lake Bridgeport about an hour and a half away. The kids all got to make a rocket and shoot it off on a neat launch pad. Collin also got a bull's-eye with a BB gun and got to shoot a bow and arrow for the first time. We went on a long hike through the trees and brush and climbed the rocks along the bank of the lake. On our hike we saw a snake, several cool spiders, frogs, and neat rock formations. It wouldn't be a proper campout if we didn't have a campfire and look at the stars. The weather was perfect -- warm enough for shorts and T-shirts during the day (high of 71) but cold enough for needing to snuggle into your sleeping bag at night (low of 39).

Collin's favorite part was being with his friends and archery. My favorite part was the Council Campfire and especially the flag retirement ceremony led by the Boy Scouts. The Council Campfire is always on the last night of the campout and all of the boys and leaders are there. Packs can sign-up to lead a song or perform a skit and awards are given out for the various activities. There is generally a Boy Scout Troop that helps coordinate the camp as a service project. The Boy Scouts that helped us was Troop 32 and they did an excellent job.