We headed out for another awesome summer camp adventure to Lake of the Woods. After hiking about 1.5 miles, we arrived at camp. The camp looked great and a huge thank you to all who helped prepare for our arrival! There was some Thunder clouds so swim checks were delayed for a few hours. When the swim check was finally held, all of the boys passed! The first assembly was held and scouts got a chance to see how to handle the flags when they are run up a very tall set of trees. Dinner that night was BBQ chicken and all the fixins. On Sunday, Bugle call was early and 35 boys and adults turned out for Mountain Man swim call. This is a quick dip in the lake before Call to Colors or breakfast. The day was spent starting merit badges, with swimming being the primary badge. A 1 mile orienteering course was set up for the trail to first class scouts. For the day there were two flag ceremonies that were handled by the patrols. The boys discovered that some practice is needed to get this to work well. Dinner was Tri Tip with salad and many side dishes. Bugle call was early Monday and 40 boys and adults turned out for Mountain Man swim call. The weather has been cool, but the water temperature is nice. Most of the scouts finished swimming merit badge and started canoe merit badge. Scouts are also working on Environmental Science and the service project. On Tuesday, the rain storm finally hit camp on Tuesday which delayed some events. The rain dampened the camp but not the spirit of the group. It was Paul Bunyan day with all the boys participating in two-man saw, log chop, log lift, knot tying and many other team woods events. There was also time to continue advancement. Dinner was a very hearty Beef Stew. The canoeing merit badge started in earnest Wednesday. And also the day hike for the younger boys and 5 mile orienteering course for the older boys. Thursday is “waterfront day”. All the scouts participate in canoeing and swimming competitions. This includes team and individual races, swamp wars, and gunnel pumping (you should ask if you don’t know what these are). This evening is “thanksgiving” so there were whole turkeys cooked with all the fixings (stuffing, potatoes, cranberries) and pumpkin pies for dessert. Friday morning, again 45 people showed up for the mountain man swim call! Canoeing and swimming merit badges were all finished so many of the boys took on Lifesaving as well as other merit badges. The older boys were working to complete Environmental Science Merit Badge. The ceremony for patrol and individual awards was held.
