Spring Camporee was GREAT!
We
had lots of fun, learned a lot about first aid, had lots of fun,
enjoyed some great cooking, had lots of fun, provided service to Camp
Roland, had lots of fun, enjoyed a good old fashioned campfire program,
and - did I mention - HAD LOTS OF FUN!
Thanks to all of the Scouts who came out and enjoyed all the events. Thanks to all of the adults who volunteered to staff all the first aid stations, supervise the service projects, and mentored Scouts in so many ways. We had a terrific time. Here is a brief rundown of some of the fun we had:
On Friday evening after setting up camp we enjoyed some good fellowship and fried Oreo cookies at the pool shelter. There were also fried bananas and fried Snickers bars, too.
Saturday morning was cool and overcast. Troop 61 volunteered to raise the flag and some Scouts from other Troops participated, as well. We made a couple of announcements and began the Scavenger Hunt. Troop 252 finished first finding 16 of 19 items. Troop 94 came in 4 minutes later with 17 of 19 items. Troop 1 arrived 1 minute after that with 17-1/2 items (the half item was credit for a BSA bolo in lieu of a neckerchief slide. Four minutes after that Troop 61 arrived with 14 of 19 items followed by Troop 436 three minutes later with 16 items.
By now it was 10:30 and time for the Cooking Challenge at the Dining Hall. Everything needed for cooking had to be “packed in” since the bridge was closed to vehicles. After an exciting competition Troop 68 was declared the winners based on a whole host of criteria. Frances and Blaine White who headed up the cooking contest reported an incident that certainly displayed the Spirit of Scouting. It seems that one Unit was going to have to forfeit the competition because they had a faulty camp stove. They could not get it to work. Another Troop – who was engaged in fierce competition with the first Troop – generously offered use of a spare stove to their opponent so that they could remain in the contest. What a wonderful show of sportsmanship and just all around good citizenship. Ya gotta love Scouts!
After lunch we “cycled” through 6 different First Aid challenges that tested Scouts knowledge and skill in different Scenarios. Everything from a well stocked first aid kit, heart attacks, severe bleeding, various “carrys” and “assists” and heat stroke was covered. The Academy Award for best actor in a medical emergency goes to Blaine White for his exceptional portrayal of an injured curmudgeon.
After being tested in First Aid the entire camp spent an hour rendering service to our beloved Camp Roland. Troop 436 cleaned up the old archery range (and had a HUGE brush fire on Friday night). Troop 1 did a great job of cleaning the MaGann Building, both inside and out. They cleaned gutters and even raked leaves away from the outside walls. Troop 61 policed the Campfire area and moved a mountain of leaves from under the benches. They have the fire pit and the entire area looking great. Troop 68 Cleaned up the Dining Hall from top to bottom. They swept up inside and on the roof and cleaned gutters among other chores. Troop 93 and 94 helped around the Storage Building. Gutters were cleaned, floors were swept in all 3 bays, materials were sorted and stacked – a good general cleanup. Troop 252 laid in the fire for the Campfire Program – unfortunately rain forced us to move the program to the Dining Hall. But the good Scouts from Troop 252 built us a fire in the fireplace for that event, too. Thanks guys! With all of the adults and Scouts pitching in, we provided over 75 man hours of service to Camp Roland. THANK YOU!
After the cleanup we tried to have a softball game – adults vs. Scouts. It turned out to be mostly batting and fielding practice. One inning was played before the dinner bell rang.
A misty but persistent light rain settled in over the Camp forcing the Campfire Program indoors. Ed Evans from Troop 1 led us in a good old fashioned program. I say old fashioned because there were references to Lawrence Welk and the old television show Lost in Space – which none of our Scouts have heard ever heard of before! But it was a terrific program with lots of fun and enthusiasm.
Sunday morning the youth Chaplin from Troop 61 led the camp in a very nice morning worship service. Then tents were packed up wet to be set up again at home to dry out. But it was a good weekend full of fun and fellowship and demonstrations of the Spirit of Scouting everywhere. Thank you to everyone who came out to make this another successful event for the Mountain Dominion District!
First Aid Results:
Cooking Contest – Troop 68
First Aid Kit (Troop) – 1st Troop 61, 2nd Troop 1 and Troop 94 (tie), 3rd Troop 252
First Aid Kit (Individuals) – 1st Troop 68, 2nd Troop 1, 3rd Troop 252
Scenarios:
Poisoned Child – All Troops nailed it!
Car striking a man – Troops 1, 61, 68, and 436
Injured Scout – Troops 94 and 252
Heart attack – Troops 1, 68, and 252
Shock Symptoms – Troop 1
Shock Treatment – Troops 61, 94, and 252
4 Questions to ask in a HURRY CASE – Troop 68/436
ABC’s of Hurry Cases involving BREATHING & HEART BEAT – Troops 68/436, 93, 94, and 252
3 GOALS of First Aid – Troops 1, 68, and 252
Heat Stroke – Troops 61, 68, 94, and 252
Severe Bleeding – Troops 68, 93, 94, 252, and 436
Schedule
Friday night 8:30 p.m. Cracker Barrel at the Pool Shelter
Saturday 9:30 a.m. Flag Raising at the flag pole
9:45
a.m. Scavenger Hunt - The 12 days of Camping (Like the 12 days of Christmas)
10:30 a.m. Cooking Competition at the Dining Hall
Noon Lunch and Cooking Contest Judging
1:30 p.m. First Aid Competition
3:00 p.m. Service Projects
4:30 p.m. Flag ceremony
5:00 p.m. Scout vs Leader Softball game
8:00 p.m. Campfire Program
Sunday 10:00 a.m. Morning worship
Troop 436 (Scoutmaster Hanks) - Camp Entrance
Troop 1 (Scoutmaster LaMothe) - Shelter 1
Troop 61 (Scoutmaster White) - Shelter 2
Troop 93 (Scoutmaster Murray) - Shelter 3
Troop 252 (Scoutmaster Eckman) - Shelter 4
Troop 94 (Scoutmaster Chambers) - Shelter 5
We had a TERRIFIC Cold Rush at Camp Roland on February 9, 2013. Several area Troops converged on the Camp on a beautiful mid-winter day. The sun shone brightly and there was enough “nip” in the air to remind us that it is still winter, despite of the groundhog’s prediction of an early spring!
Troop 92 from Thompson Valley “camped” in the MacGann Building on Friday and Saturday night, Troop 1 from Princeton camped in tents at Shelter 2, and a small contingent from Troop 252 held down the fort at the Dining Hall on Friday night. It was a true test of Scouting will and determination to survive the 20 degree nights on the banks of Wolf Creek.
On Saturday morning we gathered at the Pool Shelter for Klondike Dan’s thick and rich hot chocolate. Some folks even experimented with orange flavored cocoa! After some greetings and reminiscing we convened at the flag pole promptly at 10:00 a.m. for the flag raising ceremony performed by Troop 92. Announcements were made, instructions were presented, and compass coordinates were given to each unit. The Compass Challenge was ON! Troops were to follow their compass coordinates to waypoints and follow the instructions they found there. There were “decoy” waypoints that proved a bit confusing for some Troops who did not measure their angles carefully or who misjudged the distance between points. In the end Troop 92 from Thompson Valley emerged victorious.
At the Dining hall all units began the Cooking Challenge by “packing in” all of their materials – food, water, pots, pans, and everything else. There were meals of hearty soups, sandwiches, and even tacos cooked over the fireplace fire. Our fine team of judges made the following awards:
Best Clean up – Troop 252, Healthiest Meal – Troop 1, Best Improvising Under Pressure – Troop 94, Heartiest Meal – Troop 436, Best Tasting Meal – Troop 92. The “Overall” winner was Troop 252 from Bluewell
At the same time the Scouts were cooking their hearts out, the adult leaders were having a contest of their own. The Hot Chocolate Challenge provided a spirited competition among Scoutmasters and other adults. The Scouts were in charge of judging this event and came to a unanimous decision. Scoutmaster Brian Bales from Troop 92 was the big winner earning himself a box of delicious Russell Stover candies for his efforts.
Bill Haver from Troop 252 won a selection of coffees for correctly responding to the “Quiz” on the www.CampRoland.com website. George Fisher was the first with the correct response, but Bill was present to accept the award. Also present were Wayne and Pat Hartley from Troop 14 in Bluefield. It was good to see Wayne out and about at Camp Roland after his recent illness.
After lunch we had a good old fashioned map reading course and race. Scouts were asked to find 8 different locations on a topographic map of Camp Roland. This was a very challenging course and all the units did a good job in seeking out the correct locations. In the end two Troops had the greatest success:
Troop 92 completed their course in 50 minutes and successfully found 4 of the 8 locations.
Troop 436 completed their course in 59 minutes and also found 4 of the 8 locations. Each Troop found different waypoints sharing only 2 in common. Great job everybody!
We ended the day with the Great Sled Race. This Race challenged Scouts to build a “sled” using knots that they had practiced tying earlier in the day at the Compass Challenge. They used SQUARE LASHING to lash 4 short poles together to make their sled. Then they tied 2-clove hitches on opposite sides of their sled and 2-sets of two half-hitches on the other 2 sides of their sleds. Finally a bowline knot was tied in the “free end” of all 4 ropes, providing a handle for all 4 "sled dogs" (Scouts) during the race. The course was simple, yet challenging. Teams of 4 had to “carry” their sled along the course without dropping their load or allowing the sled to touch the ground. The race was divided into two sections: the knot-tying part and the actual race. Both tested Scouts teamwork skills and ability to work together.
Troop 92 tied their knots fastest (42 seconds) followed by Troop 94 (1:58), Troop 1 (2:17), Troop 436 (3:35) and Troop 252 (3:40).
The physical race was very close. Troop 1 completed the course in an incredible 41.2 seconds. Troop 252 was less than one second behind with a time of 42.0 seconds. Troop 436 had a time of 59.2 seconds followed by Troop 92 with 60.9 seconds. Troop 94 was on track for a good time but their sled touched the ground and they elected not to make a second attempt.
Combining the scores we arrived at the following results:
Troop 92 – 1:42.9, Troop 1 – 2:58.2. Troop 252 – 4:20.0, Troop 436 – 4:43.2, Troop 94 – DNFCongratulations to all of the Troops who competed in these events. Thank you for coming out to make the day a great success. Thank you, also, to the wonderful adults of the Mountain Dominion District who always come through to support our camps. Many of the adults came to help out even though they had no Scouts from their Troops in attendance. Being a Scoutmaster, Assistant Scoutmaster, or just helping to mentor our boys in Scouting is often a thankless job. So let me fix that by offering a big THANK YOU for helping with camp and for all you do behind the scenes every week. Our Scouts are worth the effort and YOU are all the BEST!
Our Advancement Chair has done a great job of keeping up with current merit badge counselors. A link to all counselors that we have on file is here MB Counselor list. This list is not perfect. Please contact Dan Cook to update, add to or correct the list. Also let Dan know if you would like to be removed from the list. Please remember that it is up to each counselor, and those who choose to use the counselor, to ensure that his/her Youth Protection Training is up to date.Troops must reserve campsites for this event. Contact Klondike Dan quickly for best availability.
No matter where in the world you are, get on Interstate 77 "between the tunnels" in beautiful Bland County Virginia. Travel to the BASTIAN exit (EXIT 58). From Exit 58 turn toward downtown Bastian (if coming from the south {Wytheville}turn left at the end of the ramp. If coming from the north {Bluefield/Princeton} turn right at the end of the ramp), passing the Marathon gas station on your left. STOP at the stop sign. When clear, turn left and travel about 100 yards on U.S. Route 52. After 100 yards turn RIGHT on State Route 714. After winding down this road for about 3 miles, look for a RED CABOOSE on your left. Turn left down the gravel driveway just before reaching the caboose. Don't worry about the barking dogs at the little white house at the camp entrance... they've almost all had their shots!
A MAP showing Mountain Dominion Scout Units and Camp Roland is HERE. Thanks to Thomas Kozikowski