This weekend Troop 1916 bravely weathered freezing temperatures for the chance to take to the trees and navigate a whole host of obstacles and ziplines, requiring balance, strength, nerve, and no slight amount of derring-do. The Adventure Park at Sandy Spring Friends School has 13 different courses encompassing many different types of high-wire acts many stories above the ground and for 3-4 hours on Sunday morning, over 50 Scouts (and a few parents) challenged themselves to taking things to the next level.
All of that, of course, was on the heels of a night of camping under a cold, nearly full-moon lit sky. If there was a silver lining to sleeping outdoors in below freezing temperatures it was the lack of precipitation (or even any significant wind). Actually, to the contrary, the cold aside, Saturday ended up being a beautiful day and gave us the occasion to build not one, but two solid fires. After finishing Scouting for Food in the morning and quickly setting up camp after our short trek up to the Olney, Md area, the Scouts largely disappeared in small groups for the afternoon, punctuated only by lunch and dinner. While there were a number of notable meal items, I would be remiss if I didn't call out the burgers and hotdogs Brandon pulled together for the Bulldogs' lunch and the chili pasta that Odin put together for dinner for the Dragons, not to mention the delicious peach cobbler and, of course, S'mores to round out the evening. A special shout-out to JJ for his leadership and organization, which meant that camp was broken up in the morning not only with numerous hot breakfasts, but in time for a full troop set of rose/bud/thorn reflections before we started climbing. While many Scouts felt that the cold was definitely a thorn, perhaps more surprisingly, a good number felt that they were able to manage to sleep and that, once in the sleeping bag, it wasn't as bad as it could have been. There was a strong consensus and anticipation of getting to the climbing and obstacles as well as getting home for a hot shower.
All-in-all, a memorable trip and a solid last camping excursion for 2019!
If you want to see pictures from this trip, click here.