Autumn Fun Weekend

Ockanickon Scout Reservation, Bucks County, PA

21-23 September 2007

Troop 461 inaugurated the 2007-2008 camping season with a fun weekend at Ockanickon Scout Reservation in Bucks County during the weekend of 21 through 23 September 2007.  The weekend was designed to be a fun weekend for the Scouts with an emphasis on preparing for the October District Camp-O-Ree/Cub-O-Ree.  We were fortunate to have obtained our favourite campsite at Ockanickon that is located next to the fishing pond and not too distant from the parking lot.    Additionally, our camp site had sufficient supply of Adirondack shelters so that each patrol could have their own Adirondack as well as the adult leaders.  Naturally, one of the adult leaders who shall remain nameless, but whose initials are "Fred Crouthamel," decided that he wanted his own tent and stayed in a tent he pitched next to the adult Adirondack.  I guess that there is simply no pleasing some people!  Despite his anti-social tendencies, the Scouts enjoy having Mr. Crouthamel around and he is quite a hit in teaching the Scouts various crafts and one never knows what he'll show up with at camp.

Assistant Scoutmaster (ASM) Scott Forwood (in the white baseball cap in the photo at left) played the role of camp chef for the weekend, along with some help from a number of the Scouts.  The Scouts always look forward to the weekend trips when Mr. Forwood attends since they know that they will be eating well and that there will be plenty to go around -- eliminating any need for the food police to station themselves by the kitchen area to ensure that no Scout takes more than the dreaded Küchen Polizei feel is warranted.  Hopefully, with ASM Forwood in charge of the kitchen, the days of the dreaded Küchen Polizei are long gone.     

What would camp be without at least a little rain?  We were fortunate to have set up our kitchen area and dining fly Friday night when it was clear and dry out.  Saturday morning started out cloudy but the rain held off until we were finished breakfast and began getting ready to clean up our breakfast dishes.  Being thrifty as well as environmentally friendly, Scoutmaster (SM) Tim Wile (in photo at right) takes advantage of the morning rain to collect some fresh rinsing water for the clean up area, thus saving someone a trip to the water supply.

The morning rain was over in rather short order and by mid-morning, things were drying out.  One of the first orders of business for the weekend was for the Scouts to collect some spars that they would need in order to construct a gateway for their campsite at the October District Camp-O-Ree.  The troop hadn't built a gateway at the District Camp-O-Ree for more than a decade and the main reason for the absence of a camp gateway was that we simply did not have the materials on hand to construct one!  Under the leadership of the Troop's Senior Patrol Leader (SPL), Nathan Johnson, the Scouts spent part of Saturday morning scouring the camp area around our campsite for fallen trees that might make decent spars for pioneering projects.  By lunchtime, the Scouts had rounded up at least a dozen spar candidates for next month's gateway and the next project would be cutting them down to the needed size and trimming them of unwanted branches and the like. 

Of course, the trimmings and unwanted parts of the spars would make fine firewood, a fact not lost one most of the Scouts.  What kind of a Scout camping trip would it be without a fire coming into play somewhere along the line??  It also helps that we brought along several boxes and buckets of dry wood from home for the weekend, which made finding firewood following the morning rain much easier.  However, just having a supply of dry firewood does not mean that you can get a roaring fire going.  It takes more than a match and a log to get a fire going, but what Scout worth his pocket knife doesn't already know that?  Of course, "being prepared" also means thinking ahead and, cognizant of the weekend weather forecast, bringing along a bag of dryer lint as a fire-starter.  It is amazing what a little forethought and advance planning can do!  I no time at all, some of the older boys had managed to get a nice fire going so that the others could dry off from the morning's rain.

  While the Scouts were busy about their projects, and the kitchen was cleaned up and it was too early for the next meal, chief cook and bottle-washer, ASM Scott Forwood (below left), took advantage of the lull in the action to catch up on some much needed shut-eye and dream about the ones that got away (fish, that is!).

    Of course, Mr. Forwood isn't the only adult leader to take advantage of the Scout's absence from the camp to enjoy a little rest and relaxation.  ASM Ernie Gambone (at left) enjoys some quiet time with a book -- although it is difficult to understand how he can concentrate on his book with all the noise coming from those loud socks of his!!  Of course, those socks don't seem to be bothering ASM Tom Isban who is simply worn out from being with the Scouts in the out of doors.  After a few hours in the woods with a bunch of Boy Scouts, it isn't hard to imagine how comfortable a bunk made out of wooden planks can be.

This page last updated on Saturday, 20 October 2007