The troop planned for a "Survival Campout" this month. Paradoxically they opted for
Eagle Park as the location.
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| Survival Campsite |
After spending a few minutes reviewing the edible plants available with the boys, the leaders were dismissed to the adjoining campsite to watch from a distance.
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| Dinner: Chicken and Trout |
The boys successfully made fire with flint and steel (really a magnesium striker), some homemade fire starters and the available downed firewood. After foraging for a little while the boys were given a whole raw chicken and trout as a reward for not terrorizing the local fauna (two rabbits unlucky enough to browse near the boys' campsite). The boys were confident that in a survival situation they would have been able to successfully spear any meat needed to sustain them...
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| James' Survival Shelter |
James spent considerable time constructing a shelter from tumbleweeds, grass and tree branches.
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| Shelter add-on |
Seeing his success the other boys added on. Unfortunately, the only accommodations made for rain were their emergency blankets. Little effort was made to figure for water drainage versus collection.
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| Dimond and Oliver before the storm |
Shortly after bedding down, the showers commenced. Not surprisingly, the rain made its way quickly through the grass and tumbleweeds and onto the unsuspecting scouts. The emergency blankets collected the water beneath the scouts as easily as it would have shed the water above them. James made it until 1:40AM, Dimond and Oliver made it until about 5AM before seeking shelter in the cars.
Reviewing the experience later in the morning when the sun was up allowed the boys to reconsider some of their engineering mistakes with the shelters. They enjoyed a shared breakfast with their leaders and relearned how to make a shelter from the emergency blankets that would shed water, keep them dry and thus keep them warm.
Afterward they were anxious to get home to go to sleep...
