Campout Memories: Philadelphia

Welcome to campout memories, a series run by Historian Joe in which I reminisce on the fondest campout memories of my experience in Troop 123.

 

My personal favorite campout Troop 123 has ever put on was in 2013, when the Troop was taken to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. What made this trip unique, among other things, was that we stayed in a different cabin for each of the two nights we were there. The four and a half hour drive was filled with story telling, and equipped with car TV screens for us to watch movies on the go. A little over the Tappan-Zee Bridge, and we arrived at our destination. The following morning we stopped at a restaurant to enjoy the local cheese steaks, and then visited a historical museum filled with audio-guided exhibits documenting stories of battles, settlements, and Supreme Court cases. That night we settled in our new cabin, which stood in front of a long field next to a dried-up river which, at night, made for a busy and intense game of manhunt. The next day we start on the long journey home, watching movies the whole ride back.

In the end, what made this experience stand out to me was that it was the first true time I got to interact with the new first-year members of Troop 123 on a personal level, something I didn’t quite get to do at Monadnock. The new friends I made in this Troop and the experiences they brought forth on this trip made for one of the few fond memories of my eight-grade year. Returning to Philadelphia would be my dream campout finale for my career in scouting, and I hope I can make a return with the Troop. Until then, this is Historian Joe signing out!

Campout Memories: Monadnock

Welcome to campout memories, a series run by Historian Joe in which I reminisce on the fondest campout memories of my experience in Troop 123.

 

Troop 123 has been to New Hampshire’s Mount Monadnock twice now, once in 2013 and once in 2015. Both times the experience was unlike anything I had ever done in my history of scouting. On each campout, the trip lasted three days and two nights. On the second day, we left early on and begun our scaling up the mountain, and spent the rest of the day after we climbed back down relaxing. The structure of each trip made for solid, unforgettable experiences that can only truly be understood by undertaking the task to climb to the top of a mountain.

The first time around, I struggled to make it to the summit. I was staggering as I made it to the top and finally caught my breath. Had I not been equipped with a protein drink beforehand I would have definitely not made it. Climbing down was more difficult than I had anticipated, as it was a different trail and was significantly steeper. For the remainder of the day, our troop played some board games and card games and replayed specific points of the climb in our heads, jogging through our memories so as to never forget them.

The second time felt longer than the first, but also easier. This time I was equipped with not only a protein drink, but also a pair of shoes that were surprisingly effective in scaling mountains. With much more energy left in me at the summit, I was able to focus more on the amazing view of the surrounding landscape from the top. Trees looked like grass. Lakes looked like swimming pools. Buildings looked like toy models. Climbing down felt more natural with the new shoes, and the remainder of the day was spent similarly to the previous time.

With one year of scouting left for me, I certainly hope I can make it three times that I’ve climbed Mount Monadnock with Troop 123. Until then, this is Historian Joe signing off!

Troop 123’s Monthly Themes

Our scout troop has set the ball in motion for something that was tried before, but did not completely succeed. That ball is in motion for monthly themes, which range from knot-tying, to music, to engineering, and to sports. These themes serve to liven up the weekly meetings with a central subject that at least one activity per meeting is usually centered around.

These themes have led to many interesting meetings. One in particular that was especially memorable was when a user of the HAM radio services came in to talk about his experiences with communicating with people quite literally all around the world. Getting a license for such practices is as simple as a written test, and then you can transmit signals to wherever your radio can reach! Another meeting involved a local guitarist coming in to play a genre of music he referred to a classical or orchestral metal. Coupled with the psychedelic backdrop he was playing in front of, it made for a very entertaining scout meeting.

Who knows what may await Troop 123’s meetings in the future? What will April or May’s themes be? The answers are yet to come, and the past meetings leave pure anticipation for the future themes for meetings in those very months. Until then, this is Historian Joe signing off!

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