Klondike Derby

[lambertiana]

Last week our scoutmaster asked me to go with the troop to Klondike Derby because the assistant scoutmaster couldn't make it. He had to twist my arm really really hard. Our Klondike Derby is held every February at Camp Chawanakee on Shaver Lake.

We left home late yesterday and got to the parking area well after dark, so I have no pictures of the trip in. The scouts had to pull in all the troop gear over a mile on a sled. After setting up camp in the dark, I made scones for them; this is my traditional treat for winter campouts with the scouts.

This morning I got up, and they were out sledding before the events of the day started, right by the shore of Shaver Lake

There were 670 scouts there, so it was tent city on the snow

Our scouts tried their hand at a number of the competitions. First up was the tug of war with another troop

Log cutting

Sled race - they had to race with one of the scouts ("injured") in the sled

Tomahawk throw

And pneumatic cannons, firing plastic bags stuffed with snow

 

[lambertiana]

Every year they also have a firebuilding competition, to see who can set up and build a fire to melt and boil a pan of snow in the shortest time. This year I went to their meeting last week to show them how to light fatwood with a firesteel (they get bonus points if they don't use a match). And I brought a bunch of sierra ponderosa fatwood to use for the fire. The rules are very strict, you are only allowed natural tinder, so I wanted to make sure that I could tell them that all the big flames and black smoke were not from a petroleum product, but from a natural source, harvested locally in the Sierras.

Alas, the troop that was sponsoring the firebuilding competition this year did not show up, and there was no backup. So what to do with all the fatwood? Burn it, of course! First we set up and one of the scouts lit it on the first strike with my blastmatch

We went from this

to this in a matter of two minutes (if you have never built a large fire with nothing but fatwood, you should try this some time, it's pretty impressive)

And then the rest of the wood went on the fire

Then the scouts went sledding again. I decided to relax lying down, looking up at the trees (mostly white fir here)

This area was logged about 100 years ago, so it is second growth. But even second growth younger forest is still impressive, here is a typical sugar pine there

The camp bell is from a decommissioned Navy ship; I couldn't resist giving it a clang (what a sound!) but that angered some people nearby so I decided not to do it again

And finally, as we left, a typical sierra scene (not much snow reaches the ground under thick canopy in some places)

Lots of fun, I always enjoy these trips.

 

[sicily02]

Looks like a great time. Awesome pics.

Bryan

 

[Mudbug007]

Looks like a great time was had by all. Kudos to you for volunteering your time to spend with these boys.

I was asked to take over the Royal Ranger program at our Church a little over a year ago. One reason I was asked was because of my outdoor experience. They kept telling me many of the boys would never get to experience things in the outdoors if I didn't take over. Since I only have a daughter, it really didn't register with me. I mean, how could any parent or guardian not take their kids fishing or at least camping a few times a year?

So I agreed. One of the first things I did was to start asking the boys each Wed. night (our weekly meeting time) what they had done the previous weekend. I was shocked to find out that a majority of them do nothing but sit home and play video games an sleep. Some can't tell you what they did. I always ask the ones who answer this way if they ever go out and ride a bike or play in the yard. Most say "No".

But they look forward to our outings. Most outings are outdoors but I have taken them to some Sports shows. One of our boys won the Grand prize at an Outdoor banquet. The prize was a hog hunt for him and and another person. The outfitter that gave the prize away really wanted the "other person" to be the winners father. It took some convincing, but the father finally agreed and they had a great time. They even managed to bring home a couple hogs and a Fallow Doe.

Sorry to get off topic, this has become a passion for me. Even when I want to pull my hair out when they're not paying attention when I'm trying to teach them something! On one hand it's a great feeling to see them catch their first fish or find their first arrow head. On the other, it's sad to think that their parents are missing out on these special moments.