Mount Monadnock, NH

Saturday, May 19, 2012

The Boy Scout troop planned a big hike. Stay at Camp Wanocksett and hike from there to the peak. I was really looking forward to it, but it was not to be. Scoutmaster came down with a stomach virus and had to cancel. This was last year. This spring, we went up.

Leaving early Saturday morning, we drove into beautiful New Hampshire. We got camp set, got the boys ready, and twelve scouts and four leaders headed off. We hiked roadside for about a mile before entering the park near Gilson Pond. We paid the fee and continued on our way. A short while later, before the going got tough, one of the adult leaders had to turn around. Fit as he was, his legs were not agreeing with the walk. He headed back to camp to help the other leaders who were getting dinner ready.

The trails on Monadnock are very well marked. We hiked together as a group for the most part and made fair time. The youngers in the bunch needed to know how much further on every third step. When the going got steep, they buckled down well. The occasional overlooks were well received. I know many in the group had never been on a walk like this.

The going gets roughest as we approach the summit. Monadnock's bald peak (maybe I am repeating myself) was not created by nature. It was burned in a forest fire about a hundred years ago. Nature is slowly recapturing it but there is time for an easy above the tree line hike for quite a few more generations.

I stopped periodically to take stock of our group. Once in sight of the peak, two scouts said they could not go on any further. These boys ventured far outside their comfort zone and I salute them. One leader agreed to stay behind, so ten scouts and the two remaining leaders brought the rest to the top. It's cold and windy, and the view isn't much better than some of the other overlooks, but it feels good to see the top.

The trek down was uneventful except for the water situation. It was hotter than expected and many scouts brought the bare minimum. We told them at least one liter and they brought exactly one. Plus, many of them guzzled it in the first hour of the walk. I emptied my camelbak into some of the boys and a young 18 year old leader produced quarts of gatorade from his backpack and shared it. Back at camp, they guzzled water, had dinner, and slept well. We went home in the morning.

I leave with one photo. It includes unrelated scouts, but I already put it on facebook, so what's the harm.

Browning Mill Pond, Arcadia

Sunday, January 22, 2012

Our winter hike tradition goes back before my time in scouts, which is at about ten years. The first winter hike I ever went on was around Browning Mill Pond, and about that long ago. It was cold that day. Seriously cold. Our hot chocolate was barely room temperature when we were done. I didn't check the temperature, but I've never been that cold on a hike, before or since. Cub hike or otherwise. This year five scouts and a sister braved the weather.

Browning Mill Pond is absolutely stunning in the winter. There was a fair amount of snow on the ground to give us a workout but not enough to ruin the fun. There was no wildlife to see but small rodent tracks were in evidence. We went clockwise around the pond. The path was well marked and fairly easy to follow despite the snow. Most of the way around is a covered picnic area where we paused for snacks.

Along the way we met up with a Rhode Island hiking club called "Walks and Rambles", apparently named after the Ken Weber series of books. We had a nice chat and went on our way.

There is an optional leg of the hike to make it a bit longer, but after a quick discussion the scouts decided to head on to the hot chocolate, still piping hot I have to say. A boy's enthusiasm for an activity can be quickly diminished when it goes just a little bit too long, so off to the parking lot we did go.

A good time was had by our group, but it's too bad we don't get more participation. If you prepare, a little cold is no barrier to fun. I'll leave you with the best advice we got that day:

BSA and their future

Readers of this blog know that I am a volunteer for the Boy Scouts of America. Recently BSA reaffirmed their policy to exclude homosexuals from membership. While I am not surprised by this decision, I am disappointed. But what really confounds me is that they failed to take the opportunity to at least clarify their position.

What this does is allow for speculation. Is this a moral judgment on gays or are they trying to remove sexuality like they do by excluding girls? With camping, scouting’s signature method, it’s easy to segregate girls from boys for sleeping arrangements, and the need goes without question. But if we have gay scouts, what then? Will there be need for leader training on how to deal with camping nookie?

And with gay scout leaders, are they afraid of leader abuse or the nefarious notion of “gay conversion”? In Scouts defense, I understand the concern of allowing leaders to camp with boys they may be sexually attracted to. However, we know that Venture Scouts allow female members and the Girl Scouts allow male leaders. Add to this the fact that the most recent publicized case of a gay leader being ousted was a woman.

Were I to speculate, I would think a principle concern is the reaction of the more than one million volunteer leaders. Once BSA as a whole allows gay membership, no single unit will be able to opt out, and some among our ranks may choose to walk. A drop of just five percent of the trained, dedicated leaders would send repercussions across the community. Units would fail. And the number may be much higher than that.

The Boy Scouts of America is committed to the healthy development of American boys, and gay youths certainly can benefit from the program. And if they believe their mantra that all boys deserve the benefit of scouting, they will include all boys.

We don’t know yet what the public reaction will be, but we are on the cusp of two critical moments: recruitment and popcorn sales. Will Americans vote with both their feet and their wallet? I hope not. That could spell disaster for two scout units I work with. But we will soon see.

I can’t say how the leaders I know would react to a policy change, but I think it would mostly be positive. I hope BSA’s reasoning doesn’t center around Hellfire and Damnation but I can’t know. When religious doctrine becomes an obstacle to compassion and understanding it must be discarded. Boy Scouts of America must change, and, difficulties be damned, it will. Otherwise this will be it’s demise. BSA must take the moral high road and the initial membership hit. And if we are going to exclude people, we should at least say why.