What a great trip back in time!
I've often wanted to go back to CBG and see what's there.
I was a scout there '63-'66, junior scoutcraft staff '67-69, eco/con director '72,'72.
I could picture every step in the verbal tour.
At my age I can't remember what I did yesterday, but I can vividly remember things from first summer at site 1, my OA Ordeal, my Brotherhood tap out, leading silent nite nature hikes (with my staff guys playing tapes of owl calls off in the woods), the "walk-in sit-in", etc. etc.
I've got tons of old pics and slides, even a set of arial photos I took in '68?
As eco/con director, I started the nature area. One of my junior staff, Jeff Rugg, had a red-tailed hawk that he would fly and kept in the staff area, and one of the other guys (can't remember his name now) had 2 baby racoons that he released at CBG. We also raised a few mallards from chicks. We also had a Great Blue Heron that one of my junior staff observed falling about 100 feet out of it's nest at the wilderness camp. We nursed it back to health and it hung out in the little pond in the nature area. One day we made an inflatable dome out of ground cloth plastic with the pieces heat sealed with an iron, inflated with a box fan on the lodge lawn. Anybody remember that?
Of course, any of you former staffers will fondly remember Friday nites in town (Scottie's?), but one weekend off, my staff and I did a field trip to one of the state wildlife preserves north of Antigo. I can still picture 6 or so guys riding on the hood and top of my '67 Newport creeping miles down paths into the widerness.
Sorry to hear about John Bland (known back then as the Cheeto Blandito) and Gerry Streit; both outstanding men.
Now I need to check out the CBG website.
Anybody, please feel free to contact me. I live in Southern Illinois, but usually spend may-july working the Fox Valley.
Dan Starck
www.jumpbuilder@earthlink.net
