CA_Scouter

Jumping in here a little late... we did a Yellowstone trip back in 2009. We set a few rules, 14 and/or first class, if not, then an adult would have to accompany the scout. With regard to adults, the best way I found to weed them out is to insist on a non-refundable deposit up front, say $100 or more.... or state that the deposit must be received 3 months prior to the trip... The way we handled fundraisers is that we track hours the scout participates in the fundraiser and he receives an appropriate share to his scout account - use if for anything they want, including the deposit. Best thing is lots of communication and education up front. Emphasize the physical requirements of the hike, especially with the out of shapers and be honest but kind. We took 21 people out there from California, rented 2 vans, spent one night at Granpas in Elko, then one at a local scout council day camp in Idaho. Got a group camp in Yellowstone first night, then we split into three groups (max 8 per group) and did separate trips for 3 more nights, then all finished at Old Faithful. Another night at a group camp in the park then drove back, stopping once more in Elko. With our fundraisers, discounts, saving money by staying at Granpas, etc... we had a final cost of $135 per person, which included vehicle, gas, permits, 2 meals, campsites, etc. Backpacking food was left up to each group. Make sure you delegate some of the work, preferably to scouts but adults as well. Send in your route requests as early as possible. The ranger actually called me and he and I worked out all three trips over the phone, he was VERY accommodating for our group. This was an outstanding experience for our troop. We still talk about it.... Good Luck!

We had a scout in similar situation. At that time there was no leadership position for Leave No Trace, so I gave him the job of leading the training and getting the younger scouts through the requirements. I think about six kids and four adults came out of it with our LNT patches/thingys....

The fact that you have brought this to the attention of the forums indicates (IMHO) that its a problem, no matter how benign it may seem. If someone wants to make fun of himself, fine, but once you start poking fun at others its a slippery slope (as others have indicated). Related info: We had a situation some years back where scouts were assigning nicknames to each other so we made a 'rule' that the person being assigned the nickname had to agree to the name, otherwise no go.

In my experience, I'd also say that its a non-issue with the Scouts themselves. They have little, if any, knowledge of the membership requirements of the BSA. I'm not sure they would care much about this change in policy anyway.. its not like they have no exposure to alternative lifestyles in their daily life....

But Merlyn... I understand that you DID belong to the club at one point. Does that mean you were an anti-gay bigot at that time?

I've recently notice a little seepage on my Marmot GoreTex Jacket. No seam problems just a little dampness on the inside after some recent rain. I was browsing the Marmot shop and spoke to one of the salesguys. He told me that I should put the jacket into the dryer at low heat for about 20-30 minutes. He said that will help the Goretext to (for lack of a better term) 'reset' and seal itself back up. Apparently the product is a coating which needs occasional heat treatment to keep it working correctly. This makes sense because whenever I wash the jacket, I line dry it. I always thought it was a bad idea to put gore tex into the dryer. He also told me that if that didn't work that they have a product which may help and if that didn't work then they would check on the warranty status and I could possibly get a pro-rated discount on a new jacket. Nice company. Thought I'd pass this along as an FYI.

Yosemite NP (multiple times) Yellowstone NP Lost Coast (northern California) Trinity Alps Wilderness Emigrant Wilderness Desolation Wilderness

Camp Fees are divided per person, adults included. This is collected by the adult Taskmaster. Patrol food is generally $10/15 per weekend. Patrols handle the menu planning, purchasing the food and collecting money. Adults never handle patrol food money. Scouts are expected to contribute $5 to their driver for gas. More if a longer trip. None for short trips. Adult food is generally breakfast/lunch do your own thing, dinner is divvied up: appetizer, main course, side dishes, dessert. We strongly insist that scouts bring food money to their grubmaster the meeting prior to the campout so the grubmaster's family doesn't have to front the cost and chase down the scouts to collect.

Hmmm, in our troop 'two deep and driving' referred to how deep we could stack 'em in the back seat for sharing seat belts. You mean we were doing it wrong all this time??!??

I think you are trying to be too helpful. Its not your responsibility to keep track of other peoples forms, nor to copy them, nor to put them in plastic sleeve, nor to design a notebook, etc. By doing that you are taking the responsibility away from them and putting it upon you, so they are not vested in the process. If you lay down the law and state that people are responsible for providing you with the medical forms (or copies) and that failure to comply will result in non-participation, then you put the responsibility back on them. Our summer camp coordinator does just that, and everyone still gets to summer camp, though some forms are turned in at the parking lot that morning... ;-) If you want to set a standard that people are responsible for themselves, then that's a good start. This should trickle down to your Scouts and they will eventually be responsible for themselves also... (don't mean to preach, just advisin'....)

I'm looking for a "Sheen/Lohan 2012" sticker. I live in a red county and work in a blue county. I keep my opinions to myself. Here is what I hear in the red county: "I can't stand that guy, there is no way I'm voting for him." Here is what I hear in the blue county: "I can't stand that guy, there is no way I'm voting for him." Yes, social networking has replaced bumper stickers and a lot more. Young people rarely use traditional email any longer but rely on instant messaging from their social network providers. Pretty amazing huh? Email is 'old school' now.

Congrats Lisabob and LisabobSon!

Echoing Barry's comments about newcomers getting fried, there used to be a time on this forum when that was the rule, not the exception. I stopped posting for a while (and am still pretty careful when I do) because of the tendency for some folks to spin an innocent/ignorant question into personal criticism. Thankfully those persons no longer participate and its a friendlier place. I did think the thread was getting out of hand and morphing into personal criticisms, name calling and not sticking to the original subject. That tends to happen when arguing with the Big M. It also tends to happen when arguing with 6 year olds so it seems silly to continue the discussion. IMHO.

Hmmm... this is kinda more interesting than the original thread...

In case anyone was wondering, the event went without a hitch and was a great success. Everyone who met us on the trail couldn't be nicer or more supportive of our efforts. Not a negative word was uttered. We live in a red county in a blue state so I'm not too surprised. Incidentally we raised over $2K for our former scoutmaster. He is currently in recovery for the bone marrow transplant but is struggling a bit so prayers and good thoughts are welcome. tks