Hardest Merit Badge Taken

[iScout95]

What Was The Hardest Merit Badge Ever Taken For You?

[skeptic]

For me, it must have been canoeing. I flunked it. I can still remember two things about being on Jenks Lake next to Camp Arataba in the San Bernardino Mountains in summer of 1959. The swamping requirement found me talking to a row boat of girl scouts about how I did not need help. As a 15 year old, it was a bit embarrassing; but looking back just humorous. But, for whatever reason I could not master the j-stroke, and so could never paddle a straight course. I have tried over the years, but still for whatever reason cannot do it consistently. Now, I just laugh and zig-zag as needed. Of course, unfortunately, today in many camps they would have passed me I am afraid.

[iScout95]

Really? Well That Was One Of The Easier Ones For Me But No One Can Master Everything Like For Me It Was First Aid

[moxieman]

Two fall into the category of hardest for different reasons:

 

Archery MB, which took two summers for me to complete. I had a 'handicap' the first summer. A day into camp, I had an accident involving a flying flaming marshmallow and the palm of the hand of my bow arm. Had a bandaged 2nd degree burn the rest of the week. Second summer, I obtained completed it with a qualifying score during a tropical storm. No, seriously. Five minutes after I finished, the winds picked-up and knocked over all the targets.

 

Emergency Prepardness MB (I was a poor swimmer, so Swimming/Livesaving were out for me on the Trail to Eagle)--in this case, the challenge was finding a living, breathing MB counselor. The one on the troop/district list at the time had been deceased for three years.

[Eagle732]

Lifesaving. back in the day when you had to complete it to make Eagle.

[shortridge]

Two for me:

 

Small-Boat Sailing. The camp waterfront area was on a small creek with very little wind, so tacking was a mite difficult. My buddy and I stuck the mast in the muck on the creekbed twice while flipping the boat. I was awarded the badge, but probably didn't earn it. The next year I went out with a friend during open boating, full of supreme confidence in my sailing skills (though I hadn't practiced them in a year). We ended up having to get retrieved after drifting away around the bend.

 

Wood Carving. I must have started this badge three different times with three different counselors. Never finished it. I can whittle a stick down to fine dust... but figuring out how to create a 3D shape from a block of wood is beyond my intellectual capacity.

[SctDad]

I have to agree with the Lifesaving MB. That was a tough one for me. But I made it through with lots of trying.

 

As for other awards, the mile swim took a lot out of me. But I finished it and it was a great moment when I climbed out of the water and they handed me my patch.

 

Maybe one of the things that I should not have done was take both of those druning the same week. Or maybe it helped. Who knows.