Hiking MB a thing of the past

[namu35950]

Hiking MB what a great idea, have young boys explore the woods. And its Eagle required. Well may maybe not, talking with other SM in my area and its seems no one is doing the Hiking MB anymore. Think about it, you can earn the swimming MB in a MB day school, so why even look in the hiking direction. 5 10 mile hikes and a 20 miler and doing the paper work with it? seems like a few months of work when I can get swimming in one day. Plus, remember boy led? they choose which MB to earn, I took my troop on a 10 mile hike, 10 times around a mile paved track, I told them for the trips we wanted to take I needed to know who could make it and who could not, I was surprised who did make it. Does anyone else have this issue? I think Eagle MB should take time to do and not get credit in 4 hrs of class time, Is Hiking a thing of the past in Scouting? Your thoughts and thanks

[fr-john]

Yes I miss the days when hiking was eagle required. I always felt that being able to plan a safe hike was a good scout skill ,but i also felt that that cooking (once an eagle required badge) was a good scout skill also.

[qwazse]

Our boys love hiking (the activity, not the badge)! Half of them would have it if they just met with a counselor and did the paperwork. A couple of them actually do. Seems to me the one sure-fire way you could make a boy hate hiking is to make him walk 10 laps around a track. I bet even our Philmont veterans would quit after lap 2!

 

I don't know what "MB day school" your boys go to, but my son has been working on swimming MB for 3 years! He's a fine swimmer too! Just one req. well within his ability. But, nobody's going to coddle him and call a counselor for him or adjust his camp schedule or any of that helicopter stuff.

 

You probably can gather that in our troop we wouldn't give a donkey of a rodent for Eagle vs. non-Eagle badges. We never tell a boy to focus on one or the other. If all a kid wants to do is earn electives, fine by us.

 

[Roadkill Patrol]

We have had a couple scouts do both Hiking and Swimming for rank advancement since they they changed the Star and Life rank advancement from Hiking or Swimming or Cycling to Hiking AND Swimming AND Cycling. They preferred the hiking better even though it took longer simply because of the scenery. With swimming, it was more of a chore to do in a pool and wasn't as fun as enjoying the outdoors at a slower pace where they can converse with the others on the hikes. Overall in the troop, we have had about equal numbers taking hiking and swimming. I guess it is a personal preference for the youth.

[Tampa Turtle]

We got at least 10 boys banging away at the Hiking Merit Badge. Pretty popular. We also had a 14 year old Eagle who did all the old Eagle MB requirements including Mile Swim just to show off old school style to his dad.

[NJCubScouter]

I think that basically our Scouts who have gone/are going to Philmont earn the Hiking MB, I don't think anybody else does.

[Oak Tree]

We've had a couple of boys earn Hiking. I think that essentially the only ones who do it are the ones who don't like to swim all that much. We've also had a couple of Scouts earn Cycling for the same reason. But the substantial majority (80%+) use Swimming out of those choices.

[Basementdweller]

"Plus, remember boy led? they choose which MB to earn, I took my troop on a 10 mile hike, 10 times around a mile paved track, I told them for the trips we wanted to take I needed to know who could make it and who could not, I was surprised who did make it."

 

 

Talk about picking the out come of a question....... Why not put them in the swimming pool and force them to do the mile swim.

 

I hike and backpack a lot and if you forced me to walk on asphalt for 10 miles around a track I wouldn't pick it either.

 

 

I call your method for determining which to take flawed.

 

Take those scouts to a trail with some interesting stuff and I bet every single one of them would have picked the hiking merit badge.

 

We do a mix of urban and forest hikes.....they are very popular with the boys.

 

 

[skeptic]

Just for clarification, Hiking Merit Badge has NEVER been an Eagle requirement, and only became an option in the past two decades. The ONLY MB's continuous required since 1912, or in an option, are Life Saving and First Aid, with the latter the only continuously absolutely required.

 

Do not remember if Lifesaving ever had a mile swim requirement, but do not believe so, rather a quarter mile. Will have to go look in old books to see on that. Swimming was officially listed the first time in 1925, but one would assume to get Life Saving a scout would need to swim. It actually was in and out a number of times in the 20's through 40's.

 

There are a lot of fables as to what early boy scouts needed to do for various things. Tenderfoot was almost a gimme for years, but becoming 2nd and 1st was intensive. Eagle, along with Star and Life, first Life and Star, were basically just advanced merit badge recognition's until the 20's when leadership and elements of service were added to evaluations, but very generic and subjective. Projects did not start until about 1965 or so. Early requirements reflected the culture of the day to some extent, but they still were NOT anti new technology. Scouts were turned to during WWI for help with wireless receivers and so on, as they were really into building them, and understood better than most adults. Fire by friction or flint and steel was NEVER a requirement, as matches already existed. They were encouraged to learn the skill, but two matches was the actual lighting rule.

 

Personally, I would love to see the first three ranks more restrictive, in that there are "some" time restraints between, and some type of strengthening of basic skills and their retention.

 

But, even back then, there were likely "parlor scouts", as the sign offs were not always strictly overseen, anymore so than today sometimes. Overall, boys in the program were far more prepared than the average boy of their period, but there were some that likely would still be considered less the ideal, even today.

 

 

[Horizon]

I agree that swimming is easier to earn than hiking for most boys thanks to summer camp and other opportunities. We have a local swim training center that offers Swimming and Lifesaving almost every weekend.

 

In my old Troop, only a couple of boys every earned Hiking due to the 20 miler. One boy did it with a side hike on a backpacking trek just to get it. In my Troop as a boy the Troop would do the Walk for Mankind hike as a way to complete that requirement.

[NJCubScouter]

I think most Scouts do not choose Cycling or Hiking MB because the number and length of the hikes/trips required for those badges make them much more challenging and time-consuming than Swimming. (Assuming that the Scout can swim.) Not that there is anything wrong with challenging and time-consuming, but it's natural that a majority is not going to choose that path. (There are exceptions for units with a concerted program and/or tradition directed at those merit badges.) Our troop has had some boys earn all three; we had a parent a few years ago who organized some bike trips planned around the Cycling MB requirements, and probably about 10 boys earned that badge, plus a few them were in the group that went to Philmont and earned Hiking, and I think all of those boys earned Swimming as well since in our troop that is usually done in first-year summer camp.

 

Maybe there should be a special award for Scouts who earn Swimming, Hiking and Cycling, and maybe throw Lifesaving in there too, another "optional required" badge that most Scouts in our troop do not earn.

[Horizon]

I find it interesting that people use Philmont to complete Hiking - in our Troop it is used to complete Backpacking (another badge I would prefer to see on the Eagle list).

[OldGreyEagle]

So, can a swimming merit badge be earned in a day? Is that the real point? How many times does a scout earn the swimming merit badge in a day?

 

Namu, is that the real point?

[rollie67]

As it should be, boys in our troop have been choosing what they enjoy doing....so some of each. A few boys are actually close to completing all 3....they are planning to do their 20 mile hike Saturday through the parks in Milwaukee. The interesting thing is that the 1st and 2nd year scouts also signed up for the 20 miler instead of doing the 10 mile option. We asked them about it, concerned that they may not realize what they are getting into, but they said they wanted to try it with the older boys. My son and 4 of his friends have been working on their cycling merit badge since last summer and have completed their 6 shorter rides and are ready to plan their 50 miler, before it gets too hot during the summer. Then my son and a friend both have signed up for the swimming badge at summer camp. I asked if the knew that it wouldn't count towards Eagle (they already have enough non-required badges too) because they already should have the other 2 and they said that's fine...they just want to get it. I thought good for them. So in the end, I think it still comes down to what the boys want to do.

[Basementdweller]

This is how we get 13 year old eagles.....couple hours in the pool eagle required merit badge.

 

OGE you know his point, why expend the extra effort?????

 

To some it is simply hurdles to be jumped come and not the journey. Swimming merit badge check.

 

 

Let me see, 70 miles of hiking at 2 miles an hour that is 35 hours vs 4 hours in pools.

 

Yes hiking takes more effort than swimming but less than cycling.