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Venturing on a shoestring


baggss

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Venturing on shoestring. I've been trying to find "sample adventures" that dont bust the wallet, but will give the crew a sense of what a full-blown outing would be like. That way they can decide if they want to pursue it further before shelling out money for something they may not really like: The best example i can come up with is getting the sampler platter at a restaurant, you can try smaller portions rather than taking a chance on the full-blown entree. I'm looking for ideas to fill that platter with.

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There is no typical Venturing outing. It is what you make of it. My daughter is in two Crews, one likes to get together and plan ski trips, hostel stays, beach trips. The other likes to go camping, and high adventure type activities. Search your neighboring councils for activites. Some will run weekends aimed at Venturing.

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yeah, I'm starting to actually wonder what a venture crew would do in my area. Not near the mountains, so no skiing, no climbing (except the indoor gym or the local BSA camp), no white water....

I guess swimming, scuba, flat water paddling, hiking, man made climbing.... only so much....

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Give us some definition of your shoestring :). At the risk of being labeled a BSA shill, the Summit is offering such a sample platter starting this summer. But it's not inexpensive ($600+/person I believe). Our crew went to Latimer Scout Reservation a few years back for the whitewater. I think they offer other programs as well. Not sure of the cost.

 

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Heres an example of 3 of 4 shoestring outings combined into one high adventure 1 snowshoe day trip (cheap) 2 overnight backpack trip (cheap) 3 Overnight winter camp (cheap) 4 cross country sking (cheap) combined into a 2 night 3 day hike/snowshoe outing, in a state/national forrest, or even on a rail/trail

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yeah, I'm starting to actually wonder what a venture crew would do in my area. Not near the mountains, so no skiing, no climbing (except the indoor gym or the local BSA camp), no white water....

I guess swimming, scuba, flat water paddling, hiking, man made climbing.... only so much....

Kayaking,

Rocket Launches,

Jai Alai,

Fishing,

Coconut Harvesting,

Salsa Dancing,

Kite Building,

Costal Search and Rescue,

RC Airplanes,

Dog training,

Hog Hunting,

Invasive species removal (Python, Lionfish, African Crocs ...)

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shoestring, ideally less than $30 per single event, per day, like $25 5 hour standup paddleboard rental. The overpriced bsa events to me are just pre-planned group vacations. planning should be part of the experience.
Contact your local sportsmans club to see if they host any youth NRA certifications.

Field sports with a mix of large and small caliber rifles, shotgun, and pistol can be done in a 1/2 day on that kind of budget.

Cycling trails.

See if anyone has a family farm near a scenic trail.

Dutch oven cooking can be a big draw.

An evening at the go-cart track.

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Give us some definition of your shoestring :). At the risk of being labeled a BSA shill, the Summit is offering such a sample platter starting this summer. But it's not inexpensive ($600+/person I believe). Our crew went to Latimer Scout Reservation a few years back for the whitewater. I think they offer other programs as well. Not sure of the cost.

Where are you at? I've been to Latimer multiple times, it's in my council: Middle Tennessee Council. And their whitewater is on the Ocoee River via Outland Expeditions.
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What part of the country are you in Baggss? I'm attending a 1hr lecture on this topic soon. I will share what I learn if it is pertinent.
Don't forget road trips. I've seen scouts from Michigan on the Minister Creek Trail in PA.

 

But for more ideas you might want to put your youth in touch with these guys: http://www.michiganscouting.org/WaterAndWoods/News/WWnewVOA2014.

When I started as an advisor my VOA put my youth on to some great activities and opportunities.

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Turns out the class I took wasn't very helpful. I knew it was going downhill when the lecturer started asking, "So, what's a shoestring. Its different for different people" Specific treks were in the Texas and Colorado area from Houston. None were under $350/person. I was hoping for ideas of close by adventures for $50/person or something. (What I get for thinking).

 

Best thing I can add is to start looking at close by national parks or preserves. Sorry I wasn't much help.

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