Patrol Activities Suggestions

[ozemu]

All right you blokes let hear them. I'm keen but have not had a troop trained to a very high level and now I have a troop of my own and I need ideas. I'll start with what we have done so far:

 

overnight camp in a farmers paddock,

 

overnight in a national park with adults a mile down the track,

 

build a raft and float it,

 

bike riding on forest tracks,

 

Your turn. Only tried and proven ideas please - no hypotheticals.

 

 

 

 

[Bear155Scout]

utinsileless cooking,

State parks

visit local military base

Airplane ride

Making snow shoes

Cross country hiking (orienteering off trails)

Visit to state capital talk to a represenative (cit nation)

Tour of wwII boat museums

Goblin valley

Slot Canyons

 

[Eamonn]

Get your mitts on a copy of Scout Pioneering by John Sweet.

You might have to go on E-bay or to the Canadian Scouts to get a copy. But it's all good stuff.

Did you ever get the book that I sent you?

Eamonn

[ozemu]

Wow -this one came back from over a year ago!

 

Bear, since my post I have tried a few of your suggestions. But WHAT is a slot canyon or a Goblin Valley???

 

Eamonn I have not recieved your book. Until I started exchanging things with US Scouters I thought the lost in the post line was just an excuse. Now I have lost a toy Mascot somewhere in Michigan. This is the second time our koala has strayed. Also a Mascot arrived here two days AFTER my Troop went on an overseas trip. It cost a US Scouter about $50 US. I was not impressed with Australia Post. Are you able to track the book?

 

 

I love John Sweets illustrations. I have some old copies of the English (British?) Scout mag. His work is outstanding.

[LauraT7]

patrol or troop activities:

 

a 'crash' campout - their plane has crashed and they have to make do until rescue with limited items - no tents - tarps/ make own shelters, limited/odd foods, utensils, etc.

 

a sample cooking weekend/ day/ meeting - try as many different recipies and cooking methods as you can come up with - sample them all.

 

Bike trails - all over - look up 'rails to trails', and state park info, local bike shops and biking clubs.

 

take advantage of locally planned events - our county conservation district has a re-enacted pioneer encampment each fall - they call it the 'Trail of History' great for skills, lashing, pioneeering, matchless firestarting, metal working, carving, burned out canoes, different foods, nature lore, history, etc.

 

Conservation dist also does night hikes, canoe trips, nature walks, service projects, cross country skiing, snowshoeing, Maple syrup tapping, all kinds of great stuff. Colleges and park districts are other good local resources.

 

local climbing walls - parks or do you have Galyan's stores? lots of sporting goods stores will run events you can tap... archery, climbing, canoeing... they also have great resources for local camping and events.

 

hiking - do some of your compass work and/or find someone with a GPS unit and go geo-cacheing. look up geo-cacheing and GPS on the internet and find local links to co-ordinates. this is where someone has planted some clues to find a 'cache' - usually some kind of container - you search it out, get the little prize inside and leave your own behind - something like a troop patch or trinket. lots of hiking and map work involved - great for local day trips.

 

 

Of course you can always plan an outing or weekend using badge requirements as a guideline for your activities.

 

Don't forget recruiting! plan an activity - like a fishing derby at a local pond - or ice skating, the cooking sample is a good one,- where you can invite Webelos to participate!

 

Set up a swim nite at a local indoor hotel, high school or health club pool during the winter ( make sure to follow safe swim guides!)

 

do a 'lock-in' at a local school, community center or church for your annual planning meeting, badgework, or just for movie night and popcorn!

 

Have a day/ weekend to build a Klondike sled, patrol box, equipment storage in your CO,or other stuff the troop needs ( don't let the grownups have all the fun of building - kids LOVE tools)

 

Volunteer the troop to help set up/ run/ take down a cub packs pinewood derby.

 

Museum overnights - we have spent the night in the Chicago Shedd Aquarium, a WWII submarine, and other museums often have overnight programs - many specifically geared to scouts and badgework - the NASA space center in Alabama, many government centers, have such programs.

 

Also - most military bases allow scouts to camp on their grounds, and some open barracks and food services to them.

 

'Adopt a highway' program - and ongoing service project where you keep a local road or highway clear of trash on a regular basis. they will also post a sign advertising that your troop maintains that stretch of road - good PR!

 

have one patrol set up the directions and coordinates for a 5 mile compass hike in a local park - thereafter, any boy(s) needing that requirement can do it without having to 'wait' for a troop/ patrol hiking opportunity. they can go out with family or a buddy and do it on their own or as a patrol activity. We set one up where at various points, they have to answer a question - like what color is the house you are facing? what kind of tree is at this checkpoint? There is an object to measure in front of you - what is it and what is it's approximate height? how wide is the water in front of you?, etc. We also included the opportunity to identify 10 plants in this 'hike' as reference points, to complete another advancement requirement.

 

Our troop has canoes, and we have been encouraging their use -

 

for 'training' we had a 'canoe olympics' weekend - where we had a pond at a local conservation dist site set up with obstacles and games in the canoes that taught teamwork and manuvering skills - instead of aimless lake paddling. things like an obstacle course, canoe tug of war, a blindfolded paddle (paddlers were blindfolded, middle rider could see and had to direct them in a figure 8)

 

Recently we did a short/ easy trip on the Wisconsin river and camped on the sandbars ans slept under the stars - AWESOME.

 

working up to a boundary waters trip next year....

 

There is just not enough YEARS in scouting to do all the fun stuff I can think up.....

 

to steal a phrase from another scouter....

 

I LOVE this scouting stuff!

 

laura

 

 

 

 

 

[Eamonn]

Some years back we did a 1907 Camp.

Only using things that were around in 1907 !!

Washing dishes in soda - Is hard on the hands.

Back woods is always fun.

So is just having the Patrol do what ever.

Let them plan everything and follow the plan.

Works best if you can try really hard to not stick your nose in!! In fact works best if you are not there.

By the way Truman and Hazelwood wrote some great stuff.

Eamonn.

So did Green Bar Bill.