Where can today’s youth escape from the draw of phone screens and videogames and experience the great outdoors along with building valuable life skills? Why, Scouting of course. Month in, month out, the Scouts of Crozet Troop 79 get a chance to go whitewater rafting, rock climbing, backpacking, winter camping while learning to work as a team and build leadership skills. During a week in August, 15 local boys along with four adult troop leaders attended a summer camp program at the 500-acre Camp Shenandoah in Augusta County.
Many of the younger Scouts were engaged in learning basic outdoor skills such as fire starting, cooking, proper use of the axe, hatchet and saw, as well as tying useful knots. Many other fun and instructional opportunities included archery, rifle marksmanship, canoeing, kayak and sailing and swimming in Hope Lake at the camp. Several programs offered more advanced skills such as orienteering, first aid, blacksmithing and welding, as well as environmental science. There were numerous opportunities to earn merit badges required to advance through the ranks of Scouting leading up to Eagle Scout.
Quinn Fowler, entering his sophomore year at Western, was serving as Senior Patrol Leader this year. He has been active in Scouting for many years, starting out in Cub Scouts, and was looking forward to improving his skills in climbing and boating during this year’s camp. Bo King, 11 years old, has been involved in Scouting for three years, was planning to participate in canoe, sailing and mammalian studies at the camp. “I joined Scouting because I like the activities and the fun trips,” he said. “My favorites have been whitewater canoe and backpacking in the winter, even though it was chilly in February.” His 13-year-old brother, Jeb, has attained the rank of Life Scout, just one step away from Eagle. When asked about his merit badges, he said, “The swimming badge required you to dive and recover things under water, but the personal fitness badge was the hardest; it required you to keep a record of your personal fitness for three months.” Nick Hendricksen, a fourth grader who swims for the Crozet Gators, said, “I really like the camping trips, skills training and making new friends.” He was planning to engage in kayaking and archery during the camp week. Forest Grizzle, a Star Scout attending camp from Troop 114 in Ivy said, “I like the outings and mountain biking, and I am proud of my rifle shooting, hitting the bullseye.”
On the last night of the camp program, the troop was tasked with a wilderness survival exercise that involved going out into the wilderness area of the camp and building a shelter from scratch, using only materials available to them in the wild. There was rain most afternoons during the camp week, which made for more challenging conditions…