TROOP 1320 NEWSLETTER
October 10, 2001
“All The News That Fits, We’ll Print”
_______________On the web at “www.troop1320.org ”
SCOUTMASTER NOTES
Idle
hands are the workshop of the devil. So goes the old saying. There is another
not so old saying, “Troop 1320, the most active troop in Peters Township”. As you
read this newsletter you will see again why we can continue to use that not so
old saying. From a review of the recent activities of the past months to the
list of activities which we have planned for the coming year we continue to
maintain our high standards. Frankly, this level of outdoor and other
activities is not possible without the cooperation of many dedicated adults who
give their time and talents to our Scouts. They are willing to give so much of
themselves because they believe that the purpose and goals of Scouting are just
as relevant now as they have ever been. Indeed, while recent events have
reawakened concepts of patriotism and duty to God and country to many of our
citizens, the Scouts had no need to reemphasize such concepts as they have
always been at the core of the Scouting movement. Scoutmaster, Paul Burke
Hello Dolly
Ah Dolly. Dolly Sods. That bewitching maiden of the
mountains of West (by God) Virginia. She beckoned to us and we were unable to
resist. She offered us the sun, the moon and the stars and she delivered that
and more.
Weary from our travel on Friday evening, we, being,
Trevor B, Kyle S, Shawn T, Joe J, David S, Corey G, Dylan B, Dean K, Matt Mr,
Mssrs. Burke, Grimes, Moshier and Shepherd slept in an open meadow on top of
the mountain.
Following a quick breakfast the next morning and the
shuttling of cars, marred only by the “incident of the keys”, we hit the
backpacking trail. The terrain was rough,
(after all no one ever said that Dolly was easy) but the views which we
shared of the surrounding mountains and valleys while perched upon some cliffs
were worth the climb with full packs.
Saturday afternoon we made camp along Red Creek. After
setting up our tents amongst the trees, we took advantage of the near by
thermal springs. NOT! We did however, find refreshment in the cool waters of
Red Creek.
As night fell we gazed in awe at the dazzling necklace
which Dolly had draped around her neck, the Milky Way. The night was so clear
that some enjoyed sleeping under the stars rather than in a tent.
Following breakfast and a Scout Service we headed for
home knowing that dreams of Dolly will bring us back again.
Eagle
Court of Honor
The Eagle Court of Honor
for Daniel Joseph Wanninger has been scheduled for Saturday, November 17, 2001
at 7 p.m. at Trinity United Methodist Church. Following the ceremony in the
sanctuary a reception will be held in the social hall of the church. Be sure to
mark your calendar for this special event.
C & O
Canal Bike Trek
“200+ miles of Mud,
Sweat and Peers”
“Hey, I think that Mr. Wanninger missed the exit. Oh, Oh,
there go our bikes. Quick, get him on the cell phone.” This was our first situation on our C &
O Canal Bike Trek where things did not go according to plan. But like in all
other situations which we faced , we were able to deal with it because we were
prepared. Hmmm, where have I heard that “Be Prepared” stuff before? Whether it
was dealing with flat tires, rain storms or the unlamented death of the gear
trailer, this intrepid crew overcame all obstacles on our bike trek from
Washington D. C. to Cumberland, Maryland from July 4 – July 8, 2001.
Our first night was
spent 12 miles wet of D. C. in a county park adjacent to the trail. Since we
are Troop 1320 and we were going to cover the entire trail we naturally had to
ride into D.C. the morning of the 4th of July to the very beginning
of the trail and then turn around. Once the cleared the congestion from Great
Falls, Maryland we ran into fewer and fewer others on the trail. Well, we never
actually ran into anyone on the trail that is just a figure of speech, don’t
you know.
Any way as we rode along the Potomac River on that first day we enjoyed the vista and
the sunshine until we were about one hour from our scheduled campsite. At that
point the skies opened up and cooled us with a heavy rain. It continued to cool
us and then cool us some more and then as a result of the heavy rains we were
treated to a mud bath or shower from our spinning wheels. Needless to say our
campsite was just a bit damp, as were we, and after a quick dinner everyone
crawled into their tents for the rest our bodies craved with hopes of better weather
on the morrow.
Day two brought sunshine and low humidity. After loading up
our bikes wit the 30 to 40 pounds of gear and food we hit the trail for another
day of great scenery and camradarie. About an hour into the day’s trip problems
began to arise with the gear wagon which was being pulled by at times by Joe
Jasek and at other times by Dan Wanninger. The support arm was breaking and no
amount of duct tape or electrical ties seemed to be doing the trick. Oddly
enough neither Dan or Joe seemed to be terribly upset when we made the decision
to abandon it at the dumpster of a campground. Their lack of sorrow may have
been related to the fact that the wagon was a pain to haul behind a bike on the trail. Since the death of the
gear wagon several theories have been postulated that Joe and Dan secretly
conspired to cause the premature death of the gear wagon. At last report Mr.
Moshier, who was the owner of the wagon, had hired the forensic pathologist Dr.
Cyril Wecht to look into the matter.
Late
in the afternoon we stopped off trail to get groceries for the next day and
half. Oh joy, the only grocery store in town was up a very steep hill on the
way out of town in the opposite direction of the trail. Mr. Grimes supervised
the food detail and because he was so concerned about our calorie intake, given
the limited amount of exercise we were getting by only peddling 40 or so miles
a day, made sure to purchase sugar free and low cal syrup for our pancakes the
next morning. Everyone was so pleased with this wise decision on his part
because that low cal syrup tastes so much better than the one with sugar etc.
in it.
After leaving town we continued back up the trail only to
again experience a late afternoon rain storm when a cold front moved through.
We quickly set up camp and everyone got into some of the warm and dry clothing
which they had brought for just such a
situation and after a dinner of spaghetti we enjoyed a clear night as
the moon set over the Potomac. In the morning we broke camp as the fog was
lifting off the river and had a great day of riding in ideal weather. We
traveled past historic Harper’s Ferry where the Shenandoah River joins the
Potomac and pushed on past Hancock. We sent a foraging party into Hancock under
the control of Mr. Burke with strict instructions to purchase high calorie and
cardiac busting fat content syrup for use on French Toast! That night the crew
enjoyed a feast of tossed salads, foil packs of chicken and kielbasa and mashed
potatoes. The sky was clear the stars were bright and our fire was warm and
cheery.
From this idyllic spot we pushed on up the trail and
through the Paw Paw tunnel. The tunnel was long and dark, much longer than it
looked when we started through it and it was a good thing that no one was
foolish enough to try to ride his bike. Walking was definitely the order of the
day.
This was our last night on the trail and we camped near
Town Creek. After speaking with some locals we discovered that our site was
near a very popular swimming hole. Everyone headed over to it and took the
opportunity to jump into the 12 foot hole and wash some of the grime (not
Grimes) which had accumulated over the last couple of days. After communicating
with our rendevouz team we had another great meal around the campfire and
celebrated the 4th of July, albeit belatedly, with sparklers in the
dark.
Our hopes of arriving in Cumberland relatively clean were
dashed when a very heavy storm hit around 4 a.m. This turned the last 25 miles
of the trail into mud which because of the spinning nature of bicycle wheels
somehow managed to coat us from head to toe. As we approached Cumberland Mr.
Burke’s rear tire began to shred on the side wall. Duct tape was applied
liberally, but alas it gave way and he was forced to walk his bike in the last
one half mile to the end of the trail.
All in all the trip was challenging and memorable with the
only casualty being a tire, two inner tubes and the gear wagon.
Crew Members: Dylan B, Trevor B, Corey G, Joe J, Dan W, David
S, Stephen R, Donald Shepherd,
Rick Grimes, Paul Burke and
Lou Eppelsheimer (Guest).
Summer Camp at Heritage Reservation
Troop 1320 hit Heritage Reeservation this
summer the week of August 5, 2001. The adults who stayed at camp for the week
were Mr. Moshier, Mr. Grosso and Mr. Meloro. All of the Scouts and their
parents should be sure to thank these men for volunteering to go to camp and
using up some of that precious vacation time to make sure that our Scouts have
a great experience at Heritage.
There, now that that public service announcement is out
of the way, I am pleased to report that all of the Scouts who made it to summer
camp had a great time and were able to make great strides on advancement and
earned several merit badges. (For more detailed information see Mr. Meloro’s
article below.)
The troop camped at the Fort Pitt site as we have done
for the last several years which is part of Camp Liberty. We cook all of our
own meals and do not take our meals in the dining hall. The Scouts are divided
up into patrols and each day are assigned duties within the patrols.
All of the Scouts enjoyed the waterfront, fishing,
working on merit badges and the opportunity to avoid bathing daily. Classic
lines such as, “Hey, I went swimming, that’s as good as a shower isn’t
it” were heard more than once.
We have already made our reservation for summer camp
again next year for the first week of August. Be sure to mark the family
calendar now.
Greens Sale
One of the purposes of Scouting is to teach
self sufficiency to young men.
One of the ways that we teach
self sufficiency is financial in nature. Each year we, as a troop, conduct a
sale of quality Christmas Greens which
we secure from a nursery in the Pacific Northwest. The sale of these greens
results in a profit of approximately 33%. In other words of every $1 sold the
Scout will earn roughly $.30. You will note that I stated that the Scout will
earn the money from the sales not the Troop. All of the money that an individual
Scout earns goes into a separate account which is available to use for Scouting
activities including dues, summer camps and the expenses of a High Adventure
trip to Philmont etc. It can also be used to purchase camping equipment so long
as the purchase is approved in advance by the Scoutmaster.
Believe it or not, your Scout, with the right
encouragement can pay his own way in Scouting. Please be sure to encourage your
son to take advantage of this chance to handle the costs of his own activities by
taking part in the sales of the Christmas Greens which will be starting later this month.
PARENTS: FOR YOUR INFORMATION:
October
12-14 Camping
and Rock Climbing, Quebec Run
Nov.
2-4 Backpacking
Elk State Forest- Elk Herd
Dec.
2 Caving
Trip
Jan.
25-28? Skiing
at Timberline
Feb.
9-10 Winter
Camping Laurel Ridge
March 22-24 Camping
at Twin Echoes
April
26-28 Gettysburg
May
24-27 Annual
Memorial Day Canoe Trip
June
14-16 Camping
and Sailing Moraine State Park
July Backpacking
Otter Creek Wilderness Area
August 4-10 Summer
camp @ Heritage Reservation
_________________________________________________
________________________________________________________
Troop Committee Meeting
The next meeting of the troop 1320 committee will
be held on October 25, 2001 at 7:30 at the Scout House. Richard Meyers, the
troop committee Chair will conduct the meeting. You can expect that matters on
the agenda will include Community Service Projects as well as upcoming
activities for the Troop. All parents are welcome and encouraged to attend.