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Happy New Year to everyone!!! I hope this holiday season has been a great one for all of you! Looking back on 2011 it was another great year for troop 592!!! We started the year with our first Polar Bear Camp out in many, many years!! Smokey fires, warm hot chocolate, snug sleeping bags, snow for sledding will be a part of your memories of that event for years to come! High adventure was in the plan as well. Two crews canoed the boundary waters at the Northern Tier High Adventure base in Northern Minnesota in June. Miles of lakes, forests and wildlife surrounded our boys as they met the challenges always presented in High Adventure. You feel the wind in your face as you paddle across crystal waters. You ache from the strain of carrying your canoe and gear across rough terrain as you portage from one lake to another and your reward - you see a world where nature is still untamed by what we like to call civilization. Eagles fly over you. Moose may appear on the shore. You learn that you can live without a cell phone, a refrigerator full of food, a store around the corner, or a television. When you return to base camp you do so with a new found confidence that you really did prepare yourself to be able to meet this kind of challenge through all your work as a young scout.
Of course, I cannot leave out Summer Camp. Scouting likes to call it long term camp. We simply call it Tesomas! What will they think of next!! The rock and roll theme for the week was really fun. I really did not expect to have Mr. C. face paint me to look like Gene Simmons – but he did!!! Boating, swimming, wilderness survival, merit badges, the mile swim – wow, I could go on for several pages just on Tesomas alone. If you really want to know what I mean and you did not get a chance to go with us to Tesomas yet, make it a priority this year!!!
The fall was busy as usual for all of us and we did not get a chance to do as much camping as I would have liked to. We did have a great time at Camporee and many scouts earned the pioneering merit badge.
Now, looking ahead to 2012, what is in store for us?? Well let’s hit some of the highlights. January 13 and 14 we will be going out to Indian Mound on our Polar Bear Campout once again! We will sleep in the Adirondacks and try to keep the smoke down on the fires this year.
February we will go to Klondike Derby on the 4th. We will go just for the Saturday event this year. In April we will go back to On to Eagle this year. That is scheduled for April 20, 21 and 22. In May we have reserved a camp site at camp OH-DA-KO-TA in Kenosha County. This will be held on May 18, 19 and 20. This camp out will feature fishing. We have not been to this camp in about 5 years so most of our scouts will have a new experience. This camp is now part of our new council, the Three Harbors Council. That brings us to June and we will go to Muskego Park once again. That should be June 20, 21 and 22. That brings us to July and before you know it we will be at Camp Tesomas once again. The dates this year are July 22- 28th.
The Patrol Leaders Council will be involved in making some decisions for the fall. Some ideas are; Devils Lake, The Civil War Reenactment at Greenbush (this really is cool), and Eagle Cave.
What about high adventure!! Well, I haven’t ruled it out but if we do something this year, it would probably have to be – a semi high adventure. 2013 will bring us two opportunities. First, it is Jamboree Year. We have talked about this at meetings and it is really a unique opportunity. Please consider it if you can. It will be the first Jamboree at the new Bechtel – Summit High Adventure Base in West Virginia. We have great leaders signed up for the council and it will be the first Jamboree for our new Three Harbors Council!!! What memories you will have!! In most cases scouts will only have one opportunity to attend a National Jamboree just because of the way they are scheduled and the length of time you can be a scout. If you can, don’t miss this opportunity!!
We are in the very preliminary stages of putting together a High Adventure Trip to Sea Base!!! If we are able to get a reservation in the upcoming lottery we will start the planning in earnest. What can you do to prepare? Build your scout account for one thing! Make this a priority in your schedule. It would most likely be scheduled between June 15th and August 1st. If you are not a first class scout, get in gear and start completing those requirements!!! Stay involved in the troop. There will be two important requirements. 1. You are a first class scout. 2. You have been active in the troop.
Please accept my thanks and appreciation for all you do as scouts as well as how you live scouting in your daily lives. To all the leaders and parents, my special thanks for supporting our efforts. Camping is our tool but what we are about is building character. Join us in the fun!!
I’ll See You On the Trail,
Mr. G.
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