Troop,
George, Griffin and Vince met last night to assess the weather and gather final instructions that we are sharing with you now.
We are expecting a large group of Scouts which is great! The good news about the weather is that currently there is a low chance of precipitation – but that’s because all the water has already fallen from the skies as we have all seen this week. This is going to create the potential for some very wet and soggy/muddy ground. Here’s what you need to know:
- Meet tomorrow at Chapman at 9AM.
- For Clothing, in addition to coat and warm winter clothing you are to bring ‘extra everything’. Scouts should expect to have an active day of field games and being outside. While the camp is just 24 hours, all Scouts need to be prepared. This means specifically things like:
- extra change of socks, hat, gloves, underwear, shirt and pants.
- a full set of clean sleeping clothes that are not to be worn during the day – warm pajamas, clean dry socks, knitted or fleece sleeping hat.
- Insulated snow boots – no tennis shoes. Bring a second pair of hiking boots or sturdy shoes for the ride home and as a backup.
- All scouts are to bring 3 large plastic garbage bags – the big ones. This is to bag any muddy gear or clothes and make floor mats so as to not entirely trash parent driver’s backseats and cars.
- Water bottle and travel mug for hot chocolate
- Critical – Each scout should bring 1 tarp folded neatly. The tarps are still needed for activities such as building shelters and tarps are useful tools.
- For Lodging, the SPL team made the call to switch from sleeping in shelters to sleeping in Adirondacks. Our assessment is that there’s too much potential for very wet ground and it’s important to keep all the scouts clothing and gear as dry as possible. Here is important information about Adirondacks:
- They are unheated. They will do a good job of protecting you from rain and wind, but it is still an unheated structure and it will be cold at night.
- Scouts are all required to still bring an insulated ground pad and bring and extra blanket or sleeping bag to stay warm.
While Polar Bear this year may be a bit more like Soggy Bear, the PLC has worked hard to prepare a fun day and we all fully expect to have a fun and successful camp. Each patrol is cooking their own menus and Adirondack camping will be a very new experience for most scouts in the troop.
Parent Drivers for Sunday morning. The PLC would like you to arrive no later than 8AM. While it’s going to be fun at camp, all Scouts we think want to rise early and break-camp first thing.
Parents picking up Scouts Sunday morning at Chapman. Our current ETA is 9AM. Please remember this time can float around a bit. It’s a 30 minute drive from camp back to Chapman, so please look at our Twitter page for updates on our ETA. https://twitter.com/troop701ohio
See you all tomorrow morning!
