What did you do this summer?

At the troop's Aug. 18 Monday-evening meeting, many members of the troop recounted their Scouting adventures from Summer 2014. First on the evening's agenda were Junior Assistant Scoutmaster Ethan and Assistant Senior Patrol Leader Davis, who along with Assistant Scoutmaster Jason Smith, headed to North Carolina for the "Five Rivers in Five Days" high-adventure experience at Camp Daniel Boone. Davis and Ethan shared about the various rivers and rafting challenges the three of them enjoyed during the week and recommended the trip to other Scouts for future summers.

The remainder of the evening's presentations focused on the troop's primary summer camp expedition to Camp Woodruff. The troop's senior and newest Scouts alike gave Camp Woodruff high marks for advancement and extracurricular camp activities. From the first-year Mountain Man program to dining hall menus to "bonus" activities like rappelling and whitewater rafting, the overall sentiment was that everyone had a great time. Joe, one of the troop's newest Scouts, had such a great time at the camp's waterfront that he made a special Lego-focused diorama featuring his experiences to include in his presentation.

Following the summer camp presentations, Scouts split up into their respective patrols. The troop will reconvene Sunday at Chewacla State Park for its end-of-summer court of honor and swimming outing. Next Monday's meeting will be a working meeting and will include a reorganization of the troop's trailer to ready for the fall camping season.

'Five Rivers' group enjoying 'wildest rides' possible

Ethan and Davis set out with their guide
on their first rafting expedition Monday.

The troop's "Five Rivers in Five Days" Camp Daniel Boone contingent — Junior Assistant Scoutmaster Ethan, Assistant Senior Patrol Leader Davis, and Assistant Scoutmaster Jason Smith — are enjoying some of the "wildest rides a commercial trip can offer" as a result of rainy evenings the past couple of nights in the eastern North Carolina area. From Wednesday through Friday morning, another two or three inches of rain are expected, which promise to make their most challenging leg of the trip — the Section IV leg of the Chattooga River and its Class IV-V rapids — a rafting trip to remember.

The trio eat at the camp's dining hall for breakfast and dinner, and spend the rest of the time traveling to and rafting on each of the five rivers that make up the week-long high-adventure trip. Wednesday's itinerary includes Class III and Class IV sections of the Upper Pigeon River, as well as an afternoon hike to an area that provides some cliff-jumping into the river.

Clockwise from top left: Ethan catching dinner from the bank;
Davis cleaning the day's catch; Davis and fellow camper Jordan fishing
from the boat; and fish...it's what's for dinner!

Davis, Ethan and ASM Smith with
other rafters from their campsite.

They've expanded their social circle by befriending other Scouts in their campsite — all of whom are participating in the "Five Rivers" program. Together, they've banded together to supplement the camp's dining hall offerings by fishing in Camp Daniel Boone's lake and grilling the day's catch in their campsite. Assistant Scoutmaster Smith reports that the group of around 20 Scouts plan to coordinate their fishing and cooking efforts for tonight's dinner.

Get a recap of the entire trip by checking out all the posts from the troop's Five Rivers in Five Days trip!

We're rolling, rolling, rolling on five rivers!

Ethan and Davis at the gates of Camp Daniel Boone

On Sunday, Junior Assistant Scoutmaster Ethan and Assistant Senior Patrol Leader Davis – under the watch of Assistant Scoutmaster Jason Smith – set out for a five-hour trip to Camp Daniel Boone, located in Canton, North Carolina, for their summer camping experience. Both Scouts have twice attended Camp Daniel Boone as campers working to earn merit badges, but this summer they are returning to participate in the camp’s “Five Rivers in Five Days” high-adventure water trek program.

Camp Daniel Boone is nestled at the base of North Carolina’s Cold Mountain — one of the Great Balsam Mountains, which are a part of the Blue Ridge Mountains within the Appalachian Mountains. The camp is surrounded by a million acres of national forest and is located at 3,300 feet above sea level. Its proximity to some of the most well-known whitewater in the region offers Scouts and Scouters a unique week-long experience on some of the finest waters in the Southeastern U.S. Participants will spend the majority of each day on the water while staying on camp property each night at its Harrison Outpost — except Thursday, when they will camp at Oconee State Park in South Carolina.

The group’s schedule will include:

Sunday: arrival at Camp Daniel Boone and check-in 

Monday: raft the Class II section of the Nantahala River and Class III whitewater of Nantahala Falls within the scenic Nantahala National Forest of North Carolina and near the Great Smokey Mountains National Park

Tuesday: raft the Class II and Class III sections of French Broad River through the scenic Pisgah National Forrest in the mountains of North Carolina 

Wednesday: raft sections of the Upper Pigeon River’s Class III and Class IV whitewater along the eastern border of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park

Thursday: raft through the southern Appalachian Mountains while experiencing the Class III and Class IV rapids of the Ocoee River’s Middle Section, which will include rapids with names like Grumpy’s, Table Saw, Broken Nose, Double Trouble, Double Suck and Powerhouse 

Thursday Night: camp at South Carolina’s Oconee State Park 

Friday: raft Section IV of the Chattooga River made famous by the film “Deliverance” and to include Seven-Foot Falls and Five Falls, the latter a series of back-to-back Class IV-V rapids with names that include Jawbone and Sock’em Dog

We look forward to sharing some exciting images and video from the expedition in our online photo album, thanks to the GoPro video cameras both Ethan and Jason will be sporting during the trip.