Philmont - 50 Miler Backpacking

Lightning Safety: Debunking The Myths

August 23, 2023October 21, 2015 by Kieran Cunningham

There are lots of myths and misconceptions about lightning strikes on outings. However, one thing to remember is that there is no safe place for Scouts during an electrical storm. Scouts and leaders have been hit by lightening (and killed) in shelters as well as open spaces. In fact, during one especially terrible storm at the Griswold Scout Reservation in New Hampshire, 23 Scouts who had taken shelter under a canopy were hospitalized from a lightning strike that hit close to them. The problem is serious enough that BSA has studied it ……….

Lighten Up On Pack Lists

May 5, 2020January 13, 2014 by Uncle Dub Zero

Every credible organization provides a pack list to participants before taking them on any sort of high adventure backpacking outing. Inexperienced participants and their parents dutifully take these pack lists into stores to buy everything, exactly as it is written on the list. This is all very nice, except some pack lists are not very good at all.

It’s Spring and Spring is Backpacking Season for Real Scouts!

February 3, 2020April 1, 2014 by Uncle Dub Zero

Its Spring – a time when every sturdy young Scout starts thinking about the backpacking season ahead. Across the country, young men are pulling packs out of the closet, cleaning out the leftover food from last year, and getting ready for practice hikes. Adults are enthusiastically stepping up to do the same. Many with the goal of completing their first 50 miler backpacking trip before the end of the summer.

Getting Ready for Philmont!

February 3, 2020March 3, 2015 by Uncle Dub Zero

As Spring approaches, hundreds of Scouts and Scouters across the United States are preparing for their trip to Philmont this summer. After winning a lottery to secure a spot, and after collecting payments over the past year, it now becomes very real for the 20,000 hikers who will converge on the small town of Cimarron, New Mexico – gateway to the Ranch. Are you one of them?

How Can We Start a Backpacking Program In Our Unit?

February 3, 2020February 17, 2019 by Uncle Dub Zero

Backpacking has lost favor among Scouts and Parents for many reasons and starting or restarting a backpacking program is not easy for many Troops