2 observations on the most recent posts.
RE:Alaska - I can't think of a place I'd like to go more than to
Denali/Alaska. Everything Alex described would be a dream come true for
me. I tell my wife I want to go somewhere that I have to take a .357
along when I go to take a dump at night. HOWEVER, my opinion is that a
place like that is NOT appropriate for taking a BSA group without a lot
of very stringent conditions. The risks are approaching the level of
recklessness unless the crew is all significantly older. Maybe one
scout with one Scouter as a ratio, but I just don't think BSA High
Adventure is intended to be the ultimate wild "you could die any day
now" experience. Northern Tier, from what I understand, provides a much
more wilderness experience then Philmont, but I don't hear of the
dangers of grizzly bears, etc., that would be a concern in Denali.
Alex, because you were a Philmont ranger (with a lower case r)I can tell
that you loved your time at Philmont, but I have to say that when you
throw out terms like "Disneyland" when comparing outdoor experiences,
it's kind of insulting to the many thousands of people who made a trek
at Philmont. I know you didn't mean it that way but look at it from the
perspective of a 14 to 15 year old who looks up to Philmont rangers.
Terms like that are usually used by people who have mastered the type of
challenge offered at Philmont and have moved on to other, tougher, more
age/experience-appropriate adventures, and good for them.
But I can't imagine a pro football player coming out to my son's 10-year
old team practice and demeaning their efforts simply because they are
not at his level. Actually, relative to each others size, a 10-year old
hits another 10-year old as hard as adults hit adults in football. The
adults have moved up to another level. Hopefully, they would encourage
the kids to stay with the program, not tell them that they are just
little twerps in football "Disneyland". HH isn't Philmont either, and
isn't meant to be. Through-hiking the AT isn't Philmont; isn't meant to
be. Have I mastered challenges in the out-of-doors that make Philmont
seem easy? Sure. But what would the effect be if I told my just-back
Phil-vets that they really didn't do anything special?
Accomplishments are all relative. My 15-year old son just hiked all 11
days and 70-odd miles on a toe he broke the night before leaving for
Philmont. He chose to follow through on all he had worked for. It was
his choice, not mine. You come tell him he really went through
"Disneyland". You might just have an argument on your hands...with both
of us! :^}
And Alex, the Army developed this cool high adventure program if you
want a challenge. It's called Ranger School. That's Ranger with an
upper case "R". 90+ pound rucksacks, almost all operations done at
night, completely student-led, no hip belts allowed, one meal a day
while patrolling, carrying a 10 to 25 pound weapon, in the Appalachian
Mountains and Florida swamps, 2-3 hours sleep a night for 58 days
straight...kind of makes the Alaska Council's Denali base seem
like...Disneyland. ;^/
RE the alternative cooking technique.
Bob LeBlanc, a frequent contributor to Selden Ball's website, rips
people who use turkey bags as adding to the landfills/being wussies for
not cleaning pots. I think he needs to lighten up, but he has a point
about adding to trash by using additional turkey bags. By using the
same bags the Phil-food comes in, our crews method does not create a
need for any additional items and therefore, we contribute nothing more
to the landfills.
Date: Sun, 22 Aug 2004 13:28:50 EDT
From: EA1981GLE@aol.com
Subject: Alaska as an Alternative to Philmont
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While there is no one that loves Philmont more than me, the Western
Alaska
Council offers customized adventure treks that can include backpacking,
canoeing, kayaking, rock climbing, ice climbing, fishing, whitewater,
glacier
hiking, etc. Guide accompany you the entire trek.
They have been doing this for the last 3-4 years and are in the process
of
putting together a link to the council website.
In addition, the Western Alaska Council will be developing a High
Adventure
base that will probably begin initial operation in 2007-08. They have
acquired 2,000 acres adjacent to Denali State park which is adjacent to
Denali
National Park.
Gotta say that this is a true wilderness experience that, (and it pains
me
to say this,) makes Philmont look like a backpacking version of
Disneyland.
As soon as they have the site up, I'll post it to the list.
If you are interested in more information for 2005 expeditions, (they do
fill up quickly with a minimal amount of advertising) email me and I'll
be glad
to put you in touch with the Camp Director
Alex in Alaska
Philmont Ranger 1986
Training Ranger 1987
Date: Sun, 22 Aug 2004 16:30:34 -0500
From: "Joe Tavares" <j.tavares@comcast.net>
Subject: RE: [Philmont] - philmont Digest - V01 #1089
Rehydration is the way we went this year at Philmont, as well. However,
we
did use turkey bags and "cooked" all the food together in the 1-pot
style
our ranger described to us (at least until the chili mac and mashed
potatoes). My recommendation from that point on changed and I would
suggest, in the instances where you receive mashed potatoes, cook them
separately.
Basically our style of cooking required boiling water in one pot, line
the
other pot with a turkey bag and put the dry food in it, then pour enough
boiling water into the turkey bag to rehydrate. Twist the top closed
and
place a lid on the pot. 8-10 minutes later, all was edible. If you
make
the mashed potatoes separately (my recommendation), pull the mail course
turkey bag out of the pot, add new turkey bag and the mashed potatoes,
then
water to rehydrate them. The original pot is now empty and you can drop
the
main course back down into it to keep it safe from accident.
There are probably a hundred different ways to cook at Philmont, and
1-pot
cooking is great for everything except mashed potatoes. But the key, I
think, is to get to Clark's Fork on the night they serve brownies during
Advisor's Coffee!
Joe
808-L3 Itinerary 24
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Received on Mon Aug 23 07:46:09 2004
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