From: Brad Jones (Bradley.Jones@Colorado.edu)
Date: Tue Dec 11 2001 - 00:58:56 CST
Hello David and List,
My name is Brad Jones, and I have been to Philmont three times, twice as
an assistant crew chief: 1997, 1998, 2000. I am working at the Ranch
this coming summer. Perhaps we'll see each other out on the trails.
> I'd like to know some of the more difficult things I should prepare for
> that other guys ran into.
Hopefully you won't run into anything on the trail that totally blows
you away! The key to a good trek at Philmont is preparation,
preparation, and more preparation. I'm glad that you're taking the time
to familiarize yourself with the ranch and ways to make your crew more
efficient and most of all, have a better time at the Ranch.
> Perhaps there should be a Philmont Crew Chief message board.
This is a chronic problem with youth leadership - no viable and
well-maintained methods of communication among motivated youth leaders.
Those like you (and I, when I was involved in the OA) have no good way
of sharing best-practices in a youth-only forum, at least online.
> Examples of questions I have are:
> We're taking the train, any suggestions on what to bring for the long ride?
Take a plane ;-P Can't build much more on the other suggestions made.
> How and when was planning the trek done? Topo maps...
Third-party maps or intricate topo maps aren't too important - use the
Ranch-wide map for general planning (i.e., where are we going, when?)
and the three separate regional detail maps (North Country, Central,
South Country) for your specialized planning (what trails to take, where
water sources are, etc.) You can get these through the TOTT at the
Ranch, mail-order. Make sure you get up-to-date maps if you borrow some
from other troops. Keep them in a waterproof plastic bag during your
trek and mark them up with sharpies. Your ranger will go over a lot of
this with you. Your itinerary dictates where you have to be each night,
so your major concerns will be with respect to trails, alternate routes,
things like that.
> I know my dad, if we say go left and its wrong we still go left and it
> becomes a longer hike than planned.
> So any good suggestions to make sure I know where we are going? Did a GPS
> help?
A GPS is a waste of time and weight, in my humble opinion. Technology
for technology's sake is always a stupid idea. Common sense should tell
you not to trust trail signs 100% - they are often "fixed" by crews
coming through who think they know how the signs "should" point. Yes,
this happens. A lot.
If you ever get lost, well, there's tons of things to triangulate off
of. But this rarely, rarely happens. Especially if you're on trails
where there's other crews coming through; they can get you "re-oriented"
if need be. Have somebody in your crew be the navi-guesser and keep
track of what trail you're going on, what turns you need to take, that
kind of thing. Make decisions about where you're going as a crew.
> Cool things to try outside of the normal stuff?
Yes! Don't be an average crew. Get up early, don't eat your breakfast
in camp (it'll slow you down.) Get to program in the morning so you get
staff that is fresh for the day. DO PROGRAM! Don't sit around in your
tents and do nothing because the crew doesn't want to do program, go for
a hike, or whatever. Most scouts only get to go to Philmont once!
Consider taking pictures as a crew, and handling duplicates when you get
home. It'll save you a lot of weight. And what's the point of all 12
of your crew taking the same picture, when you can just get them dupped
when you get back?
There is a myriad of other things to do. I'd reccomend reading the
journals of our three most recent treks for ideas. It's a good guide as
to what an experience at Philmont can be -- absolutely wonderful! The
2000 journal has a few hundred pictures linked in, so you can pair
landmarks with photos!
1997 - http://www.charm.net/~bradj/philmont-97/
1998 - http://www.charm.net/~bradj/philmont-98/
2000 - http://www.charm.net/~bradj/philmont-2000/
> Clothes that you really didn't need?
Hmmm... Pack consciously. 50/50 cotton/polyester blend shirts, or
new-fangled wicking materials. Use clothes that can double for multiple
uses; for instance, a pair of detachable pants can be your long pants
that you need for certain programs (spar-pole climbing, horseback
riding..) Don't wear BSA uniforms for God's sake!
> Clothes you really wish you brought?
If you pack correctly, this shouldn't be a problem. Everything you take
should have a clear purpose.
> Types of packs or equipment used?
Up to what each scout likes/has experience with/can borrow or has access
to. I used a generic REI internal frame with mondo-space in it, and it
did me great. I'll probably get a Lowe Alpine Crossbow-series pack for
this summer's work. If you can swing it, bring as much crew-specific,
weight-reduced crew gear with you. Your crew will already know how to
use it, and it'll be lighter than the industrial-strength stuff Philmont
gives you. A good example of this is crew tents versus Philmont tents
-- if you have access to your own, lightweight tents, bring them. This
goes for stoves, tarps, and just about any other crew gear you can dream
of. Sometimes this isn't an option because of cost, but it never hurts
to help yourself out as much as you can. We used virtually no
Philmont-supplied gear, and our pack weights reflected that. Also,
consider certain "personal" items to be personal. Toothpaste, for
instance, is something that can be shared. Toenail clippers, POCKET
KNIVES, mirrors, and all kinds of other items can be consolidated into a
set of one or two. There is no need for people to be dragging around
equipment that they can share!!
> How much did your pack weigh?
30-35 pounds, FULLY PACKED, with TWO liters of water, INCLUDING crew gear.
How? See above. Also, include a game scale (used in fishing) in your
crew gear. Weigh peoples packs before you set out of camp. Everyone
should be carrying an equal burden. How is this fair? You're made
absolutely certain that every member of your crew has reduced his
PERSONAL weight to the maximum. Our crews carried a maximum of 25 lbs
of personal equipment.
> Did you use the Phil tents or your own?
See above. We used Eureka! TimberLites, I think.
> Anything other than bears to worry about, like scorpions, snakes,
> spiders... anything we can get bit by?
Mosquito netting can be nice if you plan to sleep outside (I know, I
know, not officially sanctioned or whatever, but it's fun to do if the
weather cooperates.) "Mini-bears" -- little squirrely rodents -- will
eat through your pack in no-time. If you're not watching your
smellables in your packs, have someone stay with them, or put them up in
the bear-bag. Don't punish people for bringing smellables up after
you've raised your bear bags. This only serves to make people horde
potentially dangerous/deadly smellables in their tent for fear of
humiliation. Bear safety is everyone's responsibility.
> The best food, the worst food, and some don'ts for preparing?
"Strip" your meals when you get them -- for instance, since you won't be
cooking breakfast (it's a waste of time) you can chuck all the powdered
milk (yuck), cocoa mix and associated items. Same goes for things you
know your crew won't eat. If you're not gonna use it, why carry it?
Have a roll or two of electrical tape to seal the bags back up after
you've stripped them. You can also "enhance" your meals by moving drink
packets, for instance, from breakfast meals to dinner meals -- more
drink mix! Don't mix drinks in personal bottles, it's just more to put
in the bear bags. Everyone should have a cup that they put up there
anyways, so use that. Don't cook everything in the same pot, it's
disgusting and stupid. Cook the way you should, and it'll taste awesome.
> How often do you get to wash your clothes, or even yourself?
Water permitting, you can always find a little time for a sponge bath.
Everybody is funky smelling, it doesn't really matter. The main
function of washing your clothes is to get the salt out of them, so you
aren't chafing your way to the base camp infirmary! We've found that
using a big plastic bag filled with water is a great way to do this with
minimum water usage; use your personal parachute cord to hang-dry things
overnight. That which does not dry overnight you just hang on the
outside of your pack the next day; voila!
> How much of the day is spent hiking? How much of the day is open for us to
> do what we want?
Get your hiking done early in the day! Philmont isn't for sleeping
until noon -- you can get your sleeping in (MY favorite program activity
on some days!! haha!) sometime else. Don't stay up far longer than
sundown. Campfires are stupid and oftentimes illegal. Get your crew up
*early*, break camp *quickly*, and eat breakfast on the trail. We would
often get in to camps for the day before many crews were even waking up!
When you see crews waking up and cooking their frivilous hot cocoa and
coffee at 9:00 in the morning, you'll thank me. The sun is hot mid-day,
and you don't want to hike in it more than you have to. Remember, this
is part of getting good program -- you're there early! Also, if you're
on the trail early, you get great views, open trails, and can often stop
in at staffed camps along your trail for program before moving on. Time
is of the essence, and managing it well will help you have a great trek.
> Thanks.
Thank you for doing your crew such a service.
Let me know if you have further questions. By direct EMail preferably;
I get the digest version of the list so sometimes I miss things.
> PS: Yes, I plan on being Eagle in 2002. The reason for my e-mail address
> of eagle2002@ameritech.net
> I have everything done except my project which is planned just before we go
> to Philmont. Then a board of review when we get back. I hope.
I slacked too -- got my Vigil before my Eagle and was right up to the
wire in getting Eagle. Have my CoH over winter break. Good luck!
Cheers,
Brad
-- Brad Jones http://brj.boulder.co.us/ Bradley.Jones@colorado.edu ------------------------------------------------------- Scouting E-mail Discussion Lists @ usscouts.org Subscribe/Unsubscribe at http://usscouts.org/lists/ Listserv Commands at http://usscouts.org/lists/lc.asp ------------------------------------------------------- Send listserv commands to: listserv@troop47.com Send postings to: philmont@troop47.com List FAQ found at: http://usscouts.org/lists/faq.asp ------------------------------------------------------- As you gather around this virtual campfire with fellow Scouts and Scouters, do your best to be trustworthy, loyal, helpful, friendly, courteous, kind, obedient, cheerful, thrifty, brave, clean and reverent. -------------------------------------------------------
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