From: Alan R. Hamm (ahamm@alanhamm.com)
Date: Mon Jul 15 2002 - 16:33:48 CDT
Everyone should realize that there is no correlation between the original
assigned trek and the newly assigned FM#. We also originally had Trek #20
but were assigned 13FM. With the north country partially re-opened, there
is no way to track old and new #'s. I even talked to crews "originally"
scheduled for all south and central areas who had complete adjustments.
Overall they did a great job. Some camps were crowded and I believe that
some quality programs were shortened to accommodate the additional load, but
as stated before, the staff was great at each and every camp we went to.
They typically went out of their way to be helpful.
----- Original Message -----
From: "J. Michael Floyd" <FLOYD@foodser.uga.edu>
To: "Multiple recipients of list philmont" <philmont@troop47.com>
Sent: Tuesday, July 02, 2002 6:56 PM
Subject: [Philmont]: Trek 23 FM report
> This is a report on 23FM trek for 2002 from 615-A2
>
> Crews 615 A1 & A2 were originally assigned Trek 20 for the
> summer of 2002. But, because of the North Country fire we were
> reassigned 18FM. At logistics we requested that we keep the
> Tooth of Time and hike back into basecamp that was originally in
> our Trek 20. Our crews used the following criteria for their original
> trek selections:
> 1. Hike a peak- Mt Phillips or Mt Baldy
> 2. Hike Tooth of Time
> 3. Hike back into basecamp
>
> All our original choices had these three components. We explained
> this at Logistics and was told that no camp changes were being
> made because of the fire conditions. However, Logistics did tell us
> they would see if any other treks not being used on our day of
> departure would meet these items. Luckily for us Trek 23FM had
> all three components for us. ( Of course we all know that there is
> no bad trek at Philmont)
>
> Day 1- Rayado River
>
> Hiked from the turnaround to Rayado River to do ranger training.
> Our crews had free time to go to Abreu and enjoy the Cantina and
> Root Beer. Crews also enjoyed milking the goats and putting the
> chickens up at night. The Staff treated the Advisers to a great
> coffee and a Father's Day cake ( Sunday- June 16th).
> Our Ranger - Brad did a great job ( student at University of
> Colorado) We were his second crew, but Brad had excellent skills
> and was very familiar with several of the Philmont information
> backpacking web sites that we had utilized for our preparation.
>
> Day #2- Urraca
>
> Woke up at 5 am and were on the trail by 6:30 am. The hike today
> proved to the hottest hike of our trek going on the trail from Abrea
> up to Urraca Mesa. No shade. We were at the top by 10 am. We
> felt sorry for the crews who started later in the day and had the full
> heat.
> Staff greeted us at the cabin with gatorade. After resting we then
> did the Cope course. The boys enjoyed these activities and it
> helped to build our team. After the Cope course we set up our
> camp.
> At the staff cabin the hummingbird feeder attracted several birds
> and were enjoyed by the advisers. The camp was very dry with the
> meadow being brown. That night the staff provide music and
> entertainment at the campfire. Next morning we were up at 4:30
> am to catch the sunrise and to do our Outdoor Pledge with our
> Ranger on the rocks near the camp. After sunrise we returned to
> camp for breakfast and to say goodbye to our Ranger.
>
> Day #3- Crater Lake
>
> Leaving Urraca, we hiked towards Lover's Leap camp to Stonewall
> pass. On this trail we had our best view of the Tooth of Time on our
> Trek. Arriving at Stonewall pass we took the trail to Bear Caves trail
> camp and hiked awhile along the stonewall. We had lunch at
> campsite #4 at Bear Caves. After lunch we hiked on to Crater Lake
> camp.
> Here we did the Spar pole climbing and did the He man contest
> that night. Our crew won the contest by running on the staff's cabin
> lawn ( a big no-no)
> When the last crew came in from the Bear Caves trail they told us
> that they had saw a bear 150 yards from our camp. This was the
> only bear report that we had the whole trek.
> Again we had a great staff campfire with music, stories and
> fellowship. The best campfire program during our trek.
> The campfire area has a great view of the Tooth of Time. The next
> morning I got up early and watched sunrise here coming up by the
> Tooth of Time. Great photo opportunity.
>
> Day #4- Fish Camp
>
> We had a great hike to Fish Camp via the Fowler Pass, Bonito
> valley and Webster Pass. The trail down from Webster Pass to
> Fish Camp is a steep trail down for a long time. On the way down I
> fell and broke one of my trekking poles. My oldest son came to my
> rescue by giving me his trekking poles ( after I agreed to purchase
> him his own backing stove after we got off the trail).
> We arrived at Fish Camp. Enjoyed lunch at the cabin and then did
> a cabin tour. Our crew enjoyed the fly tying class, but decided not
> to try our hand at fishing. After setting up camp we did our
> conservation project here by working in the stream to build a dam.
> It felt great to get our feet wet. Everyone in our crew did clothes
> washing here also.
>
> Day #5- Bear Canyon
>
> The next morning we were on the trail by 6:30 hiking up Aqua Fria
> creek to Aqua Fria camp. We took a right and then hiked up Bear
> Canyon. Up the trail there was a large mule deer skeleton in the
> canyon. Several of our crew members climbed down to for a close
> up view. Our first thought was that it was a horse skeleton due to
> it's size. Farther up the trail we came to a small lake with the valley
> on the other side. Great view and photo opportunity. We hiked on
> up to Bear Canyon camp. After setting up camp we then hike over
> to Apache Springs Camp for our commissary pick-up and to do
> Archery, 3D archery and Indian Life. Great programs and staff were
> excellent ( a great change from 2000 where this staff was the worst
> staff that we had). We decided to strip our meals to reduce weight
> and eliminate extra food. We had found that our crews were eating
> only 3/4 of the food that we were getting. This year Philmont
> increased calorie content and volume in the meals. A thunderstorm
> came up and we had to hike back to Bear Canyon in a light rain.
>
> Day #6 Wild Horse
>
> Started on the trail around 6:30 am. We hiked to Porcupine Trail
> camp via Buck Creek Camp. After arriving at Porcupine trail camp
> we hiked up the Rayado Creek to Crooked Creek camp. We
> cooked a dinner for our lunch here since Wild Horse was a dry
> camp.
> We also enjoyed a great tour of the cabin and had photos with the
> famous rifle that a long standing feud exist between Crooked Creek
> and Clear Creek camps. ( Each camp attempts to steal this rifle
> from each other during the summer) The staff here advised us that
> our water source was the Rayado Creek, but the spring was flowing
> in the meadow and the staff was unaware of this. After lunch we
> loaded up with extra water and set off to Wild Horse Trail camp. A
> good uphill hike. Wild Horse is a nice trail camp. We had been told
> it was dry, but when we arrived we found the spring to be flowing at
> the camp.
>
> Day #7 Commanche Peak
>
> Early that morning around 3 am we were awaken by a
> thunderstorm over us. We were not concerned because we
> expected it to be gone by our 5 am wake up time. At 5 am it was
> still above us. We stayed in our tents till 5:45 am. By that time it
> was over us. We got up and broke camp about the time we were
> ready to leave the storm was again over us with thunder and
> lighting striking within a mile of us. Our crew spread out and found
> the smallest trees to stand by and get down on the ball of our feet.
> This was an experience with lighting and thunder all around us. Our
> youth leadership gave excellent leadership during this time by
> instructing all the crew members the correct way to protect
> themselves. When the storm moved farther on we were like a pack
> of drown rats. Since everybody was wet we decided to start hiking
> to get body heat up. Our first obstacle was a meadow trail that we
> had to hike the edge to prevent us from being the high points in the
> meadow. Luckily for us the rain stopped after 15 minutes on the
> trail and the storm moved on. This was a great hike to Clear Creek
> with alot of spruce trees along the trail. By the time we got to Clear
> Creek the sun was out and we were dry. Several of the crew
> members pulled out wet gear to allow it to dry in the sun. At Clear
> CreeK we did the cabin tour and hatchet throwing. Ask the staff
> about the bottle of hair in the cabin. This year's staff did not know
> the story about the bottle of hair. ( Several years ago a staff
> member got a hair cutting from every female crew member who
> passed thru this camp and he kept the hair in this bottle )
>
> Around 10 am we started our ascent on Mt Phillips. I have now
> been over Mt Phillips from both directions. Let me assure you that
> the ascent from this direction is definite harder and steeper. This is
> not a climb that you want to do in the afternoon. The earlier and
> cooler the better it is. At the top of Mt Phillips we did the photo
> opportunity thing with our crew and individuals. We also ate lunch
> on top. My oldest son carried a can of vennia sausage for me for
> Father's Day ( WHAT A TREAT- IT TASTED BETTER THAN
> STEAK ). Of course I shared it with my co-advisers! After lunch we
> hiked on down to Commanche Peak camp. In my opinion the best
> view camp at Philmont. After dinner we had rain which messed up
> us viewing sunset. But we still did a sunrise service the next
> morning at the other look-out point.
>
> Day #8- Upper Sawmill
>
> What a great hike towards Sawmill! The hike down from
> Commanche Peak to Thunder Ridge trail camp is excellent. We
> enjoyed breakfast at this camp and utilized the red roof inn. After
> breakfast we took the first trail to Sawmill. This is a great trail down
> with a lot of great views. About 2/3 of the way this trail dumps you
> onto a 4wd road. There is a new trail being built that will take you
> all the way to Sawmill without going on the road. The road is steep
> and rocky. Hopefully by next summer this trail will be finished all
> the way to Sawmill. Arrived at Sawmill, the cabin is not well
> marked and we ended taking 15-20 minutes finding the staff cabin.
> Another great view from the cabin and a great couch on the porch
> for the advisers to sit on. Here our crew did rifle shooting. Excellent
> program. Unfortunately you have to hike almost a mile to get to the
> shooting range. We also had our lunch here before we filled up with
> water to go to Upper Sawmill ( dry camp ) Apparently Upper
> Sawmill is a new camp with only four campsites that only have
> three sumps. No sign in the camp identifying it as Upper Sawmill.
>
> Day #9- Hunting Lodge
>
> About 3/10 mile down from Upper Sawmill we came across a
> stream with water. Another time we hauled water that we did not
> need to. But, I would rather have it and be sure. Passed Lower
> Sawmill on the trail. It doesn't seem to make since that the order of
> the camps were Sawmill, Upper Sawmill and then Lower Sawmill.
> You would expect to find Upper Sawmill above Sawmill camp.
> Another great hike down the canyon. Arrived at Grouse Canyon.
> We hiked over to Ute Springs Commissary for our next
> commissary pick-up. Notice the electric fence that is on the
> commissary to keep the bears away. The crew got a great treat
> with two apples each being issued to our crew. Our first fresh fruit
> on the trail.
> We then hiked on to Cito, where we got our first bath on the trail. I
> did not know that a hot water shower could be so great. I must
> admit after 9 days on the trail with a shower our crew had a
> STRONG ODOR. Before our showers we did rock climbing and
> repelling. We also enjoyed a trail lunch here in the shade of trees.
> After lunch we hiked on down to Hunting Lodge. We set up our
> camp and enjoyed dinner. At 7 pm the advisers went to the cabin
> for our Advisers Coffee. When we arrived a helicopter flew over us
> going up the canyon towards Clark's Fork. We knew that there was
> either a fire or an medical emergency. The staff informed us that we
> had a fire 1 1/2 miles up the canyon and to get our crews ready to
> leave with emergency gear. Each crew left an adviser at the cabin
> for the latest update.
> We alerted our Crew Leader who took charge in giving directions in
> breaking camp and keeping our crew together. Within 15 minutes
> we were told to pack all of our gear and be prepared to move to the
> evacuation point. By 7:30 all four crews had reported to the staff
> cabin with all their gear. We waited for instructions. We were then
> told that we were moving to Cito turnaround ( 3.5 miles away). One
> staff member took the lead and the other staff member took the tail
> position. Our four crews started on a forced hike of a fast pace
> towards Cathedral Rock. At Cathedral Rock the fire helicopter had
> landed and we got to see it close up. Our last crew in our group
> had trouble keeping up due to several advisers having knee
> problems. We finally moved this crew to the front to keep our group
> together. We hiked along the 4wd road. In front of us we saw the
> bulldozer going up the trail towards Clark Fork with another truck
> behind it. It was getting dark during this period. We then took the
> trail by Cathedral Rock trail camp. We could hear a Philmont Staff
> member calling out a crew number trying to find the crew in this
> camp. A STRONG REINFORCEMENT TO CAMP WHERE YOU
> ARE SUPPOSED TO CAMP AT AND NOT AT THE CAMP
> WHERE YOU WANT TO. We finally arrived at the turnaround at
> 9:30 pm. We were the first group there. Philmont staff told us to
> rest and be prepared to move again. They were expecting 400 to
> come out of the backcountry to this turnaround. With 20 minutes
> we were moved Webster Lake camp. We were asked to set our
> tents up as close as possible. We were also instructed to put all
> bear bag items in our bags and lay them on the ground at least 50
> ft away from our camp. Crews continued to arrive till after 1:30 am
> here. The next morning there was tents everywhere and some
> crews were meadow crashing since they had left tents in their
> campsites. We were told we would receive instructions at 8 am.
> The word came down for leader advisers to go to the turnaround for
> instructions. As we walked to the turnaround you could watch the
> helicopter fly over with the water bucket. We received instructions
> that we would have a bus that would bus us to Badger Camp (
> Cope Course ) and we would hike to the Tooth Ridge via the
> Meadow Trail. ( Our schedule before the fire had us hiking thru
> Clark's Fork and over Shafer's pass onto the Tooth Ridge.) Also
> during the night we were told that the fire was between Ponderosa
> Park Camp and Shafer's pass. In the morning we were also told
> that the fire had been started by a lighting strike two days earlier
> that had smothered for two days before it had flared up.
>
> Day #10 - Tooth Ridge Camp
>
> We were repositioned to the other side of Tooth Ridge. We then
> started to attempt to find the Meadow trail. This trail has not been
> used in years and there are no signs. Evidently a staff member
> came by in a vehicle and helped us to find the trail. This trail is
> steep and way overgrowned. On this trail we got our bushwacking
> experience. Great views up the ridge. When we got to the top we
> found the trail sign had been taken down and the trail block to
> prevent people going down this trail. The trail is only about 1/4 mile
> from Tooth Ridge camp. We were the first crew at camp. We set
> up camp and had lunch. After we hiked to the top of the Tooth of
> Time and did our photo opportunities. A storm was coming so we
> got on down back to the camp. Had a great supper and enjoyed
> our last night on the trail. It was a great time to talk about the trail
> and the great trek we had.
>
> Day 11- return to basecamp
>
> Again got up early for sunrise on top of the rocks. Had breakfast
> while we waited on the sun. After sunrise we got on the trail.
> Coming down the trail we saw a skunk. Arrived at basecamp at 8
> am for hot showers and to catch the 11 o'clock bus into town for
> Heck's burger, Burrito Banquet, and Simple Simon's pizza.
>
> What a great trek!!!!
>
> Let me add that I was very impressed with Philmont Staff how they
> handled the fire incident. I have to also commend our youth
> leadership in their leadership and actions in both the thunderstorm
> and fire evacuation incidents that our crew experienced.
>
>
> Mike Floyd
> ASM, Troop 149
> Northeast Georgia Council
> Lead Advisor-Philmont 98,00,02
> G.A.T.C. Thru Hiker 98 & 00
> Visit our Troop web site at http://www.oconeeTroop149.org/
>
>
>
>
>
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> 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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>
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>
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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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