RE: [Philmont]: An Advisor's Quandary (& Please Help with Trek Se lection)

Before our last trek in 2004, we were able to take advantage of a nearby
Scout camp with dispersed campsites. The crew would hike from one campsite
to the next, set up camp, break out the stoves to do some "cooking," pack up
everything, evaluate, and move on to the next site. I believe they went
through this cycle four or five times. The advisors felt it was the best
pre-trek training they did. This was on top of day hikes, short backpacks,
and a 50-miler the previous summer.
 
Alan R. Houser
SM-retired, Troop 24, Berkeley
Philmont Crew Advisor, 1993, 2006
alanh@askcnet.org <mailto:alanh@askcnet.org>

-----Original Message-----
From: Joe Tavares [mailto:j.tavares@comcast.net]
Sent: Tuesday, February 28, 2006 8:42 PM
To: Multiple recipients of list philmont
Subject: RE: [Philmont]: An Advisor's Quandary (& Please Help with Trek Se
lection)

We tend to mix them up, but my major intent with shakedown hikes is to build
in as many realistic camp setup/breakdown combinations combined with cooking
that I can. I know these young men can hike, but I have to make sure they
can get up and out of camp, with Leave No Trace in mind, fast enough to get
to the program after a long hike. Once there, I want to have dinner and to
relax, so I need them to set camp as efficiently as they break camp. That
is what we practice with our shakedowns. Sure, we have some mileage, mostly
for the advisors, but really it's all about the camp skillsets.

  _____

From: owner-philmont@troop47.com [mailto:owner-philmont@troop47.com] On
Behalf Of Garrett, Russ
Sent: Tuesday, February 28, 2006 7:40 PM
To: Multiple recipients of list philmont
Subject: RE: [Philmont]: An Advisor's Quandary (& Please Help with Trek Se
lection)

I don't know about everyone else's shakedown hikes, but ours were 2-3 days.
We didn't do just day hikes. The real tests for the shakedown hikes came in
backpacking as a group, learning to hike together (including hydration
breaks), set up camp, cook, clean, break camp and be on the trail for more
than two days at a time with the same people and to navigate using the map
and compass as a crew.
 
The parents clearly could see if their scout was not fit for our shakedown
trips. We climbed 2-3000 feet out of the Columbia River Gorge and then back
down over the course of each of our trips. One stretch of the PCT goes on
for about 7 miles of switchbacks down to the Columbia River like the trail
down from Tooth Ridge into base camp. Physical conditioning was more of an
issue, in our crew, for the adults. Mental conditioning was the key for the
scouts. They need to be prepared to work as a crew the entire time and to
be together on the trail for 10 days. We took Trek 30 and took a number of
side hikes including Hidden Valley and over Wilson's mesa. We also
navigated the ridges from Red Hills Camp to Schaffer's Pass. Lots of
vertical but beautiful views.
 
Russ

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Received on Wed Mar 1 14:56:24 2006