I’m in the green shirt, just in front of the guide at the back of the raft
I hadn’t gone to a scout summer camp in a couple of decades. I reset that timer a couple of weeks ago.
Things have changed quite a bit since I last went to summer camp. One of the most notable is that Scouting America, which was formerly known as the Boy Scouts of America, now has girl troops. I went as an assistant scoutmaster for my two oldest granddaughters’ troop and my grandson went with the boys troop that is sponsored by the same church. All four of us rode up and back from here to just outside Blairsville, Georgia in my Tesla. Charging the car up and back was not an issue.
What WAS an issue is how out of shape I’ve become over the years. From the main parking lot, which is not the lowest part of the camp, to our campsite was a 130′ vertical climb. Imagine walking up and down the stairs of a 13 story building multiple times a day and you get the picture. My legs are in better shape now than they were before we went to camp.
All four of us had a great time. The highlight for my oldest granddaughter and myself was a rafting trip down the middle section of the Ocoee river. The low point? We canoed out to a campsite on the far side of the lake one evening and slept in hammocks. My hammock was missing the side ropes needed to spread the hammock out from side to side and the tie points for the ends were too low to get me fully off the ground. When I got into the hammock, my feet were a good two feet (no pun intended) higher than my butt, which was on the ground. One of the other leaders took a picture of me in the hammock and another leader took some creative license to enhance the picture…
Merit badge opportunities have changed over the years. One granddaughter took the Welding Merit Badge. I think she has decided that she doesn’t have the patience to make welding a career choice. The other granddaughter worked on her horsemanship merit badge, as well as several others. All three grandkids spent quality time at the rifle and shotgun ranges. I had the opportunity on Friday to go to Blairsville and charge up my car for the trip home. I was able meet up with my youngest brother and his wife and take them to lunch while I was there.
Both scout troops have a full calendar of adventures planned for the upcoming school year and I can hardly wait to find out where summer camp will be next year. Needless to say, I’m hoping that I’ll be able attend summer camp next year with my grandkids.
I hope you are having a great summer as well.
Rob