Home.7 October 2000
Greetings to All. This is the second of my "late" Scoutmaster's Minutes. As noted in the last "Minute," these will be (somewhat!) shorter than my usual treatises. I will publish a combined Numbers 6 - 8 "Minute" for June, July and August within the next 2 weeks. Stay tuned....
Did you know that the Troop buys either Boy's Life or Outside Magazine for every registered Scout? Boy's Life is the official magazine of the BSA for Scouts, while Outside Magazine is a commercial periodical which covers a wide variety of outdoor activities. The transition point between the two is April of the Scout's Eighth grade year - we let the Boy's Life subscription lapse during our February rechartering (the subscription is two months behind the rechartering), and sign on for Outside Magazine through the following September. If a Scout stays active through high school, his subscription lapses the September he heads off for college.
It was one of the busiest transition periods transition periods in living memory as we headed into the new Scout year. Joining the Troop were two new Scouts (Burton B. and Nathan P.) and two transfer Scouts (Paolo R., from the Tidewater Council/Norfolk, and John Cru., from Troop 162 in Arlington (Westover Baptist)); Paolo, a freshman at O'Connell, is already a First Class Scout, while John, an Eighth Grader at Swanson, is (he thinks!) a Second Class Scout.
However, we also bid goodbye to four Scouts: Matt C. (Life), Shane Mc. (Scout, who had been on a Leave of Absence), JT R. (Second Class), and Tom W. (Second Class). Good Luck to Each!
Also asking for Leave of Absences for most or all of the Fall Semester were: Richard B. (Life), Jeffrey C. (First Class), Neal K. (Life), Jay P. (Life), and Adam S. (Life). Adam will likely be the Troop's next Eagle Scout.
Finally, graduating out of the Troop and into college were no less than seven Eagles!:
John Arthurs - Wheeling Jesuit
Greg Brady - Old Dominion
Daniel Holland - James Madison
Kevin Kempter - George Mason (deferred for
one year while Kevin pursues becoming a Certified Instructor in
Martial Arts)
Brendan Macdonald - Virginia Tech
Matt Stainback - U.S. Naval Academy
Michael Strasburg - George Mason
A new roster reflecting all of the above changes, plus new Senior Scout officers, plus some Patrol membership "tweaking," was published by Brian P. on September 25th. An updated/corrected roster will be published within the next month. Be on the lookout for it!
We started off September just like we ended up August - with another Eagle Scout! Chris Wolff - our 70th Eagle Scout, completed his marathon on September 9th, 2000. His Honor Roll:
Chris' Eagle Project was sealing all the cracks and repainting all the parking lines in the upper (Stafford St. side) parking lot at St. Agnes Church, completed last December. A tough wintertime job, taking just over 200 man-hours to complete.
Chris, a Senior at Yorktown, has Ithaca College as his current Number 1 choice.
Thanks to the Board of Review members Hank Dettmar, Clay Henderson (from Troop 104), John Manning, Gordon Pennington, and Jim Smith, who all came out on a Saturday night for Chris.
In other "Eagle News," however, I regret to announce the death of Bernie Venverloh, Eagle Scout #33, in Germantown, MD. Bernie, who earned his Eagle in 1978, died of cancer at the age of 38. He was a highly successful Civil Engineer. Of note, he attended the Troop's 50th Anniversary in 1990, and was one of the few Eagles who wrote up a historical recollection for the Troop archives. Rest in Peace.
On Sunday, September 17th, we held our first Board of Review for the new Scout Year. Moving up the ladder were:
Kenny E. (Life)
Matt G. (Star)
Michael R. (Life)
Carl S. (First Class)
Eric W. (Life)
Congratulations to Each the above Scouts!
This coming Monday, October 9th, Bill N. will be escorting a group of Scouts on a railroad trip up and around Baltimore, as part of the Railroading Merit Badge. On the weekend of October 13th-15th, we will be traveling to Camp Potomac, MD, for our annual Guns and Arrows Campout, traditionally the Troop's second most popular event after the Projectoree. On Saturday, October 21st, we will be heading back to Baltimore for our second Orienteering Meet. The Troop placed 4th last year out of about 35 participating Troops - the highest showing ever for a first-time attending Troop; we hope to do even better this year! On Sunday, October 22nd, we will be assisting the Troops at the Annual Marine Corps Marathon; this will be our 13th straight year of participation. Finally, we close out October with a day hike on Sunday, October 29th - a required event for all Western Adventure 2001 participants.
The next Board of Review will be held on Sunday, October 22nd. Rita R. will contact the affected Scouts during the previous week to set up appointments with the Board.
-Redskins Service Project-
On Sunday, September 3rd, we headed off to FedEx Field (yucch, what a name!) for the Redskins versus Carolina Panthers home opener. This is about the tenth time over the past 6 or 7 years that we have worked a Redskins game; in brief, we hand out a promotional item at the game - in exchange for which we get free seats, usually getting in sometime around the end of the first quarter. This time, we handed out magnetic Redskins schedules (those things you can put on your refrigerators.) Since we were working three gates, I'd estimate we handed out about 20,000 magnets - most of them between Noon and 1pm, even though we had to work starting at 10am. There were two nice facets to this years service - first, due to the addition of the so- called "dream-seats" around the perimeter of the field, we were given actual tickets up in the stands (in our case, upper nosebleed on about the 35 yard line, but any seats at the new stadium are pretty good!) Second, there is a new discount promotion for "FedEx Field Bucks" - early arrivers at the stadium can buy each "buck" for 50 cents. They're good at all concession stands, so this effectively gave us all our food and drinks at 50% off (a much more reasonable deal, since the prices on everything are otherwise pretty steep.)
We got into the stands about 10 minutes into the first quarter, with the score already tied at 7. It was quite hot and humid, but other than a brief and light shower near the end of the third quarter (which actually felt pretty good), we lucked out on the predicted heavy rain. The game itself was a rather dull win for the Redskins - the action really didn't pick up til about mid-way through the third quarter. Of note, the Redskins let the clock run out the last minute with the ball on the Carolina 3 yard line - a class act. The final was 20 - 17. Coming home, the threatened downpours materialized just as we crossed the Potomac and headed up to St. Agnes, great timing for us! Participants included:
Patrick D., Brad G., Dan Hu., Ryan K., Stefan N., Patrick P., Nathan P., Dale R., Carl S., Neil S., Chris W., Eric W., ASM Adam Sh., ASM Mark S., and Dr. Bob.
Extra magnets were distributed at the first Troop meeting of the year. As of this "Minute," no other Scout promotions have been scheduled for future games, but I would expect at least one more opportunity before the end of the season (but it's likely to be just like this one, with very little notice - stay tuned.)
Report by Ted G. - The new Scouting year got off with a bang September 22nd when 43 Scouts and adults headed out to Ohiopyle State Park in southwestern Pennsylvania to raft the lower section of the Youghiogheny River. The "Yough" runs through the southern portion of the Laurel Highlands area, which includes the Laurel Highlands Trail and, at the northern end of the region, Kooser State Park and the Seven Springs and Hidden Valley ski areas.
Most of the participants departed in a large convoy at 4:30pm on Friday, only to struggle through very slow traffic for a good deal of the escape from Washington. Although the HOV-2 lane along the Beltway and I-270 provided some relief, once that ended the vehicles were mired in slow traffic for more than 20 miles in the upper reaches of I-270 and (unusually) even on I-70 West. The Troop took a fast food dinner break, but then ran into road construction in Cumberland, Maryland, that forced the convoy to exit I-68 and detour through local streets. Consequently, it was 11pm before the vehicles pulled into the Ohiopyle State Park group campground. We cancelled the planned evening snack in favor of getting the tents erected and the Scouts to sleep. A few late-departing participants wound up getting in only shortly after the main group, despite leaving Arlington over two hours later!
The group sites at Ohiopyle were, for a change, situated adjacent to the main campground, putting a bathhouse, a field, and the amphitheater within a short walk. The Park Rangers enforced a two-vehicles per site limit, however, forcing several adults to park their cars at a remote lot (even though an unused lot was right next to our site). It was inconvenient and unnecessary, but rules are evidently there to be enforced!
Saturday's weather was auspicious. While Washington suffered periods of rain, the weather on the western divide of the Blue Ridge was pleasant, with some sun breaking through and temperatures rising into the mid-70s. Tropical Storm Helene cooperated by staying to the south and heading out to sea. After breakfast of cereal, donuts, fruit, and juice, we headed around from the campground to the outfitters' headquarters. The Park has four concession outfitters to provide guided trips; Troop 111 went with WhiteWater Adventurers. Upon check-in, many Scouts and adults opted for rental of wet suits, given the 65- degree river temperature. As it turned out, those that passed on the wet suits did fine, due to the mild air temperatures. We also decided to have everyone wear helmets, a precaution that later proved to be a wise one.
Troop 111 shared the 10am WWA trip with a group from the Washington office of Thompson Financial and a few individuals. WWA used buses to shuttle us all to Ohiopyle where we sorted ourselves into rafts and listened to instructions from the guides. We carried the rafts down to launch and headed into the river. One guide rode in one of our rafts with the youngest Scouts, and the rest of the guides watched us from their kayaks.
The lower Yough run is about 7.5 miles of Class III and IV rapids, starting just below Ohiopyle Falls. George Washington scouted the Youghiogheny (so named from Indian words meaning "frothy water") looking for a water route to transport troops and supplies in the French and Indian War, but abandoned the idea when he came upon the falls. Not in the same league with Niagara, but an impressive sight nonetheless!
Before heading into tricky rapids, the guides gathered the rafts along the riverbank for instructions. Several rapids provided good rides and plenty of waves broke over the rafts. All Scouts and adults had to paddle hard to position the rafts to avoid rocks and head down the right chutes. The self-bailing feature of the rafts was very handy - a channel around the floor allowed water to drain out of the raft. We saw several regular rafts filled to the brim with water, making it hard for the paddlers to maneuver around the rocks!
The scenery was spectacular-the river runs generally northwest through a pretty gorge but at Ohiopyle takes nearly a 360-degree loop around a headland called the Ferndale Peninsula. As the river turned away to the northwest again at the end of the loop, we passed far below a railroad bridge. The bridge is now part of an excellent 40-mile bicycle trail that parallels the river from Confluence to Uniontown. All went well through lunch, when the guides served up fruit, sandwich makings, cookies and drink at a comfortable spot along the riverbank.
After lunch, we ran the most treacherous section, where the river divides around a large rock called "dimple." Taking the wrong route around dimple is dangerous - there have been several drownings in this stretch of the river. The guides directed us and had lifelines at the ready for the rafts that would flip - and sure enough, two of the Troop 111 rafts did! If a raft is driven up against the rock, the water pins it there, pushing the downstream side of the raft up the rock while flooding the upstream side, causing it to flip. Dr. Bob, the Schratwiesers, Cassidys, and Schulzes were among those enjoying a "Youghiogheny Swirlee." Although a few of the involuntary swimmers were banged around in the water, no one had a serious injury (except for Noel S.'s state of "Zen-Rapids"). Everyone, however, came away with renewed respect for the power of moving water! Those that wound up underwater and rapped against the river bottom were glad to have their helmets on!
We also discovered that the guides paid little attention to rafters who had rented rafts, kayaks, or "shredders" but who were going through the rapids on their own. Several of these folks were thrown out of their craft and floated by. A few times Troop 111 rafts that had made it through paddled out to intercept people floating by, only to have our guides instruct us to return to shore. As one of the guides explained, they would assist if someone was truly in danger, but otherwise they were being paid to keep us safe, not to help the non-guided rafters! Plus if a "rescued" non-WWA swimmer ended up having an injury while in a WWA raft, that was a potential liability catastrophe for the outfitter.
Eventually all of our dumped rafters were pulled in and reunited with their rafts, and we finished with a much more tame section of the river, which gave several Scouts a chance to swim and to attack other Troop rafts! After the haul-out and return to the base, several Scouts and adults headed to a natural waterslide on a stream feeding into the Youghiogheny. Here the water has worn the rock smooth, providing several stretches where you can slide over the rock into small pools-the longest of the slides was over 100 feet!
The late-afternoon weather grew threatening and the Scouts erected additional tarps at the campsite. Little more than drizzle materialized, though, and a snack and dinner were devoured in short order. A long game of ultimate Frisbee on the nearby field preceded dinner, and (after taking down all the tarps that had just been erected) an equally long game of Logan's Run followed after dark. Meanwhile, other Scouts not playing or cooking built a big campfire, and Dr. Bob pulled out his guitar and songbook. Between the adults who stayed around the campfire and the Scouts returning after Logan's Run for a "s'more" frenzy, Dr. Bob ran through many of his regular camp tunes - even doing "American Pie" twice! Drizzle returned, and Scouts gradually headed off to their tents. In another bit of perfect timing, everyone was in bed by 11pm, when the skies opened for a two-hour downpour!
Sunday reveille was early - 5:30am - in order to make 8am Mass at the local Farmington church, St. Joan of Arc. It rained for a short time - fortunately lightly - then stopped in time for the Troop to have breakfast, finish packing and loading, and depart. After Mass, the trip back to D.C. was slowed by heavy fog in the valleys. The troop returned about noon, but good weather in Arlington permitted the Scouts to clean up and dry the wet tents and tarps before heading home.
A very successful trip! Participants were: Chris B., Luke B., Charles B., Matt C., Mike Ca., Mike Ci, Ray Di., Ray Di. Sr., David G., Todd G., Ted G., Matt G., Brad G., Dan Hu., Will K., Hovey K., Ryan K., Mike K., William L., Daniel M., Kevin M., Al M., Stefan N., Jack O., Terry O., Patrick P., Nathan P., Paolo R., Thomas S., Hugh S., Charlie S., Noel S., Casey S., Larry S., Adam Sh., Neil S., Mark S., Steve S., JJ T., and Mark T., Tim T., and Dr. Bob.
Report by Ted G. - On Saturday, September 30th, the Troop did a one-night trip to Rocky Gap State Park in western Maryland as a refresher on backpacking for some Scouts who had done the Appalachian Trail trek in 1999 and as a primer on Troop 111 backpacking skills for several younger Scouts.
We departed at 7am with clear skies and bright sun and drove out to the youth group campground at Rocky Gap. After checking in, we left some of the crew gear in the van and took a hike over Evitts Mountain varrying moderate backpack loads- 15% of body weight instead of the 25% typical for a backpacking trip.
We took an historic route-the Pennsylvania border lies just a few hundred yards north of the youth group campground area. The border - which is the Mason/Dixon Line, of course - is kept clear for 15-20 feet. We cut through the woods to the north until we hit the Mason/Dixon Line, then followed the line due West, straight up Evitts Mountain. The slope was gradual at first, but then became very steep, gaining 1050 feet elevation in a little more than one mile. The going was slow and hard, but gave us a great opportunity to introduce the younger scouts to the "caterpillar" hiking technique, which gives everyone a welcome break while keeping the group as a whole moving steadily. The reward at the top was a spectacular view both to the west and the east. A natural gas pipline runs parallel to the Mason/Dixon Line about 70 yards into Pennsylvania, and there is a large clear area at the top of Evitts Mountain from which we could see both the Mason/Dixon Line and the pipeline climbing over ridge after ridge in both directions as far as one can see. The one disappointment was that we were unable to find the original Mason/Dixon marker reportedly still on the line at the ridge top.
After a water and gorp break, we headed down the Evitts Mountain trail, which descended gradually along the top of the ridge toward the "rocky gap" from which the park takes its name. Along the way we stopped for lunch at the Evitts homestead site. Evitts was reputed to be the first white settler in Allegheny County, having chosen a remote location to set up a farm and live as a hermit in the late 1700's. More than 200 years later, all that remains are extensive rock walls marking the fields he cleared, and the well he dug.
After lunch, we resumed the hike. When we reached a trail junction, the more ambitious Scouts (Todd, Carl, and Tom C.) decided to extend the hike around Lake Habeeb (with Hugh and Mark), while the rest of the crew took the more direct route back to the campground. The Scouts enjoyed hiking with Dave Colomaria, who was a Life Scout with a Massachusetts troop and who attended Philmont in the mid-1980s with a provisional Crew from his council. When we reached the campsite, we set up the Timberlite tents, gathered wood for a campfire, and otherwise got camp ready.
The rest of the hikers returned, and we headed down to the lake beach for some volleyball, courtesy of the Mark and Neil S.'s professional beach volleyball set. While the Olympic teams have little to worry about, our play was just as spirited, with several Scouts and adults sacrificing their bodies to keep the ball in play. The setting was fabulous-a clear blue sky and bright sun illuminating a placid lake, surrounded by green fields and forest. There were a few fishermen and kayakers on the lake and a few strollers along the shore, but we had the beach mostly to ourselves.
Back at camp Todd and Carl took on the cooking chores, and whipped up a ramen/soup course followed by chicken and pasta in Alfredo sauce and chocolate pudding for dessert. We used only the troop's backpacking gear, so the dinner was prepared on backpacker stoves using mostly dry, rehydratable food. After the hike and the volleyball, needless to say, all of the food promptly disappeared! Dinner was followed by a Philmont-style cleanup, and the Scouts enjoyed a campfire and an early (8:30!!) turn-in.
Although the sky was clear - including a bright view of the Milky Way that you can't get near Washington - the temperature did not drop as far as expected. Heavy fog moved in during the night and blanketed the woods at dawn. The Scouts broke camp down and scarfed down a breakfast of hot cocoa, oatmeal, and granola bars and dried fruit. After cleaning up the campsite and loading the van (and repairing Todd's last-minute skinned knee), we pulled out and, for the second straight Sunday, drove through heavy fog back to Washington. Fortunately, it was warm and dry upon our return, permitting a quick drying of tents and tarps. All-in-all, a good trip made great by cooperative weather! Scouts attending were Colin A., Luke B., Tom C., Mike Ci., Todd G., Dale R., Thomas S., Charlie S., Carl S., and Neil S. They were accompanied by adults David C. (Michael C.'s step-brother), Ted G., Hugh S., and Mark S.
- Dr. Bob, Scoutmaster
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