Posted: 4/4/2009 6:49:27 AM EDT
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I'm going to be taking a group of 8 year old Cub Scouts (going into third grade) up to the 40 acres that I hunt in Northern, lower Michigan (Lake City for those who know the area) for a Fri/Sat night camp-out. The idea is to give them a chance for a semi primative camp-out. These boys are all from the suburban Detroit area (Plymouth/Canton, btwn Detroit and Ann Arbor) and I don't think most of them have been camping outside of state campgrounds or a KOA if at all (other than my boy and one other). What kid of entertainment/classes would you all suggest. I was thinking:
.22 and bb gun range Whittling a stick for a marshmallows Knot tying (the den leader's hobby) Fire safety and starting Hiking and what to do if you get lost Any other ideas? The property is 40 acres w/ a swamp and some varied terrain, but only a 10 ft elevation change over the whole thing. Theres a shallow river/creek in the next property over that I think I'll be able to get permission to hike on. We've got a polebarn, well, and electric on the property (used to be a mobile home there). Any suggestions for camp-fire cooking for a large group? That's one area that I'm definately deficient in! Thanks for the suggestions! K |
| first off good for you that your taking the time to teach the little guys, i think thats great !! you can show them what to do if they get lost in the woods...past storys of scouts who got lost from the main group and failed to do the right things, like stay put (hug a tree)...also teach them basic first aid ie..what to do and the big one what NOT to do....basic camp craft and hygine in the field...good luck and have fun..vince g. 11b inf.. |
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You need to make sure you abide by the Boy Scouts of America rules about the shooting. If you do not follow their rules I don't think you would be covered by their liability insurance. Teach fire making, cook an egg in a paper bag, make smores, let the boys plane and prepare their meals, make sure you take several dads with you. I used to be a Cubmaster and Asst Scoutmaster, had lots of fun while my boys were growing up.
ETA cooking, do Dutch oven cobbler |
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Yes, I agree that the shooting will be a no-go according to BSA policy. BB guns must be at council with qualified rangemasters, and there is no firearms allowed for Cubs. (Nobody kill the messenger, back in the 70's I shot .22 at cub camp)
Demonstrate how to build the cooking fire, and then start it with flint and steel. |
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Quoted:
You need to make sure you abide by the Boy Scouts of America rules about the shooting. I appreciate the concern, but this isn't an "Official" event. This will be me and my son w/ a group of his friends who want to tag along. They happen to be in the Cub Scouts with him. Each boy will have their dad with them, so I won't be alone! Thanks for the suggestions and keep them coming! K |
| Great job being involved with your kid and his friends! Not only involved, you're teaching them real skills. As for the knot tieing, it may increase their interest if you add some competition. I remember having one of those competitions when I was in cub scouts. Good times. |
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+1 on the "non-offical" campout.
As a Den Leader myself, one of the things you might want to look at is make sure they have done thier Wolf Elective for Camping Out. Also, look in the handbook for some of the other outdoor activities that can be done, also check out some fo the belt loop items. Since the book is made of for "age appropiate" activities, they should go over well. Also, you might want to look into the Bear handbook and see if there are things you can start early on. Go over some of the "Leave no trace items" for another possible patch they can earn. But again, with thier age, keep things fun. Also, you wont hold there attention very long. If you get a chance, you might be able to set up a couple of geocaches and have them use the GPS to find "treasure". There's a ton of things... but the one they will like the most is making and eating smores!!!! 
We are doing our Pack's "official" campout next month, and I'm off to get a new tent for my son & I. Looking a a 2-person one he will be able to use in BS later. Important lesson... Dont let MIL use your tent. (For xmas, we got one for her own use.) |
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a group of 8 year old boys will have the attention span of hyperactive gerbils. don't get too detailed or complicated with anything. i would probably skip the shooting, limit the knot tying to the square knot and timber hitch. have the boys do a log pull race.
maybe a scavenger hunt, and plan on giving them some free time to just run around and play. |
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For camp fire cooking do tin foil dinners. Take hamburger, Carrots potatoes and onions sprinkle with seasoning and wrap in tin foil put on edges of camp fire. They're good. Used to be my Dens signature meal. lol. Also if you have a dutch oven do a cobbler for dessert. Easiest way is to layer bottom with filling (peach being my favorite) then take a box of yellow cake mix pour evenly on top of filling, cover that with thin slices of butter (cover the cake mix completely with butter slices) then cook it.
On the activities side of things. Work on some advancement but make sure they res other fun things to do. Teach a little survival. if your in the woods tech them to make a temporary shelter out of what available. show them how to set up different fires, i.e. Log cabin, Ti pee, Lean to. If you have any question shoot me an email. Im a 4th generation Eagle Scout with my oldest currently a wolf. It runs in my blood. |
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Quoted:
For camp fire cooking do tin foil dinners. Take hamburger, Carrots potatoes and onions sprinkle with seasoning and wrap in tin foil put on edges of camp fire. They're good. Used to be my Dens signature meal. lol. Also if you have a dutch oven do a cobbler for dessert. Easiest way is to layer bottom with filling (peach being my favorite) then take a box of yellow cake mix pour evenly on top of filling, cover that with thin slices of butter (cover the cake mix completely with butter slices) then cook it. On the activities side of things. Work on some advancement but make sure they res other fun things to do. Teach a little survival. if your in the woods tech them to make a temporary shelter out of what available. show them how to set up different fires, i.e. Log cabin, Ti pee, Lean to. If you have any question shoot me an email. Im a 4th generation Eagle Scout with my oldest currently a wolf. It runs in my blood. /quote] Great idea. I loved those as a kid. |
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Coming into this late, but...
Put a couple scrambled eggs into a quart Ziploc freezer bag (MUST be freezer bags) and add bacon, ham, onions, salt, pepper, whatever. Drop the bag into boiling water and in about 10 minutes you have a pretty decent omelette you can eat right out of the bag. Zero cleanup other than your fork or spoon, and everyone gets to choose what they want in their eggs. When you think the eggs are ready, fish the bag out of the water and give them a gentle squeeze. If the inside's not fully cooked you'll see the raw egg ooze out toward the outside. We notch the bag ABOVE the zipper to identify every boy's bag - Tommy has 1; Chris has 2, etc. |
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Quoted:
Easiest way is to layer bottom with filling (peach being my favorite) then take a box of yellow cake mix pour evenly on top of filling, cover that with thin slices of butter (cover the cake mix completely with butter slices) then cook it. We call that "Dump It Cake" because you just dump it all in the dutch oven and cook it up. A really good variation of it is to use cherry pie filling and chocolate cake mix. Makes kind of a Black Forrest cake. Real good. I run shooting camp outs for our Boy Scout Troop, Unless you have some other dads that are decent with firearms I would leave them at home. Keeping track of a bunch of 8 year old cub scouts is like trying to herd cats. I have 3 dads that are NRA Certified instructors and couple of the scouts in our troop also are NRA instructors and work at the council summer camp shooting sports. I wouldn't run it by myself. |
I Just taught 23 Scouts Wilderness Survival Merit Badge two weeks ago and it went very well. For the Cub Scout outing make it simple as to meals and cooking. Have your Den Leaders find out what the boys like and take it from there. You will have a large group going? I know if the boys aren't Weblos a parent must attend for each cub attending and you must have one parent, leader qualified in Baloo training. Go to socuter.org for some cooking tips on big meals for large groups. As for activities see if you can do the Outdoorsman skill award and have the boys make a tarp shelter the kids love that stuff. As for the campfire, stories work and have each den make up a campfire skit if there up for it. Becareful after a long day outside they will fade quick for the sleeping bags! Keep up the good work. Stick it out and the pay off will be when the boys get into Scouting. That is where you will see the pay off. I take my Troop camping every month from September thru June and then to summer camp for a week in July. Yes we tent or snow shelter in the winter and the boys do a great job, some are really savy at the cooking side of it as well. 
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Former den leader and current Asst. cubmaster here. Baloo training is not a concern if, as you have said, you are doing it as a group campout and not under the guise of a cubscout campout. However, You will be limited in what badges/belt loops you can earn. If there is not an official rangemaster there as previously mentioned, then there is no official shooting sport, and they cannot earn a patch for scoring above 35 on a BSA target; Also, If the boys don't have their whittling chit, they can't earn anything for whittling, if I am correct.
This is not meant to be a deterrent by any means. When I was a den leader, we did many "friendly group camping" mainly so we could do the very thing you mentioned. Plus the adults can enjoy some adult beverages in the evenings. In fact we are having a group campout with a bunch of kids that just happen to be scouts and their parents in two weeks for some four wheeling fun. |