Polar Bear Campout

Polar Bear Campout Trip Report, January 2000
By Pat Hastings IV, Patrol Leader, Raven Patrol

On January 29-30 we participated in Troop 77’s first and hopefully coldest campout. We departed for Griffith League Ranch early Saturday morning but had trouble finding the place because no one had received exact directions to the ranch. When we arrived it was about 23 degrees.

There were about 1400 people at the campout and each troop was given a 50-acre sector of the ranch to explore because this was the first campout on the property since it was given to the Boy Scouts. Our scoutmaster requested that we be assigned the section farthest away from the camp headquarters. It took us a couple of hours to find our section with only a topographical map and compass and then we split up into buddies to explore the land. One of the scouts slipped on some pine needles and managed to fall into a creek that was less than 6 inches deep, getting half his body wet with the temperature only slightly above freezing. Luckily some of the guys had extra clothing which he could wear and we kept him moving to warm him up.

When we arrived back at the camp we cooked dinner and most of the scouts played capture the flag until dark. At 8:00 p.m. we watched a campfire presentation by the Order of the Arrow. That night the temperature got down to 17 degrees and some of the boys who didn’t bring enough warm bedding ended up with a miserable night's rest. The next morning we went to a chapel service and then came home. We learned from that campout that there is truth in the Boy Scout motto, "Be Prepared."