Scituate was holding its annual Earth Day cleanup event and troop 8 was invited to participate in this community service project. The troop was assigned Clayville Elementary School, the ballpark up the road, and the animal shelter next door.
Once the troop completed the community service project, we completed the 1mi trail of Westconnaug Meadows trail.
Last summer, the West Bay Land Trust reached out to the troops of Cranston to see if the scouts would help the paths at Laten Knight Farm Trail that had become overgrown. During that time, one of the scouts learned the West Bay Land Trust wanted to build a kiosk where they could post a trail of the map as well as information about the history of the land. The scout worked closely with the beneficiary to design a kiosk and get erected in time before Spring.
The kiosk also serves as a welcome sign to the trailhead which is otherwise hard to find. This will help hikers and neighbors become aware of the trail and make more use of it.
The project was done in three phases. For phase 1, the SPL designed the kiosk, labeled the wood to be cut and then an adult cut the pieces to size. For phase 2, the pieces were then brought to a troop meeting where the structure was assembled and the roof was assembled. For phase 3, the troop met at the trailhead where the area was cleared out, holes were dug, and the structure was cemented into place.
The scouts are taught to live by the outdoor code to “leave no trace” and “leave a place better than you found it”. Since the SPL had more help than he needed, he assigned a group of scouts to walk the trail to pick up any litter. Unfortunately, the scouts came back with half a bag of trash.
The troop ventured up to Jaffrey, New Hampshire to hike Mount Monadnock for the April camping trip. The troop arrived at Camp Wanocksett on Friday night and was fortunate enough to stay in a cabin considering the weather was rainy and unseasonably cold. The troop settled in for the night played games to pass the time and eventually tucked in for the night.
In the morning, the scouts cooked eggs, sausage, English muffins. The campers packed their lunches and we headed out to the base of Mt Monadnock to start the hike. The forecast was calling for on and off rain. Some geared up with rain jackets while others played the odds and hoped the rain would hold off.
The troop took the white dot trail up to the top. As we approached the peak, the temperature dropped 20 degrees and the wind was strong enough to knock you over. While visibility was clear most of the way up, the top was cloudy with maybe 10-15 foot visibility. For a different experience, the troop took the white cross trail down.
Along the hike, the troop experienced all types of weather conditions. It was partly sunny on the way up, windy and foggy up at the summit, pouring rain with thunder on the way down with occasional pea-sized hail. Despite being soaking wet and cold when we arrived back at the car, a good time was had by all.
Shepherd of the Valley Church is the sponsoring organization for Troop 8 Cranston. The church has been very welcoming and supportive of Troop 8 and Pack 8 over the years. And when the scouts are looking for Eagle projects, many of them often ask if they can inquire about completing an Eagle project at the church as their way to give back and show thanks.
Over the past few years, the scouts have painted rooms, painted hallways, built a fire pit with a seating area, and cleared out overgrown brush around the bell tower. The latest project was refreshing the nursery with a fresh coat of paint and installing shelving in the closet.
The Audubon Society is located across the street from a grocery store and next door to a strip mall. When people litter, the wind seems to carry it on the Audubon Societ property. Very quickly the property gets littered with old masks, plastic bags, sanitizing wipes, etc. When the Audubon Society said they could use some help cleaning up the property, Troop 8 Cranston jumped at the opportunity to give back. Within just two hours, the Troop was able to clean up the front of the property, filling three large garbage bags.
Although the March camping trip had to be cancelled, the troop did get out to do a 5-mile hike through George Washington State Park. The weather was a little dreary with mild temperatures for March and we were fortunate the rain held out until just about the time we were finishing the hike.
Only in Rhode Island can you head out on a hike, see no one for miles, and then bump into someone you know. About 3 miles into the hike, we bumped into fellow Scouters from Narrangsett Council who were also out meandering through the woods to be with nature.
The Troop 8 scouts have been working hard on rank advancement and merit badge classes over the past few months. The scouts had requested a change of pace so the troop met up at Bowlero in Cranston for a night of bowling and video games. A fun time was had by all!
The troop typically uses the troop meeting time for inter-patrol activities, demos, rank advancement, and merit badge classes. However, there are times we use that time for community service events. On Feb 16th, one of the scouts from Troop 3 Gaspee asked the scouts of Troop 8 if they would help her work on her Eagle project. She brought the supplies and used the EDGE (Explain, Demonstrate, Guide, Enable) to teach the scouts of Troop 8 what she needed to be done and how to get it done.
The Eagle project was to build turtle enclosures for the Audubon Society. When the Audubon Society visits elementary schools to educate the students on turtles, they will showcase the turtles in the enclosures so the students can sit around the enclosure and from all angles they can see the turtles through the plexiglass.
The troop planned to venture out for a hike at the Great Swamp Management Area on the morning of January 22nd. It was a chilly and windy morning and as such, we had a smaller turnout than we hoped. Being it was hunting season, we made sure we were wearing enough orange coloring to stay safe. We discussed the history of the Great Swamp Management Area and it is a place where a “…crucial battle was fought during King Philip’s War between the colonial militia of New England and the Narragansett people in December 1675″ (Wikipedia).
Along the trail, we did not see too much wildlife. But, we did see a King Rail pop out from behind the tall grass. When we got too close, it would hop into the tall grass. When we took a step back, it would hop back out onto the edge of the trail.
The troop arrived at Buck Hill Friday evening and set up camp for the weekend. We knew we were in for a cold weekend. To prepare for the camping trip, in the troop meeting that preceded the camping trip, we reviewed tips for cold weather camping. On Friday night, the temperature hit the mid-20s, and surprisingly, not one scout complained of being cold the next day.
On Saturday morning, the scouts gathered plenty of firewood and set up the carport with tarps on the side. Although the carport wasn’t “warm”, it certainly protected us from the wind coming off the pond.
Before lunch, the troop headed out for a day hike. About half a mile before we arrived back at camp, the scouts were presented with a mission that would test their skills. The mission described a scenario where the troop ventured out for a 30-mile day hike. The hike was well planned out. The plan was to hike the black trail, pick up the red trail, and then take the green trail back to camp. After hiking all day and with just 4 miles left on the hike, you come across a river that is 10 feet across and the bridge is out. It’s too late to turn back so you decide to build a bridge to cross the river.
The scouts thought through the problem and came up with a solution and then had to execute the plan in a simulated environment. The trail was designated as the “raging river”. It was decided the scouts would make a two-rope bridge, one rope to hold on to and one to walk across. The troop unanimously (well almost unanimously) agreed it was best to send their SPL across the river so he could anchor the two ends on the other side. (Note: Their reason for selecting the SPL was because he was a strong swimmer.) The scouts tied a bowline around the SPL’s waist and sent him off across the river. They figured if he couldn’t swim it, they could always pull him back. Once he was on the other side, the scouts anchored one side of the rope to one tree with a bowline and the SPL used a trucker’s hitch on a tree on the other side to make both lines taut enough such that they would hold the weight of each scout. The scouts crossed the simulated raging river and all scouts made it back to camp.
The sunrise over the lake Sunday morning was amazing. It was a perfect ending to a great weekend camping trip!
Troop 8 Cranston, RI 