Mini Campout & Sledding Trip: 2/23-24/07
OUR MISSION: Go on a campout and have fun.
THE REASON: All our boys needed another overnight campout for the Camping merit badge and the new scouts needed to set up a tent, cook a meal and other requirements for First Class rank.
OUR FIRST CHOICE: Snow Camping in Payson on Friday and sledding at Woods Canyon Lake on Saturday.
THE PROBLEM: Not enough snow in Payson for sledding resulting in just plain bitter cold camping instead of snow camping.
THE ALTERNATIVE: A modified campout in Bro. McCook’s backyard on Friday night then driving up to Flagstaff where they actually had snow for sledding at Cowley Pit. Some may say that we wimped out by “rouging it” in McCook’s backyard but we had a blast!
Even though the forecast called for rain all day Friday it was bone dry by the time everyone arrived and started setting up tents. We borrowed Bro. Pike’s firepit and set up our “campfire” in the driveway. We cooked a glorious meal of roasted polish sausages, chips and root beer and we all agreed that Trace was the master hot dog roaster. We told jokes and stories as the fire burnt down, then we went to the school soccer field to play a game of Pitch Black Capture the Flag. After a few bruises (and Bro. Layton’s and Bro. McCook’s bruised egos from getting taken out by 12 and 13 year olds) we headed back to cook our dutch oven dessert. An hour later at 12:30 we enjoyed a new creation of Bro. Layton’s - Carmel Apple Crisp Cobbler and a can of Redi Whip. By 1:30 everyone was asleep and all the neighbors breathed a collective sigh of relief!
We woke up at 5:30am when Bro. Crane joined us and we wolfed down a hearty breakfast of danishes and chocolate milk. We packed up the sleds and our cold weather gear and started our for Flagstaff. We got to Crowley Pit at about 9:30 (about 16 miles north of SnowBowl) and realized just how cold it was. Everyone decided we made the right choice by not trying to sleep in a tent in this weather. We all had fun sledding down the slopes for the next few hours. After a little exploring, we found a steep drop at the back end of one of the surrounding hills - perfect for nose-dive sledding. After a while the scouts started jumping over the ledge to land in the powder below. Just as we were beginning to think it was time to pack up, Connor took one last jump. He heard something pop in his foot as he landed and was down for the count. His Dad carried him to the truck and took off his shoes. The ankle was swollen and tender and we all feared that he had broken it. After a priesthood blessing, Bro. McCook and Connor went to the Flagstaff Walk-In Clinic and the rest of us went to McDonalds for lunch. An hour later we heard the good news that it was not broken but just a bad sprain. Bro. Layton was relieved to know that his tenure as Scoutmaster would not be defined by the number of broken bones his scouts suffered. On the drive home we got stuck in stand-still traffic for about two hours but finally made it back around 6:30. What an adventure!
Setting up the tents - check out Brandon’s pup tent!
Campfire Fun
Sledding at Crowley Pit
The Leaders got into it too. Bro. McCook broke his sled and his bum
We closed the day with cliff jumping, hosptital visits and McDonalds
Click on photos to enlarge
