Lightening up Adults (again)

[j emery]

Star scout or above can bucket camp and its on the sept campout.

[Jim Colten]

Each fall the troop has a "bucket camp" i.e., every thing you need for that weekend has to fit in a 5 gallon bucket. Food, shelter, clothing, the whole nine yards.

I like the way youse guys are thinking!

I'm curious, is this having each scout packing everything needed to be solo camping or are you allowing scouts to group up and share gear? (Mike gets the tarp, Tom gets the stove, Larry gets the cook pot, etc)

Just to make the scope of challenge more clear:
5 US gallons = 1155 cubic inches = 18.93 liters
That would most likely be an SUL load if packed in a suitable pack instead of the bucket.

[j emery]

It varies from year to year. One year each scout carried a tent fly, tied them together and made a huge gazebo. The next year each scout brought his own. My son used heavy construction plastic over logs.

The five gallon pale was what ever was convenient. This was a low budget operation. Five gallon pails vary, best was construction kinds. The hardware project types bought empty were 2” shorter. Go figure.

The food varied so much. The adult Venture guru had a small steel mesh basket from a sink trap that he would grill steak chunks in. Bubble wrap served as a cooler, the steak frozen the night before, and the bucket lid as a mess kit. Some boys learned how to use chop sticks. Some brought pots but water in a paper cup set directly in the fire works, 4 cups would work for the weekend. Lots of oatmeal and instant noodles. HEAVY zip lock bag in a jacket works as a cozy.

The point of the whole adventure is to teach the boys camping skills.

[Brian Barnes]

I count myself fortunate in that the foundering members of our troop operated under the philosophy that our monthly camp outs are to prepare the scouts for the two high adventure trips we take each year. Therefore, the scouts only bring along what fits in a modest sized backpack (i.e. we don't bring trailers, camp chairs, movie projectors, etc). In fact we don't even own a gear trailer!

Typically, they bring condition appropriate clothing, a sleeping bag/pad, cup, bowl, spork, headlamp, water bottle, and the 10 essentials. Like other troops we use a patrol method (~10 patrols) consisting of 6-8 boys per patrol. On the monthly camp outs the crew gear (backpacking friendly stoves, stove fuel, a few pots, first aid kit, etc) are in a single small plastic container. Troop owned REI 1/4 and 1/2 domes shelters are each shared by 2 to 3 scouts (so each patrol uses ~3 shelters).

If we are hiking into our campsite, which we often do, the patrols divide up their gear into their packs. On our "luxurious" camp outs we'll bring along a dutch oven for some cobbler if we are camping near the troop's old school bus. Beyond that, it feels similar to a high adventure trip. Come time for a high adventure trip, the scouts need very minimal instruction on the required gear, clothing, etc as they've been using it monthly all year long.

Overall, I feel this approach leads to less time setting up and tearing down camp and more time to teach and enjoy being "out there". Additionally, since we practice lightweight monthly camping, they don't feel compelled to bring the kitchen sink when a high adventure trip comes around. Additionally, it costs the troop (and ultimately the boys) much less than an elaborate base camp.

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