Our Summer Camp

[El_Coqui]

I've been looking to explore into this subjetc for a while, and that is our staff system in summer camp. We have been told that is quite different from the vast majority of camps in most of the states. I would like to know comments on how different or similar your camp is from ours.

Well, basically our staff uses the Patrol Method to divide its members. We have six different areas of expertise divided as follows:

1- Program Aide - Scoutcraft, First Aid, Camping, Emergency Preparadness

2- Nature - Conservation/Ecology

3- Sports - Personal Fitness, Athletics, Sports

4- Aquatics - Swimming, Lifesaving, Canoeing, Sailing, Motorboating

5- Administration - Citizenship, Indian Lore, Communications

6- Voyager - Treks, High Adventure, Project COPE

Now, each patrol has it's own Patrol Leader, which works on program and a Director, which works with the Administration.

Scouts decide which patrol they want to be a part of and attend around 4 to 5 weekends of training administered by the patrol in specific. After the trainings there is a selection process of all the candidates that got training. If a staff member has training in a specific area he cannot work in another patrol unless he gets all the trainings.

In addition to the four to five weekends of training, during the pre-camp (7 days) they continue training in their area.

Each Patrol has their own songs, symbols, neckerchiefs, ceremonies and design a flag each year. Our staff during precamp setup their respective campsites and elaborate a gate that is made up using lashings (and creativity). The staff sleeps in wall tents during the whole 10-week summer and work everyday on the quality of the area (maintenance). It is a common tradition to enter the dinning hall singing a patrol song before any meal (breakfast, lunch and dinner).

Also, out staff members are volunteers (they don't get paid a salary for working during the summer, with the exception of administrative positions such as Directors and Commissioners).

Any similarities or differences with your local camp? I would really like to hear how things are done in other places.

By the way, our camp is the Guajataka Scout Reservation in Puerto Rico.

AJN
ASM T-96

[Guneukitschik]

Sinoquipe Scout Reservation

http://www.mason-dixon-bsa.org/sinoquipe.html

Location:
Camp Sinoquipe is a beautiful 500 acre forested mountain facility with a 10 acre lake located in the rural area two miles from the village of Fort Littleton, Pennsylvania located in Fulton County. We are 120 miles from Baltimore, MD., 115 miles from Washington, DC., and 65 miles from Harrisburg, PA.

Overview:
During the summer for seven weeks, this camp hosts scout troops for an entire week. Most troops are from the Mason-Dixon Council, but many come from other neighboring Boy Scout councils. (National Capitol, Baltimore Area, etc.)

There are 12 campsites, each with running water, washstand and a latrine. Campsites vary is size accommodating 16 to 60 campers. Each campsite is equipped with wooden platforms, a tent for every two campers, and a bunk for each camper.

The total number of Scouts attending camp each week has been limited to 175 so that each scout can benefit more from the smaller class size.

Support:
Camp Sinoquipe is supported by Guneukitschik Lodge #317, Order of the Arrow. The Lodge has work weekends yearly and does much of the preparation necessary to prepare camp for each season.

Camp Sinoquipe is owned and operated by the Mason-Dixon Boy Scout Council located in Hagerstown, MD.

First Year Camper Program:
Sinoquipe also prides itself in having an OUTSTANDING first year camper program.

Merit Badge Programs:
Sinoquipe has a beautiful lake offering swimming, canoeing, kayaking, and sailing.

Camp also provides courses in first aid, emergency preparedness, pioneering, cooking, scoutcraft, handicraft, sports, public speaking, plumbing, archery, rifle & shotgun shooting, ecology and horsemanship (and numerous others!) All areas teach merit badges during the day.

Advanced Activities:
Camp Sinoquipe offers more than JUST merit badges! Scouts who come here are always doing something that challenges them mentally and physically.

Sinoquipe offers a COPE (Challenging Outdoor Physical Encounter) course with rappelling tower.

Qualified Scouts can train for Lifeguard, BSA or attain the BSA Mile Swim.

Eagle Week:
The last week of camp offers all of the Eagle required merit badges.

Other Activities:
Camp wide competitions like the Aquabash, Volleyball, and many others are also offered. Camp has a well stocked Trading Post for all those "camp essentials".

Every Friday night, the parents are invited to come to camp and watch the show. A grand performance by The Potomac Dancers, Venture Crew 2, Hagerstown, MD is the main part of the show. They give a great display of Native American Dancing in beautiful outfits made by the dancers themselves. Order of the Arrow (OA) tap outs are also conducted at this campfire program.

The camp has a year-round, on-site, paid camp ranger.
All camp staff positions including Cooks and kitchen help are paid except for the Counselor-In-Training (C.I.T.) positions which are volunteer.
Most of the Camp Staff stay in cabins with a few spending the summer in wall tents like Scouts who attend camp.

[wagionvigil]

Eberly Scout Reservation Bakersville,Pa.
Westmoreland-Fayette Council BSA
Camp Conestoga and Camp Buck Run
the reservations is in Laurel Hill State Park. We feature a large lake for boating and a swimming pool. Conestoga is our Boy Scout Camp and offers a full program. We are also close to caving,rafting and the Laurel Highlands Hiking Trail. A Fly Fish and spinner only stream runs through the camp and is full of large trout.
Dailey Bus trips leave camp to go White Water rafting on the Famous Yough,Caving at Laurel Caverns or Biking on the Yough River Trail.
for information contact the Westmoreland-Fayette Council 724 837-1630

Carry On Wagion!!

[diamondbackAPL]

Skymont Scout Reservation, Monteaagle, TN

Outdoor Skills-Camping (which I am taking), Emergency Preparedness, Orienteering, Pioneering, Wilderness Survival, and First Aid merit badges

Nature/Ecology-Environmental Science, Fishing, Fish and Wildlife, Forestry, Mammal Study (which I am also taking), Reptile and Amphibian, Soil and Water, and Weather merit badges

Aquatics-Canoeing (which I am taking), Lifesaving, Rowing and Swimming merit badges. they also offer Mile Swim, Snorkeling, and other aquatic awards

field sports- archery (which I am also taking), Rifle Shooting, and Shotgun Shooting merit badges

handicraft-basketry, leatherwork, metalwork, pottery, woodcarving and Indian lore merit badges

tower area offers rappeling, rock climbing, zip line, and climbing merit badge

there are also som Eagle required merit badges offered at the Admin. Building

they have a great new scout program called Polaris, in which they do most of the requirements for the first 3 ranks

they have a campfire program on sunday night, and one on parents night, friday

for additional costs they offer high adventure programs.

just some general information about a camp I recommend.
more information can be found on their website. I don't know the web address, but it branches off of cherokeeareabsa.com

[optimist]

I went to Skymont over a decade ago. One thing you didn't mention which I think is a really nice selling point is the temperature. Since the camp is high in the mountains, upper 60s during the day and lower 50s at night are pretty common. That makes for a very comfortable stay.

Also, they had a really great climbing program, a nice waterfront, and full selection of other facilities. Unfortunately, some of the staff were a bit too laid back and some of the things which should have been accomplished didn't happen. Of course, this can happen at any camp and the current Skymont staff would be completely different after all these years.

[diamondbackAPL]

yes, those are some more nice things about it. last year they renovated the climbing tower, and this year is the first year they offer climbing merit badge.

I remember that during my first year, a cold front came in, and the nights were colder than usual.

I also remember a hailstorm during lunch that knocked down a tree in our campsite that hit one of our tents. one of the cots was cut in half. the trading post gave the scouts that were using the tent free equipment to make up for it. and, as usual the trading post carries the cheapest equipment.

[Mick Scouter]

Sounds like a nice camp. I would like to visit some camps someday.

[diamondbackAPL]

you should visit it. I will be working there in a couple of years. maybe you and your boys could drop by for a week.

[Mick Scouter]

Maybe we will where is Skymont Scout Reservation, Monteaagle, TN? Sorry I did not feel like looking it up tonight. General area North South East or West or close ( within 50 miles of what city).

[diamondbackAPL]

it is located near altamont, in Grundy county, southeast Tennessee, on the Cumberland plateau. a map and directions are at cherokeeareabsa.com.

[diamondbackAPL]

also, on friday instead of working on badges, they have camp-wide games, such as an outdoor skills challenge, scavenger hunt etc. they're a lot of fun, although the scavenger takes a couples of hours to finish.

[wellread]

Camp Steiner GSLC, Utah near mirror lake
the highest in the nation(that Iknow of) at 10,400 ft

we have six program areas which are loosely organize as patrols

Nature ( my area)

Shooting Sports (my nemisis)

Outdoor skills (also known as scoutcraft)

Handicraft

Aquatics

High adventure

last year there was a staff of about fifty all paid. We sleep in tents albeit nice ones. there are two staff sleeping areas one for the Males and another for the Females (we had 15/50 last year)

The troops camp in 21 camp grounds about half of which have adirondacks, a three sided cabin. some of Camp Steiner GSLC, Utah
the highest in the nation(that I know of) at 10,400 ft

we have six program areas which are loosely organize as patrols

Nature ( my area)

Shooting Sports (my Nemesis)

Outdoor skills (also known as scoutcraft)

Handicraft

Aquatics

High adventure

last year there was a staff of about fifty all paid. We sleep in tents albeit nice ones. there are two staff sleeping areas one for the Males and another for the Females (we had 15/50 last year)

The troops camp in 21 camp grounds about half of which have Adirondacks, a three sided cabin. some of these are old enough that scoutmasters return 30 years later to find their name still carved in the walls.

we have three beautiful lakes and, I quote the newspaper, "country as rugged as the surface of the moon" Steiner means "Bed of Rock" in German. there is a man made lake and eighth of a mile out in the lake which serves as a mark for the mile swim. we are known for having the coldest liquid water on the face of the earth. the camp is open for nine weeks plus one staff week. the opening date as moved back every year I've been involved so that now it opens the first week in July/last week in June due to snow. In 2003 we had 18 inches of snow the first week which I can say was the greatest camp I've every been to, Although some of the troops went home.

It is also the home of the rare Unita Coconut which has been seen assisting the Mammal study teacher. We have a special lake for wilderness survival although we don't have fires anymore for some reason
I found a mountain loin footprint next to the lake and was able to make a copy of it. we do two camp fires a week, land games, and a mountain man relay. Anther point of pride is the fact that we have real cliffs for the rock climbing. The rocks in the area are about 900 million years old. We also have famous lighting storms that can sweep through our mountain valleys and electrify the air.

Our symbol is the towering bald and Reid's peaks which cast an amazing reflection over the lake to the campfire bowl. this was the setting of the Order of the Unita Moon which eventually became the El-Ku-Ta lodge in the OA (now in its 49th year)

So much changes from year to year at camps. the reason this one is so great is its location. that can be the only reason, everything else has change over the years. it just has a timeless quality. That would be why Camp Steiner is now Celebrating its 75th year.

[Eamonn]

While I stand in awe of training that El_Coqui has said that the staff who serve at that camp go through. Somehow I just don't see it happening in our council.
Camp runs for seven weeks with two extra weeks for staff week and tear down. Add another 4 weekends for Staff Training, that's 13 weekends of the year gone. Most families want to spend the holidays together as a family so add another 4 weekends, most troops have a monthly outing or activity add 12 more, throw in 4 OA weekends.
This doesn't leave any time for sports, band, or other school activities.
I can't help thinking that our youth staff members would not be very keen and any married Scouter would be in hot water with his Lady wife - Mine would be a very unhappy little camper!!