Few scouts understood what the Council patch on their shoulder represented. This hike, knox-trail-proposal.ppt, was meant to bring meaning to it all.

Ft. Ticonderoga is between Lake Champlain & Lake George (on NY/Vermont border). Major battles in the French & Indian war occured in this area and many soldiers endured extreme hardships here for the good of our nation. After the French set up shop, the British came, then the colonials (Benedict Arnold, Ethan Allen, Henry Knox to get the canons that ultimately forced the British out of Boston – that’s him on the patch), then Burgoyne came through in 1777 on his way to a defeat at Saratoga. Ben Franklin, Jefferson, & Washington later visited…then we came.

Ft. William Henry, nearby at the south end of Lake George, is the setting of James Fenimore Cooper’s “Last of the Mohicans.” A great book/movie to take in before visiting.

The Grand Teton Council puts on this wonderful scout leadership program in June every year. It’s at a beautiful location, the people are very nice, and they put a huge amount of effort into the program. This is scouting the way you want it to be, at least it looked that way when I was there dropping off my son (but he told me he really enjoyed it). I had air-miles saved and vacation time, so I called and they welcomed my son’s attendance.

I hiked all week while he was at camp. Very cool trip, we took in Yellowstone the next week. We also took interest in the whole Lewis and Clark expedition while out there and made our way to their route across Idaho. I’ll post photos once I figure out how to use wordpress better. See: http://www.grandtetoncouncil.org

The scout camp is on the very back side of the Grand Teton, which is the center-most mountain on this site’s header. When seen from the scout camp, the back of the Grand Teton looks like the Matterhorn in Zermatt (photos in LD Hiking section). The scout camp was also at the base of this large waterfall, it really was beautiful.

There was a great Far Side clip showing Einstein’s realization that time is actually equal to  money. I wish I could have found it for this class.

I’ve posted a zipped file with all the training material that I produced for this class. The worksheet (.xls file) I did to help the kids understand investing options was particularly instructive. I started the money-management part of the training with a simulated stock trading role play exercise. As I mentioned in the Energy MB, a big upside of scouting is it’s ability to introduce topics to kids at a very early age. They will hopefully always remember the messages in these classes and become just better equipped for life.

This is a time consuming MB and it requires a fair amount of prep, make sure you know what you are getting into when you sign on to run this one. You really need to do this one right, there are very important concepts in here that the kids absolutely need to learn properly.

Personal Management Merit Badge Downloads

See also the “Where Does All The Money Go” and “Best Jobs in America” graphics I have posted under Brick-a-brac. These might be useful.

This is not my work but you might also find useful:  personal_management_v1.ppt

Time management is one of the objectives of this merit badge. Here’s something really cool to help the scouts (and you) keep on top of things:  http://www.pocketmod.com/

What do you know, here it is:

Besides suggesting someplace interesting to go, another reason for this presentation was to suggest to the older venture kids that when we did things, we did them well and for a purpose. With everyone’s time consumed with homework, troop activities, sports, jobs, and whatever else, I was trying to coach them into putting a lot of effort into the trip selection and planning so all the extra effort expended on venturing was worth it.

kaaterskill-hike-latest.ppt

If you like the idea of this hike and want to go, let me mention just a few more things – when you drive up Rt.23A, you’ll know you’ve reached the trailhead when you do a sharp hairpin turn right at a beautiful waterfall (Bastion Falls). Park up the road a bit, there is a small parking lot on the left. You’ll have to be extremely careful walking down the road. When you walk up the trail after the first waterfall, don’t stop at the next one you see and think you’ve reached it. Keep going. The high falls are spectacular. If you feel so inclined, hike up the left side of the falls. If you look carefully, you’ll find some engravings chiseled in the wall. One is to ‘Vite the wonder dog’ who tragically jumped to his death back in the 1800′s. At the top, there are hundreds of names and dates chiseled into the stone. No such thing as leave no trace back then, but you know what…it’s actually kind of cool to see.  North Lake State Park is near the top of the falls if you want a civilized place to camp.

A good book telling the story of the area is “The Catskill Mountain House” by Roland VanZandt. Another book I came across recently that is a better trail book is “Catskill Mountain House Trail Guide: In the Footsteps of the Hudson River School”  by Robert Gildersleeve. It’s just and excellent book and I’d say a ”must have” resource needed to fully appreciate the area.

A few years ago, I found the old stage coach trail up the mountain and mountain biked up and down with friends. A pretty cool trip you might want to consider. You can search for “Rip’s Rock.”

Here’s another art related doc I found later on Asher Durand. It has somewhat of the same hike concept as I had…

durand_resources.pdf

View five vintage Kaaterskill Falls postcards after the jump -
Read the rest

This is a great overnight hike for the older scouts. Hike up above the treeline across the entire Presidential Range and up and over Mt. Washington, the highest mountain in the northeast (6288ft). It is quite a challenge and achievement. I wanted to revise this slightly but ran out of time.

I’ve also attached a copy of a map we used when we first introduced the Whites and this hike to the scouts.

mt-washingtonv3.ppt

Download an excellent White Mountain map here
(Large size: 1667 x 1206 795KB)
(map credit: White Mountain Attractions Association Inc.)

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Like Mt. Washington, Katahdin is one of those classic, must do, northeastern hikes. Logistically it is a challenge because of the remoteness and competitiveness for campground space. The attached gives an overview of the hike. I wrote it using powerpoint 07, if it does not open for you, send a note and I’ll try saving as an earlier version file.

katahdin.ppt

 In the 1840s Henry David Thoreau climbed Katahdin (written then as “Ktaadn”); his ascent is recorded in a well-known chapter of The Maine Woods. His travels followed ancient Wabanaki canoe routes through vast, primitive wilderness. You might want to take in this history prior to any trip.  Lots of information is available in a simple web search. One place to start is the Thoreau-Wabanaki Trail association:

This is a great hike idea if you are looking for something the scouts can be quite proud of  -

From Monson, Maine, the Appalachian Trail begins its journey through the fabled 100 mile Wilderness. This is the longest stretch on the AT that doesn’t cross a paved road. Many of its best highlights are packed into the first 30 miles, including the Lower Wilson falls, rock strewn rivers, and great views. Campsites are abundant and there are 4 shelters along this route.

The hike ends/starts on the gravel road to Katahdin Iron Works off ME 11, 5.5 miles north of Brownville Junction, a short distance from Gulf Hagas, a slate gorge filled with waterfalls (a day hike on its own). AMC’s Little Lyford Pond Camp is nearby. I’ll post more on this later.

(Map credit: 100 Classic Hikes in the Northeast by Jarad Gange)

I had this idea for an award (patch, certificate) that the scouts could earn for hiking some part of the Appalachian Trail in each of the 5 New England states (CT, MA, VT, NH, ME). The patch would look identical to the above (the classic trail marker symbol for the organization), with the state initials in it somewhere and maybe “5 stater” or something like that (in gold). I talked to the AT Conservancy and got permission to use the AT logo on a limited (troop) basis. Maybe we can do something council-wide with permission. If you are out of region, maybe you can just run with the idea for 100 mile AT/PCT hike or something.

New note: I was recently sent this – the Green Mountain Council in Vermont has a similar program already established for hiking the Long Trail. Surf to website or see attached:

green-mountain-council.doc

Making a competitive car is very simple and you don’t need to be a physics teacher or engineer. All you need to do is get on the internet and search “pinewood derby”. It’s all there.

This does take time and you do find that most sites are ones where you have to pay for a book to get anything useful, but if you sift through the web, you’ll slowly find what you need.

Better yet, read the attached. I may not have collected all the secrets, but I think I got most. Combined with what we learned on our own from experimentation and success (something like 6-7 first place pack awards between two kids), everything you likely need to know is right here. If you read the attached and apply the basics of weigh location & axle prep, you can probably win something in your pack. I’ve includes lot’s of design ideas as well.

pwd2007v2.pdf  (email me if you want the ppt, this is a large file)

Update note 1 (Feb08): Webelo1 son wins pack championship. I’m telling you, it’s all in here!! Polish those axles and get the weight right!

This was a good program to introduce the scouts to how things worked locally and what it means to be a good citizen. I started the event with a slide presentation from our Historical Society. I really wanted them to get a sense of our town’s long history, an appreciation of the hard work and vision that went into making it such a great historic town, their connection to it, and their duty/obligation to make the community, and life, better for all. I printed this out 2 to a page, cut, then stapled down the side (something to keep as a reminder of key messages). The requirements have changed slightly since I created this presentation, but hopefully it helps somehow – citizen-of-communityv2.ppt

The Ukulele is a great instrument to pick up and learn. With four strings, it’s not at all complicated like a guitar and ANYONE can play it.  You can pick it up and start playing in 15 minutes (the strumming takes a little getting used to). Give yourself a few days to really get better then you’ll be hooked.  What’s nice is it gives you the chance to finally learn the lyrics to tunes you always wanted to know. It’s great to carry around 10-20 tunes in your head to just start singing or playing anywhere (campfires, beach, back porch, parties). It’s easy to teach as well and you’ll be surprised how many people will want to learn after they hear you play.

A few things you need to know –

1. You don’t really need to buy any books. Everything’s out there on the web to download or watch.  Probably the best free tune book is the well known tune book from the Ukelele Club of Santa Cruz. Found here:

http://www.mediafire.com/?nnkmzwg3z2j

This is a big download, but it’s got most of the really good tunes in it. Chordie.com and scorpex.net/Uke  are also pretty good sites for sheet music. (On Chordie, which is really good, go to the right, and make sure you select “ukelele” to get the proper key to play in. If what comes up is not quite right, select the -1 or -2 “semitones” to find a key that is fun to play in.) If you do buy a book, the only one you need is “The Daily Ukulele” from Jumpin’ Jim (on Amazon). It has all the old ones (like “Shine on Harvest Moon”) and some of the new ones.

2. “Ukelele Mike” on Youtube offers a few hundred tunes as tutorials. Very good stuff he puts up. Here’s one just to find him: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7Xz06WE0N84&feature=related. You can absolutely learn to play the uke by watching and listening to him.

3. Buying a Ukelele: Don’t start with a total piece of junk – uke’s are cheap, you can get a really good one for $100-$150. You’ll learn there are four sizes of ukulele’s – soprano (the “Tiny Tim” or “Hawaiian Beach” looking one), this is the original size, but the cheap ones are really toy-like. Most uke players have a soprano in their collection, as it is fun to play. For starting, it’s better for you to buy the next size up, the concert model. This is the most popular size and it has just enough “beef” to make it really fun to handle and play. Tenor is the next size up, you can start on this as well, it’s just slightly bigger than the concert and it sounds just a bit deeper. Baritone is the next size up and largest (but it’s still smaller than a standard guitar). Unlike the first three sizes that are all strung “GCEA,” the baritone is strung a bit differently so all the chords would be off in standard noted sheet music (not where you want to start).

A few good Uke’s to consider: the Mitchell MU70 ($99) or the slightly prettier (darker wood) MU100 ($149). I’ve played both. Solid wood, nice sound, high gloss so easy to grip. I have a Lanikai CK-C Concert Curly Koa Ukulele ($170, pictured above) which I like a lot. I also have the Snark SN2 tuner which you’ll also want (or something similar) and I have a hard retro case (not a gig bag).

These are some tunes that are natural uke tunes (easy to play – and while playing the chords you can actually hear the melody) – I highly recommend for your initial tune selections (skip over the ‘Row Row Row Your Boat’ and ‘Twinkle twinkle’ stuff), you can do these:

Jambalaya (Hank Williams)
Blue Eyes Crying in the Rain (Willie Nelson)
Let it Be (Beatles)
Wonderful Tonight (Eric Clapton)
Put Another Log on the Fire (Tompall Glaser)
Me and Bobby McGee (KK/Janis Joplin)
Sloop John B (Beach Boys)
Blowin’ in the Wind (Bob Dylan)
City of New Orleans (Arlo Guthrie)
All of Me (Louis Armstrong)
Imagine (John Lennon)
Somewhere Over the Rainbow/What a Wonderful World (Israel Kamakawiwo’ole)
Unchained Melody (Righteous Brothers)
Country Roads (John Denver)
Save the Last Dance for Me (Drifters)
The Gambler (Kenny Rogers)
I Walk the Line (John Cash)
Vincent (Don McLean)
San Francisco Bay Blues (Peter, Paul & Mary)
I’m So Lonesome I Could Cry (Hank Williams)
Happy Together (Turtles)
Hallelujah (Leonard Cohen)
Can’t Help Falling in Love (Elvis Presley)
All My Loving (Beatles)
Tennessee Waltz (Patti Page)
Bad Moon Rising (Credence Clearwater Revival)
Stand by Me (Ben E. King)
Brown Eye Girl (Van Morrison)
Jamaica Farewell (Harry Belafonte)
Annie’s Song (John Denver)
Margaritaville (Jimmy Buffet)
Tonight You belong to me (seen in The Jerk, by Bill Rose & Lee David)
O Come Angel Band (Stanley Brothers)
I’m Your’s (Jason Mraz)
Peaceful Easy Feeling (Eagles)

Below: Another nice Uke – the Oscar Schmidt OU7T Tenor Ukulele with a Spalted Mango top ($187 on Amazon)

As Ukelele Mike says - Happy Strumming!