Jolly Scout: Bike Trip 2009

Another cool trip that gave many Scouts their first chance at a loooong bike ride (over 25 miles). One of the things I love about the Boy Scouts is the opportunity for many kids to have a unique experience. I know my son has ridden more miles on his two Scout bike trips than he has in his entire life with the added benefit of gorgeous views with his buddies beside him on the trail. My bet would be that over 75 percent of our kids did 20 more miles in one day than they have ever done in any other day of their life. It is quite fulfilling to me as a leader to see these Scouts discover that their abilities are greater than they know.

Mr. Brown found a wonderful campsite for us that was right on the New River. One of the great added benefits of this riverside camp was that the burbling gurgling rumbling sounds of the river drowned out the sounds of talkative scouts and snoring leaders as we slept at night. Saturday morning we had breakfast and loaded up and headed for our start point just north of Galax. As we unloaded the bikes we them bikes to check that they were trail-ready. This pre-hike inspection ensured that all the bikes made it through the long ride. We had Mr. Brown and Mr. Guthrie drive with the van to provide repair service, hydration support, and best of all, to meet us halfway with lunch. They missed the beautiful vistas, the railroad trestles and tunnels that we rode through on our ride. We had the opportunity to ride right into our camp at the end of the ride and it was a great feeling to get off that hard bike seat. Of the 38 of those who started the 25 mile plus trip - WE ALL MADE IT!!!

That night one Patrol made something they called Tornado Lasagna. It seems that instead of layered lasagna it is all put together and mixed as if in a blender but they said it tasted great. Another Patrol made Ziploc ice cream and some the vultures started to hovering around and begging for a taste. The Leaders made enough spahetti to feed the Troop but we had to eat it ourselves because the Patrols made their own suppers. We didn’t want to deprive them of the thrill of eating their own cooking!

I don't know about the boys but I'd love to do this trip again.

Click on the picture below to see the trip photo album.