Parents and Scouts,

I know this past couple of days were a little rushed in reference to merit badge selections. But I want to send this out as a thank you for being patient and working with your Scouts to get those selection sheets and information back to me so quickly. Truly, it will benefit your Scouts since nearly everyone got their first choices of badges. The only “alternate” choices made were substitutions for Shotgun Shooting for the first year Scouts. While there is no BSA requirement for age, many camps limit that badge selection because many first year Scouts are just a little too small to successfully shoot 50 rounds of 12ga ammo in order to qualify. At least it gives those Scouts something to look forward to next summer!!

So, now what? We have 25 Scouts signed up for camp, and all 25 have their Merit Badges chosen. I will send out the actual scedule in the next day or so.

The next focus is medical forms. Here they are in case you need them. These are the only medical forms the BSA will accept. If you have a current physical for your Scout, and it will remain current through our time at camp (they are valid for 1 year). then I would suggest transferring the information from your “non-BSA” form to the BSA form linked below. Then have it signed by your physician or whomever.

We are required to mail all hard copies of these medical forms to camp in Mid-Jun. I will bug you as we get closer.

Again, thanks so much for getting those selections to me on such short notice.

Dan

https://www.signupgenius.com/go/20F0C4AACAE2BABFD0-bsatroop

Hi Troop 287 and Families,

Please see signup genius link above to participate in the May 13-15th campout at Lathrop State Park.
As usual, we will have a planning meeting a couple weeks ahead of the campout to lock down the sign up and plan the food, gear, transportation, and activities.

Excerpt from the previous post and sign-up:
Lathrop is Colorado’s first state park and there are lots of outdoor opportunities here including bike trails, hiking, kayaking or SUP, fishing, beach zone, and even a golf course in the park!
We can come up with an activity plan based on feedback and interest from the scouts.
I have 5 campsites reserved which will accommodate up to 30 people and 10 cars for the campout.
I look forward to seeing you at the campout May 13th-15th! 

Troop,

This morning I received an email from the San Isabelle Scout Ranch Program Director. It basically stated if a troop was paid in full, they can early-register for Merit Badges.

That being said, get me your Merit Badge Selections NOW!!!! This way I can grab your choices and make sure you are getting what you selected!! I currently have only three Scout’s selections in hand.

You can text me a pic, email me, or just text me the selections of what badges you all want and I will work it out the best I can.

If you still owe money, be sure to get your payments in as soon as you can. The final payment is due in mid-May.

Dan

Troop, the below link is to the San Isabelle Camp website for Forms and Resources. If you scroll down on that page, you will be able to download the required medical documents, Merit Badge Schedule, as well as a host of other resources. Parents, the leader guide will provide you with an idea of how the week will be scheduled. Scouts, there is a packing list on there as well.

So, to the business: our next hard date for Camp is April 28th. This is the day that Merit Badge Selection opens up. Please get me your #1, 2, and 3 selections for morning and afternoons (the sheet can be found at the link above) in the next couple of meetings, or email/text/ carrier parent, etc. Just get it to me! Otherwise, you will be in a merit badge session I select for you!

Medical: Scouts are required to have a medical examination, documented on the BSA Forms dated within one year of attending camp. Please schedule this out now so we don’t have any issues. We are required to mail the hard copies to the camp office in Pueblo no later than two weeks prior to camp, so we are setting a deadline in mid June for these docs.

Let me know if you have any questions or concerns.

Dan

Troop,

Camp Card season has started. Just $5 each! I just picked some up from the Council office yesterday. It runs from now until June 2nd. You may check them out from me starting next Tuesday in groups of 10 cards each. You may sell them and return the money to me during our Tuesday meetings and check out more as needed.

You will be responsible for any cards you check out, so keep them safe. I will have a check out sheet you will need to sign acknowledging receipt. If you lose the cards you will have to cover those costs. On the May 31st Tuesday Scout Meeting we will collect final funds and any unsold cards so we can give them back to the Council by June 2nd.

So, get ready and start raising some funds to put in your scout account!

Mr. Petree

Hello Scout Families!

ASM Jason Holpuch here with some details on the upcoming family campout May 13th-15th at Lathrop State Park.
https://cpw.state.co.us/placestogo/parks/Lathrop

Lathrop is about 90 miles South of COS, near Walsenburg, CO.  
Directions:
https://www.google.com/maps/dir/Colorado+Springs,+CO/Lathrop+State+Park+70+Co+Rd+502+Walsenburg,+CO+81089/@38.2173775,-105.3777401,9z/data=!3m1!4b1!4m13!4m12!1m5!1m1!1s0x8713412ea1e6d22b:0x418eeb92f5e86b13!2m2!1d-104.8213634!2d38.8338816!1m5!1m1!1s0x87115a09431f2983:0xf2e834eb5807f4f2!2m2!1d-104.8403861!2d37.6099799

Lathrop is Colorado’s first state park and there are lots of outdoor opportunities here including bike trails, hiking, kayaking or SUP, fishing, beach zone, and even a golf course in the park!
We can come up with an activity plan based on feedback and interest from the scouts.
I have 5 campsites reserved which will accommodate up to 30 people and 6 cars for the campout.
I look forward to seeing you at the family campout May 13th-15th! 

– Jason Holpuch

Troop,

Following our strenuous adventure it’s time for some fun. Ultimate Cabbage at the Wilson Ranch Park just behind the barn. Class B uniforms or athletic attire (Don’t forget hoodies or light jackets). I’ll get the cabbages. We will meet at the barn as usual and walk as a group along the trail to the park for some fun and games. While the scouts are doing getting their game on, the Troop committee will be meeting in the church. Get some!!

Troop,

Great job on the recent backpacking trip. It was a first for many, we had a great time, and we learned lots of lessons. Hopefully many more to come for each and every one of you. Here are some of the memories.

Troop,

Austin, Hunter and I did some recon yesterday afternoon after hearing there may be additional road closures at the location of our new trek. The rumors were correct that Gold Camp Road is closed near Helen Hunt Falls, but we checked out and were successful taking an alternate route. We made it to the trailhead.

Even though there is a parking lot the plan is to be dropped off and picked up as originally planned. We do not want to leave any vehicles at the lot. We will meet at the barn tomorrow afternoon at 5:00 pm sharp, and plan to be on the road before 5:30 pm. We will caravan as a troop from the barn to the trailhead.

There is not a long drive, so those that usually eat in the car Friday night should keep that in mind. Come will a full (but not to full because we are hiking Friday evening) belly, or something snacky you can eat quickly during the drive, on the trail, or once you arrive at Friday night camp. An extra ramen in their pack never broke any ones back.

Patrol Shoppers should arrive with food rations broken out for each person in their patrol to carry. No flats of Costco muffins to carry down the trail.

Everyone should arrive with their packs completely packed minus the room you left for food and troop gear. We will hand out the divided gear (Personal ration of food, Jet Boils, Fuel, Tent parts, and Water filters) at the barn to have you add them to your packs. Remember to have plenty of water/water containers. While there are a number of watersheds shown on the map, we are not sure what the levels will be. There appears to be some snow patches still on the north slopes of certain areas, so we may be able to use that as a source as well.

Remember this time of year can be hit or miss with weather. It could be sunny and warm as well as rainy or snowy in the same day. Layers are our friends. Bring the appropriate gear. No big snowboarding jackets and snow pants. Instead a base, mid, and outer layer.

I have maps all printed for both treks.

The roster I have is as follows:

+/- 10 Mile Trek

Mr. Holpuch, Mr. Kunkle, Mr. Boydston, John, Ben, Madden, Jefferson, Alex, Hunter, Hayden, Nickolai, Sam, Zayden, Scott, and Miles

+/- 20 Mile Trek

Mr. Petree, Mr. Winslow, Austin, Evan, Matt

Drivers, Thanks so much for the assistance. Just for being awesome we reduced the drive time for you this one time from 2+ hours each way to about 20 minutes.

Look forward to it gentlemen!!!! remember to Be Prepared

Mr. Petree

Thank you for everyone that has signed up for flag duty. The team REALLY appreciates it. We are still in need for more scouts and parents to sign up for more flag days. It will be much easier and more fun if we can fill these slots. We have many new scouts and this is a good way to meet more parents.

We have 4 routes. Each route has approximately 60, 8ft flags. These are established routes with flag holders in the ground. The scouts put them up, salute the flag and move on. We will try to pair young scouts up with the older ones. In the afternoon, flags are collected, rolled and put away.

Below you will find the link to the SignUpGenius https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10C0D4BA5AF2BA1FEC52-flag

Flags is a FUNdraiser that our troop has been doing for over 20 years. We have raised over $88,000 in that time, so it is a very large part of our troop funding. Only 3 troops do flags here in Colorado Springs, we are fortunate to be one of them. We are partnered with the Rotary Club and they do the subscriptions and collect the money for the flags. It is our obligation to get just over 200 flags up and down for 5 holidays. It makes it easier if each family commits to a holiday (or more).

Thank you for signing up for a shift (or more). Feel free to call or text with any questions

If you are new and/or not sure what you are getting into, please feel to contact me. We really do need everyone to sign up for a shift. We all like our holidays off. We are only asking for one day.

Maureen Reiser 208-596-3115

Troop,

Due to the wind and possibility of rain, let’s meet in the the chapel tonight. Don’t wanna mees up those nice uniforms. Hint Hint. Uniform inspection.

Things to remember… bring your books for tracking rank advancement and if you have a troop tent or other gear from a recent outing please bring them so we can return them to inventory.

See you soon

Mr. Petree

Troop,

Austin, Hunter, and I did some recon to prepare for the upcoming backpacking trip only to find that the last almost 8 miles of CO 56 are closed. This means we will not be able to drive to our drop-off point. Rather than adding 8 miles to each of the routes, we spent most of the day looking at other options. Here is what we came up with.

This route will be a loop and is located right in our own backyard. We will start near Helen Hunt Falls and in keeping with the original plan take off in two different directions. We will again meet up on Saturday afternoon and camp together and then finish as a Troop. While it was not what we were hoping for, this does have some benefits… first, it is about two hours closer. Second, because it is a loop we can leave vehicles at the trailhead and return to them reducing the headache of the drivers necessary for a thru trek and allowing some adults who might have wanted to come to join in. With that being said please reach out if you are an adult who wanted to go but couldn’t before. Finally, it is a bit shorter on both loops for those who may have been unsure about the distance.

We will discuss this more on Tuesday evening.

Mr. Petree

Mr. Anderson here….

Citizenship in the Community Merit Badge is an Eagle requirement and a relatively difficult badge to earn. I am a counselor for this badge and would like to begin working on it with interested scouts. The requirements for this badge are complicated and require reading, research, field trips, and volunteer service hours, so I recommend it only for older scouts at this time.  (Younger scouts are encouraged to pursue any of the many “more fun” badges to get started.)
If you would like to participate, please send me an e-mail with the subject “BSA 287 Citizenship” to: rockprodigy13@gmail.com
YOU MUST “CC” ONE OF YOUR PARENTS, PER BSA RULES. 
I will e-mail you a worksheet to help you document the requirements and we will use the e-mail list to coordinate the various necessary field trips.

Troop,

The new date has been set for Kobe’s COH. Here is the sign up for it. We are in need of a Color Guard (Class A with Sash) and a few ushers (double duty is allowed). Sign up and gt some cake! See what your efforts through Rank advancement can lead to!

https://www.signupgenius.com/go/20f0c4aada829a7fe3-color

Date, time and loction are 24 April at 6:30pm, 2375 Centennial Blvd.

Troop,

We are in need of drivers for the upcoming Lost Creek Wilderness Backpacking trip.

We currently have 19 adventurers (15 Scouts and 4 Adults (2 to support each route)) signed up to attend and conquer the upcoming outing we have planned, but only enough drivers to drop off 13 at the starting point and pick up 15 at the finish line.

I know that there may also be some other adults that would like to attend the trek, but were not able being we are making the Scouts a priority and only allowing additional adult participation if there was extra space in which we are currently lacking.

Being this is a thru trek we will not be finishing anywhere near where we will be starting. Therefore it is not feasible to leave any vehicles parked at the trailhead for transport purposes.

If you can help with transportation to or from it will be very helpful and much appreciated by these young explorers. Sign up at the link below for one or both of the driving options.

https://www.signupgenius.com/go/20F0C4BA8A828A4FD0-lostcreek

The dropoff plan is to meet at the barn at 5 pm to go to Lost Park Campground at end of CO56. Please comment on how many Scouts and packs you can drop off.

The pickup plan is to be at the Ute Creek Trailhead near Teryall Campground off CO77 at noon where we plan to exit the wilderness. Please comment on how many Scouts and packs you can retrieve.

Troop,

Just a reminder that we have an awesome thru trek planned in the Lost Creek Wilderness coming up. The weather is getting warmer and its time to hit the mountains on foot. We still have plenty of youth slots available on both routes, so jump on board! We are still in need of one adult who is up for the challenge to accompany the hard chargers taking on the 20 mile route.
Remember to sign up for the trip so we will be prepared to plan this out tomorrow night.

Troop, a quick update to Summer Camp.

We currently have 19 Scouts registered (and three adults) to attend camp with a couple of discrepancies between the Sign up genius (14 signups; link below) and the registered Scouts (19 registered). If you have signed up on the genius but have not paid yet, you will be getting an email in the next week or so detailing such with instructions on how to get us money for payments. Or just bring a check to the next meeting if you have not signed up at all and want to attend. Fees are $335 total for camp, $75 deposit required.

Right now, the camp can hold up to 270 campers, and they currently have 202 registered. We are in good shape in this department, with only a few newer Scouts who may be interested and not signed up/registered.

https://www.signupgenius.com/go/20F0C4AADA829A7FE3-sumer

Below is a link to the latest information for camp. In the leader guide parents can find information about attending camp for all or part of the week.

Visitor policy:
All visitors to San Isabel Scout Ranch must
check-in at the A-Frame prior to visiting any
program area or campsite. Visitors will be
given a wristband identifying them as such.
Visitors are not allowed to participate in
activities or eat meals unless they have paid
for them at the A-Frame.
**Only registered adults can stay overnight at camp due to the status of the Camp being a child care facility.

MEDICAL DOCS NEEDED!!
Parents, please make sure you are scheduling necessary medical examinations and such. We will need to have those hard copies in hand at a minimum of three weeks prior to attending camp. We have to mail them to camp offices (in Pueblo) minimum two weeks prior to attendance.

The Merit Badge Selection opens on 28 April. I will need to obtain a preference listing from each Scout so I can get all the selections put in the system as quickly as possible.

Let me or Ray know if you have any questions or concerns.

Dan

Troop,

Just a reminder that we will not be having a meeting this week due to spring break and a lot of the Troop out on adventures with their families. If you are traveling, have fun and be safe! See you next week.

Mr. Petree

Troop,

A reminder since the weather is nice and we are getting into the Spring we will be meeting at the barn tonight.

We will take the opportunity to get it all ready for all Scouting fun we will have up there this season. We will work on some advancement, scout skills, and get some of the gear straightened up and ready for all our great summer adventures!

See you tonight!

Mr. Petree