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Troop 54 returned to Camp Collier in Gardner, Massachusetts for a cabin camping trip. We used the Heywood Hall cabin, right on the shore of Lake Wampanoag. Most of the cabin was heated by a wood stove. The kitchen area was unheated. Arriving at about 7:30 PM, we were pleasantly surprised to find that the camp ranger had lit the wood stove in advance.
We had 5 Troop 54 Scouts, 1 Troop 37 Scout and 3 leaders on this trip.
The cabin has a capacity of 20 with 16 beds in the main room and 4 in a side room.
In 2021, Camp Collier was used in as a setting for an episode of the series Dexter. At least one scene was filmed in the same cabin we used.
It was a pretty cold weekend. The temperature was just over freezing until mid-day on Saturday and fell to about 10°F early Sunday.
The lake had a thick layer of ice. It is popular for ice fishing; lots of people came out early each day to set up for fishing. Our Scouts insisted on exploring the lake and managed to find the spots where unfrozen water was exposed. Three Scouts soaked their shoes.
The Scouts made a meatloaf using a stove top oven. They also made vanilla ice cream.
In the cabin, the Scouts spent some time on advancement and playing some board games. Outside, we spent a lot of time gathering, cutting and splitting firewood to keep the wood stove going.
This was our 182nd consecutive month with at least one overnight camping trip.
Page updated 3/4/24
J. Froimson
