Troop 54 returned to Camp Wanocksett in Dublin, New Hampshire, for our 5th summer camp there; our last time there was in July 2022. This year is the camp's 100th anniversary, so that was the theme of the week.
We were in the Maskwa campsite, a site added in 2022. This site is a bit basic, with about seven 2-person tents, a fire pit, a couple of picnic tables and a rectangular canopy over the tables. The nearest latrine was a short hike away. It is not possible to bring a trailer into the site, so our trailer was about 400 feet away, on McCauley Field. We had 8 Scouts (100% of our members) and 2 adults in camp for the week. This was the first time we recall 100% of our registered Scouts attending summer camp, at least in the last 17 years.
Our Scouts took different merit badges, including Bird Study, Swimming, Signs Signals & Codes, First Aid, Animations, Painting, Music, Model Design & Build, Shotgun, Aviation, Lifesaving, Space Exploration, Astronomy and Rifle. They completed 31 badges and got 4 partials.
Camp Wanocksett features an hour for patrol activities, selected after morning colors and two open program sessions during which each Scout can participate in a variety of activities at all of the program areas. This year, our Scouts seemed to focus on waterfront for sailing, climbing the iceberg, tubing, swimming and paddleboarding. They also spent a lot of time at Handicraft on various arts and crafts projects. Two Scouts made it to the top of the Climbing tower, and most of them visited one or more of the shooting ranges.
A few of the activities generated significant enthusiasm. The Order of the Arrow Ice Cream Social, followed by a 75-minute performance of the camp band attained about 100% participation of the camp. One of our Scouts participated in the Scoutcraft vs. Brownsea Iron Chef Cook-off. Game night was also well attended. We went to our area Friendship Campfire where our Scouts performed a skit based on their Broimson Woods video.
The two campfires run by the camp staff featured 100-year themed skits, but the funniest skit was a repeat of the Enya skit done a few years ago.
During the week, our leaders provided transportation to a few of the merit badge field trips. We also completed installation of a water faucet across the trail from our campsite entrance.
Mr. Froimson was among approximately 50 youth and adult campers and staff who completed the mile swim. Mr. MacNeal paddled alongside as part of the boating safety escort for the event.
The weather was mostly warm and dry with temperatures generally in the 80s. The exceptions were a thunderstorm on Tuesday evening that prompted a campwide evacuation to buildings and some rain on Wednesday. Friday morning was pretty cool.
This was our 187th consecutive month with at least one overnight camping trip.
