Troop 804 - Summer Camp 2014 Camp Rodney, North East, MD

   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
 Return from Summer Camp!

The Troop's 10th Summer Camp is now behind us. Although it was a week of great learning, great fun, and great times, everyone is glad to be home!

This year's experience had many unique memories:

• All but the waiters.... DISMISSED!
• Six-plus (!!!) inches of rain... in one day!
• Daddy Long Legs ... everywhere!
• The mail wizard
• Penny Whistle
• IAN! IAN! IAN!
• The "Birdie" song
• Corn-hole and the old-men showing that wisdom is better than youth
• 45 Scouts and 9 Adults
• Hey, Brownsea! Hey, what?
• Zombie Broccoli!
• 111 completed merit badges, and 34 partials
• Rodney Honor Troop award
• Bay Mile Swim - 1st place!

Summer Camp takes tremendous efforts from many. This year, nine adults took a week off work and a week away from other family members in order to help our Scouts. These adults work very long hours, often beginning weeks or even months before Camp, and never complain or think of themselves. In our Troop, each adult is given a "job" or area of responsibility, and this year was no different:

• Dave Dowling monitored the Scoutcraft area (Camping, Cooking, Wilderness Survival, and Pioneering) and also served as the Troop medic. He took care of blisters, chafing, and cuts, dispensed medications all day long, and stayed up late tending to boys before giving his station report. He also helped teach a First Aid merit badge session during our "siesta" hour.
• Ted Durig managed all the administrative functions of the Camp, including registration activities stretching back many months, and monitored the sports badges. He helped with trailer-pulling, helped manage the movement of boys, and provided great goodwill and cheer to all. He also took the bulk of the photos posted to the blog.
• Ric Gardner monitored the swimming areas (Swimming and Lifesaving merit badges, taken by many in the Troop) and single-handedly helped many boys complete their work. He also shared his Scoutcraft expertise with any boy who wanted it - teaching boys how to tie knots, make fire, or take castings of animal tracks.
• Brian Hufker monitored the Ecoology and Conservation area (Environmental Science, Fish & Wildlife, Mammal Study), helped cover the Cooking and Camping areas and never passed up an opportunity to help another adult or Scout... or to take a nap.
• Neal Kindness of course did it all. He monitored each and every Scout's time in Camp, addressed homesickness, helped Ted Durig when interacting with the Camp leadership, provided guidance and mentoring to the youth leadership, and helped the other adults with anything and everything they needed. He was up late, awoke early, and busy all the time in-between. He also took lots of photos!
• Armando Morell monitored the Sciene and Technology areas (Astrononmy, Engineering, Space Technology, Robotics, and more). He also provided great mentoring for the boys, helped greatly with "tent protection" (helping boys with various tent issues), and was a chief "spider remover". He also took lots of pictures.
• Scott Owen oversaw the Shooting Sports badges (Rifle, Shotgun, and Archery) and as usual was so helpful that he was invited to become "honorary staff" at these stations. Thank to his help, for the first time in Troop history, we completed all Rifle *and* Archery badges, and all but one Shotgun badge!
• Jim Ruff attended his very first Summer Camp with T804 and watched over the Boating and Sailing areas. He assisted in many ways, even taking the youth leadership on a "pizza" run (and having his truck break down in the process). Jim was a great addition to the roster... and he also won the "Brian Hufker Major Applicance Breakdown At Home During Camp" award for a sump pump failure leading to a basement flood during the torrential rains.
• Dave Shade helped track merit badge progress for all the boys and shepherded the first-year Scouts ("Brownsea") during the day, and helped get the blog posted each evening. He also helped teach the First Aid merit badge session during the "siesta" hour.

The Scouts in Troop 804's Camp this year were a very special group and all of the adults were very happy to participate!

And so we'll bring this year's blog to a close. We hope that everyone who attended had a great time and enjoys visiting this site to keep their memories alive!

P.S. Every picture you see on this page - and literally thousands more - will be made available at the September Court of Honor on our usual photo DVD. All of the photos on the DVD will be in their original full resolution (unlike the pictures here which are made smaller so that the transfers can be completed more quickly).

P.S. #2: Yes! A blog completed before midnight!

posted by Dave Shade at 8/16/2014 10:09:45 PM

   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
 Last Day of Summer Camp!

Our last in Camp was great. It started with the usual mile run for 10 Scouts, followed by the usual breakfast and morning free time. Scouts then attended their last classes, although some of the Scouts taking water activities kind of wanted to skip because it was too cold. Temperatures overnight on Thursday probably touched below 60 degrees and it had not warmed up much by morning. But, they were persuaded to attend and were reasonably glad they had. During the early afternoon, many in the Troop helped with a service project. Any free time during the day or evening was devoted to preparations for packing up and coming home. Ted Durig also managed to find time to snap pictures of the boys with their tent mates.

In the evening, the Camp attended the closing campfire, which featured a tapping out ceremony for the Order of the Arrow (congratulations Joey Dowling!!!), a slideshow of photos from the week, and Troop 804 singing a rousing version of "Little Birdies" for the entire camp. It was probably the best such campfire we've seen.

The first-years had another great day. They completed all their merit badges, although not without plenty of hard work and the need to work through some of the free time. One of their badges, nature, required them to make a plaster cast of an animal track, something they did with help from Ric Gardner... and it came out great. Their program day ended with a "graduation" ceremony from their Brownsea program followed by photos with their counselors. They are bringing home plenty of evidence of their efforts.

From this point, all energy will be focused only on the activities needed to get us home on time. We plan to arrive at Baldwin Hall at around 11:30am with an incredible bulk of the smelliest stinking people and objects imaginable. Everyone here is very much looking forward to getting home!

posted by Dave Shade at 8/16/2014 12:17:03 AM

   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
 A Great Second-To-Last Day at Camp Rodney!!!!

The second-to-last day at Summer Camp is often the busiest day of the week, and this year's Camp is no exception. Many Scouts were out early with either the daily run or the "Polar Bear Swim" before 6am. The boys then went off to their stations to work really hard as they focus on completing their badges. The weather and other conditions have presented some challenges: high wind interfered with some of the boating activities, the rain on Tuesday caused problems with climbing wall schedule, and a very unfortunate mechanical failure on a boat engine forced a lost day for the water skiing folks. But, the boys are persevering and making progress on many fronts. In particular, a number of boys completed shooting requirements (rifle, shotgun, and archery) - often tough to do - and we are very pleased about this.

Any Scout that had not yet taken a shower was required to take a shower tonight. Unfortunately, we can't require soap to be used!

We have nine Scouts taking the Cooking merit badge and tonight was the big "mega cook-off" event, where they apply what they've learned so far to make a full dinner. We are sure it was not four-star cuisine, but Dave Dowling, who had helped monitor that station all week, did feel comfortable eating the food. As of this time, he continues to feel OK but we will update you on any emerging developments! One of our Scouts participated in the mile swim and completed the course in only 28 minutes - in open Bay water no less!

The first-year Scouts had a very busy day, with programmed activities stretching from 9am until 8pm. They started with classes in Leatherwork and Art, then lunch. We picked up the targets from yesterday's rifle shoot (see picture) and then took a "Rock Hike" as part of the Nature merit badge. Unfortunately, the winds prevented the planned boating trip (on catamarans), so instead the boys were allowed to shoot some archery (yes, that is a bulls-eye by one of them!). After dinner, it was off to a truly awesome "Bay Hike" in which the boys waded out into chest-deep water and then walked along parallel to the shore for a while where they encoutnered another group and engaged in a massive splash fight (occurring about 200 yards offshore!). The Bay Hike also included a spectacular sunset over the water.

Everyone here is looking forward to getting home, even though we are having a great time (especially since the rain is over!). Temperatures last night dropped down to the low 60's and tonight might actually drop to the mid-50's. See you Saturday!

P.S. We deliberately avoid naming Scout achievements and honors (ie. Mile Swim above) so that the boys can tell you themselves.

posted by Dave Shade at 8/14/2014 11:52:49 PM

   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
 

A Dry Day at Camp Rodney!!!!

Yesterday, obviously, the weather was the big story. Our Troop rain gauge registered around 3 inches... and it fell over on Tuesday afternoon! There were plenty of leaky tents and muddy boots but all the boys made it through with flying colors and learned something about preparation and neatness.

Today the weather was just spectacular and other than lots of mud, there were no problems from yesterday's rain (we did have to cancel the morning mile run due to the mud).

Scouts today continued working on their merit badges, and many are near completion on at least one of them. A group discovered that the Chess merit badge is relatively easy to earn and so they did a last-minute sign-up and started that today. A group of boys taking the Wilderness Survival merit badge are on "outpost" tonight, meaning that they are sleeping out on in the woods in shelters they made from materials found there. They should return to Camp by dawn. Many Scouts left camp during the evening to participate in "open programs", including rifle, shotgun, archery, swimming, and more. Older Scouts in the "Order of the Arrow" got to attend a special ice cream social. Two senior Scouts also participated in a nighttime orienteering (map & compass skills) session.

The first-year Scouts continued working on Leatherwork and Nature, and also learned about First Aid, took a "Tree Hike" to learn about trees in the Camp, and got to try their hand at shooting on the rifle range (some are very good shots!). They also got to attend a special "first-year Scouts only" campfire program. We have been rotating the leadership of the group and the boys are learning a lot about how hard it is to get their friends to listen. This is great experience.

We are well past the halfway point and while everyone is having a great time, we are also looking forward to getting home!

posted by Dave Shade at 8/14/2014 12:02:12 AM

   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   


A Wet Day at Camp Rodney!!!!

Well, it rained a little at Camp Rodney. A little, that is, inside Ric Gardner's tent. It was a literal deluge of Noah's Ark proportions everywhere else! But, we've heard it was the same back home.

As we write this, about 11:00pm, it seems that most of the worst rain has passed. The rain really was the story of the day. Several stations has to limit or cancel activities (ie. archery, rifle shooting, sailing) but since it is so early in the week, they will be able to make changes to keep on schedule. Many of the boys ignored the adults' advice to keep dry and had a great time splashing their way through the day.

First-year Scouts swam up to Leatherwork to start the day, where they began working on a leather project. They then paddled over to the "Brownsea" program and learned about lashings. Surprisingly, they were more interested in playing "splash fight" than in making free-standing tripods. Lunch was a welcome dry spot, after which they began working on the "Nature" merit badge, and then off for more Leatherwork. In the evening, they began working on the "Totin' Chip", a certification that allows a boy to carry and use a pocket knife. This year, we believe we will have to combine it with the "Snorkeling" badge, since the boys were working on it at the same time as some of the heaviest rain.

Our older Scouts are also doing well, and are functioning quite independently. The climbing wall was a big hit, and the Cooking badge has turned out to be very good here (we do not yet know whether the cooking itself was equally good!).

The weather also interfered with evening programs because most of the stations closed down early. Because of the heavy rain, we had to crowd everyone into our tiny covered area, where we played games (chess is popular this year) and did mail call. The boys turned in about 9:45 after tent checks to look for excessive dampness.

We hope all is well - and dry - back home!

posted by Dave Shade at 8/12/2014 11:45:40 PM

   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
  

A Great Day at Camp Rodney!

Our first full day in camp was realy great. The day began quite early, with 5:30am wake-ups for nine Scouts who had to go for an early-morning swim, either to qualify for the Lifesaving Merit Badge, or to begin the process of working toward the "Mile Swim".

Seventeen other Scouts then woke up about 6:00am to participate in our "Captain Dan Daily Run" (named for former Assistant Scoutmaster Dan Schindler). The boys - including four or five first-year Scouts - ran roughly a mile through the camp to start the day.

After breakfast (waffles and sausage), the boys went their separate ways to attend merit badge classes. First-year Scouts started their first-ever merit badge (Leatherwork), where they learned about tanning and weaving vinyl lace ("Gimp").

Lunch was cheeseburgers, followed by "Siesta Hour" (ie. sugar-fuel-up at the Trading Post), and then afternoon classes. So far, the classes have been really good. Dinner was roast turkey, mashed potatoes, peas & carrots, with ice cream for dessert. The Camp also has a very good salad bar.

The first-year Scouts had a great but tiring day. The "Brownsea Program" (the name of this camp's first-year program) is headquartered at the complete other end of camp, probably close to a mile away. Today they worked on knots, started Leatherwork merit badge, created a patrol name and cheer (the "Zombie Brocoli" patrol, don't ask where that came from), played games against Scouts from other Troops, learned some CPR, and had some free swim time. They also visited the Trading Post (where they were told ice cream was off-limits since it was right before lunch, bummer). They are doing great and have really started clicking as a group, with different pairs of boys hanging out together and talking during the day.

The weather today was very good. We have heard that we may get some rain tonight but nothing too significant, and our reports are that we should expect nice weather after tomorrow.

Tonight was our first "mail call" (several of the pictures are from evening mail call). It was a big hit. Sam Marshall and Andrew Lukas were the winners of our daily "share care package" raffle (care packages that are designed to be shared). It is not too late to send a note or card to your son!

All is well and we even saw some Scouts take showers - without being asked!

posted by Dave Shade at 8/11/2014 11:54:33 PM

   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
 

Greetings from Camp Rodney!

After a very smooth assembly and pull-out this morning, we arrived at Camp Rodney to discover that our campsite is very literally perched right above the Chesapeake, atop a bluff overlooking the bay (with a good fence too!). It is a very wonderful campsite. We were assigned 32 tents - exactly the number we needed - only to discover that 4 of our tents actually had been assigned to the Troop next door. Oops. The camp staff immediately sent over a team of 14 and assembled us four more tents in just a few minutes. The boys had picked "tent buddies" before we left Baldwin Hall, so they started picking their tents right away.

After quickly unloading the gear and having just a few minutes for the boys to unpack some gear, the Troop went through quick medical checks, an orientation to the dining hall, and a walk over to the pool for swim checks. There was a little free time for continued unpacking and some general fun (for example, we saw first-year Scouts playing cards and Yahtzee). Dinner requires a full class "A" uniform, which of course requires a Scout to know where his uniform is (most likely balled up under a cot).

Dinner was outdoors on a field - barbecue chicken, port & beans, watermelon, and salad. The guys ate a lot - and some of them seemed to be wearing more barbecue sauce than they ate.

After dinner, the Camp held a series of orientation sessions to explain the various stations. Then they led everyone to a great campfire - really great! After the campfire, we went back to camp, had some discussion to get ready for tomorrow, brushed teeth, and got the guys into bed by about 10:30.
posted by Dave Shade at 8/11/2014 12:19:02 AM

COMMENTS  Add A Comment

Love the pictures! Thanks for posting them. Have a great week!!

Comment By Jennifer Lukas at 8/11/2014 4:27:43 AM

Looks like a great spot for camp! Thanks as always for my morning pick me up seeing Josh have fun!!!!

Comment By Melissa Dempsey at 8/11/2014 4:34:26 AM

Looks like everyone is having fun! Thanks for the photos!

Comment By Mary Nolte at 8/11/2014 6:06:12 AM

Thank you all for the wonderful experience for Sammy. No Super moon Photos:)

Comment By Maggie Marshall at 8/11/2014 9:02:07 AM

Note: *** Post Office Fail *** We sent our son a care package in a USPS Flat Rate box. Unfortunately, it looks like the Post Office just left a note at Camp Rodney and the package is now sitting at the Post Office waiting for pick-up ... which I'm guessing will never happen. We are going to resend using UPS, hopefully with better results.

Comment By Warren Thompson at 8/11/2014 10:32:10 AM

Wonderful to see what is happening. Thanks for keeping in touch. Enjoy!

Comment By Judy Moreau at 8/11/2014 1:38:19 PM

Note: *** Post Office Fail [Update] *** So, either the Post Office re-attempted delivery or someone made a trip to the Post Office, because the package is now showing as delivered. If someone made a trip to the Post Office, thank you very much!

Comment By Warren Thompson at 8/11/2014 2:26:13 PM

   
   

(The pictures are from last year. Click on small pictures to see larger views.)

Welcome to the 2014 Troop 804 Summer Camp Blog! It is almost time to go! This year we are taking 45 Scouts and 9 adults to Camp Rodney in North East, Maryland, on the shores of the Upper Chesapeake Bay (just south of the Delaware line), for a great week of fun and learning. Our trip is being coordinated by ASM Ted Durig.

Each evening we will do our best to post lots and lots of pictures and some stories of the day. We do get busy and sometimes the internet doesn't cooperate out in the wilds so please be patient if postings are delayed.

Hopefully the Scouts are all getting ready - don't forget to help them double-check their packing lists and not wait until the last minute - and make sure they know where things are, especially their swim gear.

Feel free to comment on any posts... but bear in mind that this is not a good way to ask questions of the adult leaders (we hope we will be able to check email, but urgent issues should always be communicated by calling one of the contacts listed on the Summer Camp page on the Troop website).

If you have questions about the blog, ask now - before we are off to "the backcountry"!

posted by Dave Shade at 8/3/2014 6:05:52 PM