Our annual open house campout in Wharton State Forest!
Goshen Pond
By Scout Scoutly
On a mid-October weekend, Troop 48 set off for the far off land of Shamong in the pine barrens, nearly twenty whole minutes from the shed. There, the PLC had planned an exciting weekend for the Troop, but also from visitors from local Cub Scout packs.
“We’ve been doing this since at least I was a kid”, said Scoutmaster Mike McCormick, “I was out here as a Weblos back in 1992. It must have been fun, I joined Troop 48!”
This year, the PLC tried to outdo themselves. First, the Scouts worked on Wilderness Survival skills, including how to create a shelter. They then went on a mile hike through the historic village of Atsion. Stops along the way included the Richards Mansion, the old schoolhouse, a church from the 1800s, and an old
paper mill. Scouts also crossed the Mullica River on a railroad bridge, looked for slag from the bog iron days, and found some wildlife.
Back from our hike, it was time for the really adventurous stuff, starting with the
obstacle course. The course included balance beams, hurtles, a pit of spiders, and a tunnel to crawl out of. Good times were had by all navigating through it.
For the last big adventure, the Scouts had constructed a 25 foot long monkey bridge for everyone to cross. They had lashed it together themselves, and then hauled it up to be freestanding. With the help of hundreds of feet of old climbing rope (thanks Mr. Teti!), a really solid bridge was constructed, and Scouts spent over an hour climbing up and across it. The night was wrapped up with a campfire, where Scouts and smores and pickle soda.
