Discussion: Boy Scouts + Orienteering

Sadly, they don't "get it".

I was probably the first scout in my troop to get orienteering merit badge, but that was only because I was the navigator during a 10-day backpacking trip in 1995 and we didn't get lost. "This is the first backpacking trip that the troop has done where we didn't get lost. Here's orienteering merit badge."

All of the "map and compass" work we did in the troop was reading about topography in the handbook and doing the map-less exercises where we took a bearing, walked X paces, and repeated.

Fast forward to 2003, when I actually heard about real orienteering. And then Feb 2004, when I'd only done 4 local meets, but I decided to put together a weekend of real orienteering events (3 courses on 2 O maps) for my troop. The kids loved it, but only one leader took interest. And then in Nov 2004, I set another course (on a real O map) for the annual scout skills competition. No leaders participated. And then I moved to Seattle two months later.

I've talked with some of the scouts in the troop since I've moved away, and they tell me that they're back to the ol' compass bearing and pacing exercises again.... sigh.

you got it correct. What floored me was that they told me how important it was for the boys to be skilled at map and compass but their actions were completely opposite. At camp there is a limited amount of time. It sounded to me like map and compass were priority one or two but time spent for non merit badge scouts in the field was one hour the entire week one a crap course design by boys that weren't even in my class.

go figure

Where abouts were you on Lk. Roosevelt? My family goes up there every year to camp and we stay up by the Gifford ferry. We boat up to a beach kind of by the small town of Rice. I love that area. It would be great for an AR.

we were near the junction of the columbia and spokane rivers on the colville indian reservation. That place would be fantastic. it is unbelievable terraine. The problem is that it take 6 hrs to drive there.

6 hours drive wouldn't be so bad for a longer event: rogaine, AR, or mountain marathon. I wonder how permitting would be on the res.

Don brooks told me a number of years ago that there was a basic Ar out there. I think that they are pretty easy to deal with. It is nice hilly terraine with many features but not huge mountains. Not many trails though. mostly old roads.