Last December, I joined Scouts from Troops 66 and 25 for a wilderness survival trip at Aspetuck Park. After attending the trip the year before and having a great experience, I decided to take on a new challenge: planning the trip myself.
About 15 Scouts participated. Our main challenge was to build shelters using materials we could find in the woods and then spend the night in them.
My friends Reed and Aiden and I built a shelter with a flat roof. Despite the cold weather, gathering wood and building the shelter kept us warm. By the time we finished around 4 p.m., we were proud of what we had built.
The weekend wasn’t all about practicing survival skills. We also played Manhunt in the woods and spent time together outdoors.
One of the most memorable moments came the next morning. Snow had fallen overnight, covering the area around our campsite.
Waking up in a shelter my friends and I had built and seeing snow all around us was an experience I won’t forget.
Trips like this are one of the reasons I enjoy Scouting. They give Scouts opportunities to spend time outdoors, take on new challenges with friends and develop practical skills along the way.
For me, the wilderness survival trip was more than a night in the woods. It was a chance to plan an activity, put survival skills into practice and wake up to an unexpected snowy morning.
