In case you thought that the Advisor and other adults put the Crew's calendar of events and other program items together, then think again.  Adjustments are just a way of life for teenagers when you have school, family, church, cross country, football, basketball, wrestling, soccer, tennis, ASB, a part time job, a paper due, marching band, wind symphony, jazz band, brass ensemble, piano recitals, tutoring sessions with the young ones, and this little thing called Venturing.  Add to it when your Venturing spills over into staffing other Scouting events that need workups. Necessarily, you have to learn to be flexible.

The Cabinet gets to wrestle with the conflicts and juggle all the calendars of two dozen families. Do they get it perfect every time? Not always. Do they get it right most of the time? If you don't think so, please run for office and serve a year as an officer. At the least, volunteer to be an Activity Chair for an event and ensure that it has no date conflicts for anyone. Your Cabinet works for you, and there's no better example of the struggles and joys of Servant Leadership.

It's definitely March in the Pacific Northwest. Air temps are still freezing overnight, but getting into the 50's during the day. The sun is out for an hour, followed by rain for the next hour. The solutionr is just like any other outdoor adventure: wear layers and no cotton. Today's little journey took the Crew cycling through the forests of Bainbridge Island on a 20 mile shakedown of both equipment and bodies in preparation for next week's much longer cycling tour on the Olympic Peninsula.

You pack a water bottle for two reasons when you're peddling off-road and off-season. The first is obviously for personal hydration. The second is for the bike itself. Do you realize how much mud and grime you pick up in the chain, gears, chainrings, and derailleurs? Even brake calipers get loaded. Then comes the issue when the trail you're on comes to an end at a road crossing and you're not sure where the next trailhead starts. GPS to the rescue with a preloaded chart and electronic compass!

So sign off from Facebook, step away from the computer, dig your helmet out of the bottom of your closet and join us on our adventure next week on the Olympic Discovery Trail. We will peddle a quick pair of 20 milers and an extra 10 miler for those interested.

It's been gone too long, but it's finally back.  Powder Horn is a high adventure resource course for Venturing, Boy Scouting and Varsity Scouting leaders, both adult and youth, of the Boy Scouts of America.

The goals of Powder Horn are to: help Scout leaders to safely conduct outdoor activities of a fun and challenging nature, provide an introduction to the resources necessary to successfully lead their Crew through a program of high adventure and to understand what is involved in different high adventure disciplines. It will also familiarize the Venturing Advisor with the Ranger program so that they can help Venturers in meeting the requirements of the Ranger Award. The course is not designed to teach specific skills or earn certifications. An important concept taught in Powder Horn is to gain an understanding of the Consultant, and to mutually develop a list of subject master experts in your area who can serve as Consultants on the many different forms of High Adventure.  Powder Horn is a 6 day ciourse and will be held over two 3-day weekends, June 1-3 at Camp Kilworth and June 22-24 at Camp Hahobas.  The course used to be only for Venturing adults, but is now available to all Scoutmasters, Varsity Coaches, and now Venturing age youth. W00t!

You can download the form here and register.