OA Tapouts!

Every Wednesday, the Order of the Arrow, a service organization holds "tapouts". In order to be tapped out, you must be voted in by your Troop. The following are pics of the ceremony.






This is a short video of the actual Tapout...





All in all, it was a great ceremony. Hopefully, Wednesdays at CMR will be as nice as this weeks was for the rest of the summer.

Today, Camp Mountain Run had some special visitors. Each year, the Boy Scouts of America has certain standards that each camp must adhere to. The BSA then has people travel all over visiting Scout Camps to ensure that the camps meet the standards laid down for them. This year marked Camp Mountain Run's 27th consecutive year meeting and or exceeding those standards.


One of the most popular activities this summer has been Catch and Release Fishing at the Warming Pond. Scouts and Leaders alike are going crazy over the size of the fish this year. I can't believe how many people are fishing!


Next are just a few pics of Scouts around the Dining Hall on Tuesday...






Here are some pictures from the 1/2 Mile Swim...




Here is some fierce competition for the Battleship part of the Games Tournament...



All in all, it was a busy day! Tomorrow, OA Pictures will be up!

Previously...

When last I wrote, I ended with a bit of a Cliffhanger... The two troops who were in the Volleyball finals were, Troop 99 from St. Marys PA, and Troop 28 from Warren OH. Troop 99 had the Homefield Advantage, AND won the Coin Toss! It was a fierce battle! Neither team gave up more than one point at a time. It was anyones game, until Troop 99 started pulling ahead! Soon, it was Troop 99 up by 4 points with a score of 12 serving 8! Then... It was like something out of a movie... Troop 28 pulled the following shot off!



Slowly they started catching up... First it was 9-12, then it was 10 to 12... Next thing you know... Troop 28 won!




Everyone had a lot of fun! The teams kept playing for 2nd, 3rd, and 4th places. They just didnt want to stop.

Now, there were a few other things going on at Camp as well...

The 1/4 Mile Swim...



The opening round of the Games Tournament. Round one was Connect Four, the winner was the best 3/5 games played.



There was even Open Handicraft. They were having sessions on working with Plastic Lacing. This type of craft is also known as "Boondoggle" or "Gimp" It is creating a braid with four strands of lacing, and usually ends up as a lanyard, key chain, or bracelet. It is very time consuming, but really neat when finished.



All in all, it was a very busy day! I don't think anyone was in their campsite Monday night! Scouts, Leaders, and Staff alike were all having fun. Which is what camp is about.

One last thing... I would like to thank Alan Chambers from Troop 28. He is a professional photographer, and graciously let me use all the pictures you see in todays post. For more information, visit his website at www.achambersphoto.com The flying dog is one of my favorite pics there! So thanks again Alan, we appreciate it!

A Whole New Week!

The past 2 days have just flown by! This week at CMR, we have 10 Troops, some have come as far away as Ohio. Check in went pretty smoothly, but there were a few little bumps. All quickly taken care of... It rained most of the morning, but towards the afternoon it cleared up. I was at the lake, and some Scouts were having fun during the Open Lake time.




Before Lunch, some Scouts were playing frisbee, while the Leaders were supervising...




Last night, the Camp Mountain Run Volleyball Tournament was held at the OA Volleyball Field. Program Director Justin called every game.



There were 5 troops who entered...






The Staff team got defeat after defeat handed to them... Zane, the Range Assistant didn't know how to handle the losses...



But in the end, it came down to two teams, Troop 28, and Troop 99...

To be continued...

Cub Scout Weekend!

This weekend, we had over 30 Cub Scouts and their leaders/parents here at Camp Mountain Run. They were able to go all over camp and do activities that were fun, AND counted towards their achievements! They got to go rowing at the lake, they learned about birds in Nature, and even earned their Whittlin' Chip card at Scoutcraft! Friday Night, there was a party held for the Boy Scouts 100 Anniversary. The Cubs were there playing games. There was a great game of Musical Chairs, and the DJ, was the Program Director Justin. The Handicraft Director Joyce was the one who organized the whole thing, and it was because of her, that everyone, staff and Cubs alike had a blast! So thank you Joyce, We all appreciated it! Here are some pics from the party.







This morning, we had some of the Cubs help out with Flag Raising. They did a really good job helping!





Thanks to all the Cub Scouts, Parents, and Leaders who made this weekend a great start to the Summer 2010 Season!

Last Day of Staff Week

Today was the last day of Staff Week. We have really worked hard to make Camp Mountain Run ready for this summer. This morning, the Scout Executive of Bucktail Council, Greg Bennett stopped by for breakfast. He gave us a nice talk about how important what we were going to do is for the Scouts. It was nice to hear that after such a long week. Here is a picture of him singing the song "Froggie".



After that we all went down to Walker Pavilion and we "graduated". We all received Staff Shirts, Certificates, and Camp Patches.



Justin gave out a Staff Member of the Week Award, and they gave it to the Trainer, Brian Sedgewick. He was a very big help to all of us, and he deserved it!



All in all, it was a great week, and while I am tired, it was worth it! Next: Cub Scout Weekend!!!

Day 5 of Staff Week...

Sorry for taking so long to get this posted. We have been very busy the past 2 days. Yesterday started off with everyone being allowed to work in their own areas. I was walking down the road when I heard some noise. I went up to the back porch of Hallstrom Lodge, and I saw what was going on. Trainer Brian was working with the Trailblazer Guides. Trailblazer is a program for first year campers. It teaches them all the basic skills needed to reach First Class. It is great for the new scouts! Ross and "Shades" were learning different games to teach the scouts teamwork. Program Director Justin happened to walk by, and Brian asked him to help with a new game. Each person put a bandanna in their back pocket, and faced off against someone else. The object was to get the other persons bandanna first! I think it was a little unfair. PD Justin has REALLY long arms!!! After they finished that, they then doubled up. Then they had to get the other teams bandanna. Justin still won!






Next they ALL lined up, and the goal was the same, and of course, Justin won!





After that, I had to go up to the Dining Hall,and I got Roberta chopping veggies!




We had BBQ Chicken for dinner. It was really good! After that, Scoutcraft Derrick led a REALLY FUNNY song! I just HAD to post it!






Last night we had our closing campfire. It went okay, or at least I thought it did, but Justin and Travis(The Camp Director) started talking, and they looked kinda mad... Travis asked Justin if we needed one more training session, Justin thought about it, and said yes we did! I was a little upset... We were tired and looking forward to going to bed! Justin then had us line up single file, and follow him up out of the Campfire circle. He led us down the back road through the upper campsites. When we reached the Algonquin campsite, there was a big campfire burning! We lined up, circling the campfire, and Justin said that so many times, we as Camp Staff are so concerned with the Program that we forget that a big part of Camping is setting around the fire, telling stories,and making Smores. The whole training staff had set up this fire, and bought soda, chips, stuff for smores, and fresh popped popcorn! The rest of the night we all sat around toasting marshmallows, and listening to each other tell stories. It had to be one of the best nights I ever had at camp!

I am SO Tired!!!!

I had SUCH a busy day! It is hard to believe that Camp opens for the Cub Scouts in THREE days! We have been working non stop. Before I started here, I thought it was easy being a Staff member. People don't realize just how much work these guys(and girls) put in. Not only do we have to work on our Program areas, but we have to go through a lot of training, AND we have to set up all the campsites as well!!! Today right after breakfast, we "set up" Crow's Nest Campsite. Setting up means, we have to arrange the heavy wooden platforms in almost a circle, level them up with rocks and cement blocks so they don't move up and down when you walk on them, set the tent up, make sure it looks good, put the cots in the tents, and put up the dining fly. What was cool, was today, EVERYBODY helped. It was nice working with everyone like that.

After Lunch, I got to help rearrange the Dining Hall. This was hard work. It wasn't as easy as I thought it would be. We had to make sure there were enough tables for every Troop all supper long. I was lost, but the Dining Hall Steward Jeff, and PD Justin, just sat down and figured it out. This is what it looks like now. I think it's cool!



After Supper tonight, Justin had us play this game. We all stood around the flagpoles, and Justing went around tapping us on the back. What he was doing, was putting name tags on our backs! The object of the game was to find out what name was on our back. The names ranged from Barney Rubble, to Lady Gaga. We were allowed to ask "Yes or No" questions only! My name tag said "Smokey The Bear". I wasn't the first one done. That was Derrick the Pool guy! He had Jane Jetson LOL! After I guessed mine, I took some pictures...





After about 5 minutes, Justin said that if anyone wanted a hint, they had to make silly faces... Well, here are some of them!






Tonight's campfire was all songs and cheers. We had a lot of fun singing tonight, but Owen and Kelly did one of my favorite songs, "Topnotcher". I was lucky enough to get a video of it.


Tomorrow night, we are combing everything we have learned this week, and having a "Dress Rehearsal" of sorts. I hope to have lots to show tomorrow! I'm going to bed now... I need my sleep, so I can keep working! :D