By Anthony H – Troop Historian
As part of our training for Philmont, nine ambitious Scouts, accompanied by three brave adults, gathered at St. Bart’s at 5:00 p.m. to begin a very wet weekend adventure. With on-and-off rain forecast for more than 50 hours, the group knew conditions would be challenging from the start.
On the first day, the crew hiked 3 miles with over 700 feet of elevation gain.
What began as a drizzle turned into steady rain just as tents were being set up for the night.
When asked about a memorable moment, Quinn Yen recalled Sunday morning, when strong winds threatened to rip tents from the ground. While he was helping Tor Anderson, the tent slowly collapsed inward. After Tor stepped out to make breakfast, Quinn found himself briefly squashed between two sides of a soaked tent as freezing wind howled around them — a true test of perseverance.
Saturday proved even more demanding, with the group hiking 13 miles and over 2,200 feet of elevation gain.
By Sunday morning, worsening wind conditions led the group to skip cooking breakfast and pack up quickly. They hiked another 2 miles to exit the forest, where everyone finally warmed up and enjoyed a quick snack — a well-earned finish to a tough but rewarding training weekend.