Troop 61 is from the town of Mansfield, Connecticut. We are located in the Northeast corner of the state, known as the "Quiet Corner". Mansfield is composed of many sections, most notably the section called Storrs, home of the University of Connecticut and the Uconn Huskies! We are chartered to the Eagleville Fire Department, located on Rte.32 in the Eagleville section of town.
From the Leaders Corner
Please remember that we will be having our final
meeting on the island this Monday, August 17th, from 7-8 p.m. Hope
to see you!
Mt. Washington Hike
August 20 - 23, 2009
Date: Thursday, August
20th to Sunday, August 23rd.
Meeting Time: 1:00 p.m.
Where: Eagleville
Fire Department
Return Pickup Time:
3:00 p.m. on Sunday, August 23rd.
Where: Eagleville Fire
Department
Cost of event: The cost of
this trip is being picked up by the troop. Scouts wishing to bring
spending money are responsible for keeping any cash they bring safe.
Purpose of event: Hike
Mount Washington and sight see in local area, time allowing.
Who may attend? Only
Scouts that have completed one of the mandatory troop hikes, or that had
made prior arrangements with Mr. Pender may attend. We are limited
to a maximum number of 16 persons attending due to campsite
restrictions.
Troop 61 will be traveling to New
Hampshire to hike Mount Washington and do some sight seeing in the local
area if time permits, from Thursday, August 20th to Sunday, August 23rd.
We will be meeting in the parking lot of the Eagleville Fire Department
at 1:00 p.m. SHARP and will depart no later than 1:30. All Scouts
must have appropriate gear for the trip and must be prepared for cold,
wet weather, as the weather conditions on Mt. Washington can very
unstable (snow, rain, high winds, etc.) at any time of the year.
For the day on Thursday, each Scout
should be dressed in comfortable clothing. Scouts should have a
daypack with water bottle that has a leak free seal to hold adequate
water with them for each of our day trips. The bottle should also
be full upon departure, just in case anyone gets thirsty for the trip
up.
The campground we will be staying in
is Sugarloaf 2, located just outside of Twin Mountain, N.H. The
site is located just a few miles from the Jewell Trail head, which
begins near the parking lot area of the Cog Railway. The hike will be
approximately 8 ½ to 9 miles long, round trip, and each scout should be
prepared with a pair of broken in hiking boots, and should have a
personal supply of moleskin in their first aid kit, as blisters are a
possibility. Moleskin can be purchased in the health section of
most grocery stores. Look for Dr.Scholls.
When we arrive at the campsite, we
will setup our gear and prepare for the hike to be on Friday morning,
weather conditions permitting. If the weather does not cooperate
on Friday, we will attempt the hike on Saturday. Due to the
extreme unpredictability of the weather on the mountain, the possibility
exists that we may not be able to make the hike safely on either day.
The hike is the troop’s objective, but my main objective is the safety
of every scout and leader in the troop, and ultimately, I will make the
call on the ascent of the mountain in the early morning, after review
with the other leaders.
Long-range forecast for
Mt.Washington area
Water: Water is available from the campsite, but the Scouts will
need to haul it several hundred yards from the spigot. Each Scout
should carry with them their own personal water / drink. The water
should be in a container that can be easily sealed and will not leak if
it tips over in their backpack or vehicle.
Food: Everybody should eat lunch and use the bathroom before
arrival on Thursday afternoon. The evening meal for Thursday will
be Subway grinders to be eaten on the way up. The remainder of the
meals will be prepared in the campsite using Troop cooking, with the
exception of the day of the hike, which we will all go out for pizza
afterwards.
Storage space
for this event will be extremely tight, so all Scouts must have the
correct amount of gear and it must be tightly stowed in their packs with
nothing hanging off. Most of our travel will be by Interstate and
we don’t want to have any gear flying off!
Parents that have questions or concerns should contact one of the Troop
leaders ASAP and we will try to answer your questions as quickly and
thoroughly as possible.
Permission Slips:
Please fill
out the permission slip below and return this entire page to Mr. Pender
the afternoon of departure, August 20th. Scouts who have not turned in
their permission slips will not be allowed to attend this event.
Permission Slip
As the parent or legal guardian of _________________________________, I
hereby give my permission for this child to participate in trip to Twin
Mountain, New Hampshire (Mt. Washington) with BSA Troop 61.
Location
Departure Time: 1:00 p.m.
Date: 08/20/09
Eagleville Fire Department, Mansfield
Return Time: 3:00
p.m. Date:
08/23/09 Eagleville Fire Department,
Mansfield
Activity:
Trip to Twin Mountain, New Hampshire for hike on Mt. Washington.
I give permission to the leaders of the above unit to render First Aid,
should the need arise. In the event of an emergency, I also give
permission to the physician, selected by the adult leader in charge, to
hospitalize, secure proper anesthesia, order injection, or secure other
medical treatment, as needed.
I further agree to hold the above named unit and its leaders blameless
for any accidents that might occur during this outing except for clear
acts of negligence or non-adherence to BSA policies and guidelines.
In case of emergency, I can be reached by phone at __________________ or
_________________.
If I cannot be reached, please contact _________________________ at
______________________.
Signed: ______________________________ Date: _______________
Itinerary for Mount Washington, August
20th to the 23rd, 2009
Thursday afternoon, August 20th:
The Troop
will assemble in the parking lot at the Eagleville Fire Department at
1:00 p.m. on Thursday, August 20th. Scouts should be fully packed,
all items being tightly packed in a single backpack, no loose items
being carried. PLEASE DO NOT BE LATE. We have a very tight
schedule to keep and any delays could put us in our campsite later than
necessary.
All scouts
must have eaten lunch prior to departure, as our meal stop will not be
until around 5:00 p.m. Scouts may bring electronic devices such as
music players or electronic games for the ride up and back, but once we
reach our campsite, they will need to be stowed away until the return
trip home.
Scouts should have with them a bottle
of water in a leak proof container for the ride up. Scouts may
dress in comfortable attire for the ride up and do not have to be in
uniform.
Our arrival time at our campsite should be between 5:30 to 6:30 p.m.,
depending upon traffic and weather. We have setup a phone chain to
notify parents of our arrival, to save on multiple long distance phone
calls. During the ride up, we will be take rest breaks as
necessary, to stretch our legs.
We will be staying at the Sugarloaf 2 campground just outside of Twin
Mountain, New Hampshire.
Upon arrival
at the campsite, our first priority will be to get the tarps setup and
then tentage, water, lighting, etc., and then prepare for an early
bedtime as we plan to be up at 4:00 a.m. the following morning for the
hike.
Ø Thursday meals
§ Lunch – Eat at home
prior to departure.
§ Supper – Subway
grinders on the road.
Friday Morning, August 21st:
Reveille will
be at 4:00 a.m. and we will be at the trail head for 5:00 a.m. We
will be getting up and going early as it is still light enough this
early and this will put us on the peak at approximately 11:00 a.m.
Scouts must
have with them two quarts of water for the day as hiking at altitude can
cause a person to become dehydrated very rapidly. Each scout
should have all of the material listed below on the essentials list.
They may also wish to have some money as there is a gift shop on the
peak.
Ø Equipment – The 10 Essentials
When on the trail, a variety of tools and accessories can help to keep
you safe, warm and comfortable. However, there are ten items which are
an absolute must on each and every hike you take - whether it is an
afternoon jaunt or a three-day tour. They are the Ten Essentials which
should be carried in your day pack:
§ Sturdy Footwear and
Extra Socks & moleskin
§ Compass
§ Warm Clothing
· Sweater or Pile Jacket
· Long Pants (wool or
synthetic)
· Hat (wool)
§ Extra Food and Water
(2 quarts)
§ Flashlight or Headlamp
§ Matches/Fire starters
§ First Aid Kit
§ Whistle
§ Rain/Wind Jacket &
Pants
§ Pocket Knife
Other personal items that would be nice to have along for the hike, but
are not essential:
§ Map
§ Walking stick
§ Watch
§ Trash Bag (for trash
or rain protection)
§ Light Plastic Tarp or
“Space” Blanket
§ Guidebook
§ Insect Repellant
§ Sunglasses
§ Sunscreen
§ Gloves or Mittens
§ Personal Medications
(only if essential)
§ Cord/Rope
§ Gaiters
§ Extra Batteries
Ø Meals
§ Breakfast – In
campsite. This meal will consist of hot oatmeal, fruit, drink and
a granola bar. The meal must be quick and easy to dispose of and
cleanup after to minimize our time in the campsite.
§ Lunchtime – We will
plan on eating lunch on the peak, between 11:00 to 11:30. This
meal will consist of a bag lunch, prepared in the campsite prior to
departure.
§ Supper – Meal will be
pizza at a local restaurant.
Saturday Morning – August 22nd:
Saturday
morning will be a backup day for us to hike the mountain in the event
that weather would not allow us to complete the hike on Friday. If
we were successful in making the hike on Friday, Saturday will be
reserved for site seeing in the local area.
Ø Meals:
§ Breakfast – In
campsite. This meal will be a traditional camp meal, prepared by
the scouts in the site.
§ Lunchtime – Depending
on our location during the day, lunch may be in the site, or we may
prepare a lunch for the road if we are far away from our campsite.
§ Supper – In campsite.
As with breakfast, the meal will be prepared by the scouts in the site.
Itinerary at a glance
Thursday – August 20, 2009
1:00 p.m. – Scouts meet at Eagleville Fire Department.
1:30 – Depart for Mt. Washington.
6:00 – Arrive at campsite; Sites # 7 & # 8, Sugarloaf 2 campground, Twin
Mountain, NH 03595.
6:00 – 7:30 – Campsite setup.
7:30 – 8:30 – Campfire & final prep for morning hike.
9:00 – Taps, all scouts in bed, lights out.
Friday – August 21, 2009
4:00 – Reveille
4:00 – 4:45 – Breakfast and cleanup & departure for trailhead.
5:00 – Begin hike. Will be parking at the base station of the Cog
Railway.
5:00 – 11:00 – Hike to the peak. Times are approximate.
11:00 – 12:00 – Sightseeing on the peak, lunch, take pictures, visit
gift shop, etc.
12:00 – 4:00 – Return hike down mountain to the base station.
4:00 – 5:00 – Return to campsite, unpack & prepare for supper.
5:00 – 7:00 – Supper at local pizza restaurant.
7:00 – 10:00 – Return to campsite – Free time, evening fire, games, etc.
10:00 – Taps – Lights out.
Saturday – August 22, 2009
7:00 – Reveille
7:00 – 9:00 – Breakfast and cleanup
9:00 – 12:00 – Sightseeing
12:00 – 1:00 – Lunch
1:00 – 5:00 – Sightseeing
5:00 – 7:00 – Supper and cleanup.
7:00 – 10:00 – Free time, evening fire, games, etc.
10:00 – Taps – Lights out
Sunday – August 23, 2009
7:00 – Reveille
7:00 – 9:00 – Breakfast and cleanup
9:00 – 10:00 – Campsite breakdown & cleanup
10:00 – 3:00 – Depart for home, eating lunch on the road3:00 – Arrive
back at Eagleville Fire Department
Below is the webcam image from Mount Washington Observatory,
http://www.mountwashington.org/weather/cam/deck/
Next meeting - 8/17 on the Island
We will be holding our next bi-weekly meeting on August 17, 2009 on the Island, on Coventry lake. The meeting will run from 7:00 and end at 8:15. Please see contact Mr. Pender for directions if you are unclear.
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