JUNE 27 – JULY 3 1999
Having stopped at every red light between Cary and New London, not to mention the rest stop without a rest room, Troop 208's seven-vehicle caravan arrived at Camp John J. Barnhardt at 3 p.m. Sunday June 27 1999. The humid sunshine and heavy thunder showers provided variety to an uneventful three hour journey. The only excitement came when a particularly heavy downpour caused flood waters to rise above the top of the passengers' scout socks in the back seat Mr. Williams' Volvo.
Once in this wooded 1,000 acre camp nestled in Uwharrie Hills on the western shores of Lake Badin, the first order of business was a Troop photograph. We tried to take it while Mr. Tom Link, acting Scoutmaster for the week, checked us in at the Camp's central office, Montgomery Lodge but he snuck back quickly.
Beginner's luck was with us - there were no rabbit ears on the photograph, we got assigned Camp Site 1 which was only fifty yards from the parking lot, and Mr. Link looked so fit when he walked into the camp office with the health forms that they didn't even look at them. (If they'd seen Mr. Hutson's health record or Mr. Williams' age, we might have been in trouble)!
The great thing about camp check-in is that everyone is forced into the pool for the swim test – even Michael Mayes. On this 100 degree afternoon, we didn't have to be asked twice. However, at the pool we found sixteen Troops trying to swim in two feet of water. The camp staff had been away for the weekend and the pool leaked like a sieve. We part-walked the swim test and got our buddy tags while we waited until Monday for the pool to get full again.
After settling very quickly into our tents (making sure the snorers were tenting together away from the others) we relaxed in the woods before being summoned to the 6.15 p.m. flag ceremony, a daily event before dinner. After lowering the flag and saying grace, the staff lead us the quarter mile up to the air-conditioned dining lodge where, as we found each day, the family style dining and good food was something we looked forward to three times a day. Even if you didn't like the menu, there was cereal/milk, and PB&J available at every meal.
There were plenty of announcements from the staff after dinner, all delivered with great humor and gusto. At the adult leaders' meeting that night, the adults were promised a vacation with lots of good relaxing adult activities.
The 9.15 p.m. Sunday camp fire was lots of fun and put us in a mood for our first night's sleep outdoors. We all agreed to a 10.30 p.m. lights out – all that is except the Troop in the next campsite. It took scare tactics and the joint efforts of our adult heavies, Mr. Whitcher and Mr. Fairhurst, to finally achieve quiet next door at about 1.30 a.m. Typical first night!
On Monday morning, after the 7.15 a.m. flag ceremony and walk to breakfast, the campers got into their routine of three or four Merit badge sessions a day, followed by free time from 3.20 p.m. until 6 p.m. Most of us spent our free time either in the pool or up (and down) the rappelling tower. But all the camp activities remained open for everybody until 5.15 p.m. each day. There was swimming, snorkeling, rappelling, hiking, climbing/free fall, rifle and shotgun, archery, rowing, canoeing, fishing, scoutcraft, and ecology. Some campers even worked on advancements. Alex Bond made a whole suite of furniture in handicrafts while David Carlin practiced every day to beat his own bowline tying record of 2.5 seconds. If you just felt lazy in the free time you could always hang out at the The Trading Post next to the soda/ice cream patio or for that matter just hang out in your tent. Not content with these activities, Troop 208 usually had a couple of card games and a football game going on. No one got bored although there were a couple of upset stomachs.
"Dr." Hutson said these resulted from not wanting to use the latrines which you had to share not only with your fellow campers but with a huge variety of spiders and beetles). But at times a little bit of homesickness may also have started to creep in.
By Tuesday, everyone was well into the Camp routine and thoroughly enjoying life. We noticed a couple of walking wounded from the previous night's recreational activities. These included not only some of the 208 Footballers who had played until well after dark the night before – no one quite knew how or why – but also two or three very sore adults who had played a hard fought and very exciting softball game against an unbeaten staff team (mostly strong fit teenagers) the night before. Leading 6-0 after two innings, the Leaders led by heroic efforts from 208's Babe Link, Yogi Hutson and Nolan Harrison, eventually lost in the gathering dusk 13-10.
Meanwhile at the pool Sasser, the Aquatics Director, showed 208's BSA Lifeguard student, Mr. Harrison, new respect after his great showing at short stop. You can imagine how much they enjoyed the Adult Swim in the pool after the game. It washed away the blood, sweat and high-running emotions and the dip made a perfect cooling end to a hot summer evening.
Ignoring his sore muscles, Tuesday morning Mr. Link went out for the adult horseshoes competition and won it for Troop 208, unopposed. A full day's activities saw a tired but contented Troop roll into camp that evening. At the flag lowering the day's Scout Spirit and Best Tent awards were given out before we said farewell to Mr. Whitcher who was returning to Cary. He had spent much of his 24 hours camp planning yet another of his famous self-closing entrance gates for 208's campsite which David Carlin was to finish later in the week. The Leaders were able to get a little peace and quiet Tuesday evening at the Leaders' ice cream social in the OA Lodge. However, the boys didn't feel the same need for rest and proceeded to inflict further minor injury on each other in the nightly 208 play-til-you-drop football game. Even though Wednesday dawned cloudy and misty and was designated the mid-week "parents' day", Mr. "music man" Link showed no mercy. He played his electronic Reveille at 6.45 a.m. sharp. The trouble was he left his ear plugs in (essential equipment if you are sharing even a tent with world snoring champion, Mr. Williams) and the campers awoke thinking a 747 was landing at the Badin Airport. By 7 a.m. Troop 208 was raising its own camp flag before walking up to the main pre-breakfast flag-ceremony. The 208 camp site got its first official inspections on Tuesday and Wednesday. The boys did well and 208's site was the leading scorer with 96, 97 and 107 respectively on each of the three inspection days.
Wednesday's daily camp routine tailed off towards the middle of the hot afternoon as a parade of parents' cars began to fill the parking lot. Troop 208 welcomed two or three parents who had made the long journey to bring their boys home-baked cookies and chocolate cake (which were not shared with the leaders) before accompanying them to the 8.15 p.m. camp fire. This was a rip-roaring affair with the staff and the campers (including Troop 208's Brian Mayes Players) exchanging a diverse medley of songs and skits. The staffer who emptied a mustard bottle down his throat was only outshone by the one who smeared a huge tub of chocolate syrup all over him – what a great example to our boys. Even the 208 Footballers and card players stopped their week-long games to attend this campfire.
By Thursday, there was light at the end of the tunnel. Several merit badges had been completed and the boys knew exactly what activities to make a bee-line for in the afternoon free time. They also found two hours to contribute to a Camp service project.
Meanwhile, the mile swimmers were now in serious training for Friday's swim marathon in the Lake, and already several Troops were staking claims to being the champion Troop in Friday night's Olympic Marathon featuring all the camp's activity centers.
By this time, the 208 nightly football game had been banned (John Couture claimed it has ended because there were no survivors) but the card schools were signing more and more members each night – some limping others with only one good eye.
Alex Bond was having a hard time keeping up with the demand for wicker stools and rumor had it that he had been offered a staff job teaching crafts. John Couture was signed up to be next year's camp football and wrestling coach and the Michael Mayes gang were planing a national tour of the comedy clubs. Beating out them all was the claim of non swimmer Ben Miller who, according to Wes his camp swim coach, was submitting a late entry for the mile swim.
Further accolades came the way of the 208 Leaders in the rifle competition where Mr. Harrison and Mr. Williams put up a brave showing in the adult competition before being gunned down (figuratively speaking) by a career police Scoutmaster from a local Troop.
At last Friday dawned. All the competition and prizes would be won today, including the evening's final activity - the Troop Marathon competition for Best Troop. There was a plot afoot in the morning to thwart Mr. Williams' mile swim attempt. The COPE staff took him, Ben Johnson, Billy Fairhurst and John "Football" Couture, to a real live ninety foot rock face for a morning's climbing and rappelling. He returned just in time to grab an hour's rest in his tent before the swim.. Unfortunately, just at that moment, Mr. Link insisted that this was their last chance to walk to "nearby" Outpost Lake. An hour later, Mr. Link, Bond, Fairhurst and Williams were lost in the woods, surviving on wild blackberries three miles from camp with the mile swim just about to begin.
At the speed camp activities move, they were able to make it back in time and the swim began across Badin Lake and back. With Mr. Fairhust and Mr. Link rowing safety patrol (some say Mr. Link had adult beverages in his vessel) the swimmers took to the water. An hour later everyone was back safely. Billy Fairhurst was first home with Mr. Bond and Mr. Harrison a close (relative term) third and fourth respectively. Mr. Fairhurst was disqualified from the rowing team for washing his dirty underwear over the side of the row boat and contaminating Mr. Williams swim. Troop 208 far outnumbered the other troops with four swimmers and two rowers out of twenty or so participants.
That evening, after a hearty fish dinner, Friday nights' great Troop Marathon competition was upon us. Senior Patrol Leader, David Carlin personally took charge of the long period of detailed planning which lasted from 7.15 until 7.20 p.m. before Troop 208 spread out across the Camp to do battle. Every activity was covered, with Troop runners ferrying the activity baton from station to station signaling the start of that station's activity for the Troop.
After an hour of intense activity the horn sounded and the battle was over. While the results were being tallied, 208 football and basketball games started. Then, at 9.15 p.m., everyone retired to the camp fire circle for the final ceremony.
After a few skits and songs, there was a great hush and, in an outpouring of thanks for the work of a great week, staff and leaders were duly recognized with awards and certificates. Then the moment we had all been waiting for – the announcement of the winning troops. Not third, not second but, yes, first - Troop 208 had won! After all the week's talk other Troops' claims, Troop 208 was proclaimed the No. 1 troop of the week! We also received the Camp's "Excellence" award after our long week of inspections and
Competitions.
It was a happy Troop 208 caravan that pulled out of camp the following morning. We all agreed that, thanks to the variety of activities, the great staff and good food, 1999 at Barnhardt Camp had been one of the Troop' s best Summer camps.