This past weekend I took my youngest to Funpack Weekend - a Cub Scout overnight program that is usually the highlight of the Summer program. In spite of a lower than usual participation level from our own Pack, this year's program did not disappoint. This was my seventh time attending a Funpack weekend and my fifth as leader of our pack's contingent, and I have to say that the staff ran the best program I've seen so far.
For those of you who haven't participated in a Funpack Weekend, it is a very fun event for the boys. Our pack's contingent, along with several other packs from around the our council journey to Camp Hinds, or council's main boy scout summer camp, where we spend all day Saturday, Saturday Night, and Sunday Morning participating in a busy schedule of activities. Saturday morning is mostly consumed with getting scheduled, the check in process, and camp orientation, but immediately after lunch the fun begins with the scheduled activities. We spend 50 minutes each on the BB Range, Archery Range, Swimming, Craft Lodge, Nature Area and in Sports activities, with four of the activities taking place on Saturday afternoon and three on Sunday morning. In each case, there is great emphasis on safety and responsibility while we are doing activities, especially in BB, Archery, and swimming.
Saturday Evening begins with each pack preparing its own dinner in its campsite. Time is a bit short for doing anything too involved, since we only have from 5 - 6:15 for prep, eating and cleanup. Since we had a small group this year we decided to take a chance and try some Dutch Oven Cooking - we prepared "Two Potatoes" and "Chocolate Lava Cake" - two of my favorite recipes that I'm planning to share in some upcoming posts. We sped the process up a bit by doing most of the prep at home, and I left the afternoon's final activity, sports, early so that I could start fires and gather equipment. Overall it went well, but we did leave for our free time activities a bit late.
Free time is next, from 6:15 to 7:15. Nearly all of the activity areas are open for the kids to revisit during this time, but for most, it's back to BB, Archery, or Swimming. Many also use this time to hit the trading post and spend their money on sweets, souvenirs, knives, and so on. Saturday was quite hot and humid, so most in our Pack chose to hit the beach. When free time is over, we have to rush back to our site to get our uniforms on for the evening's main event.
Once we have our uniforms on, we gather on the main waterfront for evening festivities. It starts with flag retreat, which is led by older scouts, but always includes a couple of younger boys from each year. Then we have "vespers" a "scouts own" interfaith service in which we reflect on the day's activities and scouting's ideals and offer a prayer or two. This year's vespers featured our campfire coordinator in Native American regalia talking to the boys by torchlight. It was something to see such a large group of 7-10 year old boys participating, quiet, and attentive for 30 minutes about very serious stuff.
When vespers adjourns, we move on to campfire, which is in many ways the antithesis of the earlier event. It is boisterous, silly, and fun. It's always been a highlight of the weekend for me. At this point I should probably mention that each year we have a theme for Cub Scout camps, and this year's was dinosaurs/fossils. The theme is used in event patches and staff T-shirts, the nature and craft programs, and most importantly at campfire. Each pack presents its own song, skit, or joke, most of which tie in to the event theme. In addition, the staff provides a theme oriented backdrop to tie everything together. This year was "Dino Labs." The back story was they had found a dino egg, and were trying to hatch it. To do so required bad jokes and laughter - which we had plenty of! The program was a blast, and we enjoyed ourselves immensely for the better part of an hour and a half before returning to our site.
The night winds up with a brief campfire in our site. This is a chance for our boys to enjoy a few s'mores and some quiet time before bed (and for adults to finish dinnertime cleanup). Unlike most camping trips I've been on, there is very little bedtime chatter at Funpack weekend. Everyone crashes quite quickly.
On Sunday morning, we close out with our final three activities. Unfortunately we drew the dreaded 8 AM swim rotation this year and the weather featured some "liquid sunshine" (rain), but it's always pleasing to see everyone put their happy faces on and make the best of it. Prior to closing, there is also a final silly moment as the adult leaders of boys who lost things over the weekend have to perform "I'm a Little Teapot" for the boys to reclaim their stuff, followed by flag retreat on the waterfront. Then we load up our gear and head home.
Putting on such an event is an astounding amount of work for the all volunteer staff and I want to thank the Casco Bay District volunteers who put on this weekend's festivities. They did a great job, and we had a blast. Also, thank you to the boys and parents who came with me - it was a pleasure coordinating our pack's contingent this year. If you're involved with Cub Scouts and have never been to a Funpack weekend, I encourage you to put it on the agenda for next summer as part of your effort to "keep the outing in scouting."
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