Scouting, Volume 64, Number 2, March-April 1976 Page: W9
58, [16], W1-W24 p. : ill. ; 28 cm.View a full description of this periodical.
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OUTDOORSMAN
AUGUST ACTIVITY BADGE
NOTE: Outdoorsman is one of four optional activity
badges which may be used to fulfill a requirement for
the Arrow of Light.
For most boys a Scout troop's big-
gest attraction is the chance it offers
to go camping and hiking regularly.
And so, Outdoorsman is probably the
most important of the activity badges
used in preparing Webelos Scouts to
move up to Scouting when they be-
come 11 years old.
The Outdoorsman badge is not de-
signed to make boys skilled campers.
Instead, it aims to whet their appetites
for real Scout camping and to intro-
duce them to life in camp.
Most Webelos dens hold two or
more father-son overnight camps
each year. Certainly at least one
should be held by every den, and a
natural time to hold one is this month
as a climax to a month of concentra-
tion on the Outdoorsman badge.
Four informal den activities are sug-
gested below. The first three cover
practice in some simple camping
skills and planning for the overnight
camp. The fourth is the camp itself.
If you are a new Webelos den lead-
er, read Chapter 7, "The Outdoor Pro-
gram," in your Webelos Den Leader's
Book. This short chapter gives a con-
cise view of the aims of Webelos
overnight camps and useful advice on
preparing for one. Your unit commis-
sioner will be glad to give additional
help.
August Pack Activity. The pack's
highlight for August will be "Festival
USA," a community or neighborhood
party of booth games, contests, treats
and fun.
Your den probably will not have a
role in getting ready for it, except to
prepare a display or demonstration of
activity badge work. One possibility
would be for the den to set up a Webe-
los campsite at the Festival and show
any camping equipment the boys own
or have made.
See August theme in Cub Scout Pro-
gram Helps for details on Festival
USA.
Den Activities. Invite fathers to all den
activities this month. Probably they
won't all be at each activity, but the
more the merrier. And for the fourth
activity — the overnight camp — it is
essential that fathers (substitute dads,
if necessary) be on hand. Remember,
Webelos camping is father-son camp-
ing. Don't take all the responsibility for
the well-being of seven or eight boys
on yourself.
Activity 1 — In a nearby park or play-
ground, have a demonstration and let
the boys practice pitching a tent. Use
a tent that will be used on the camp-
out. Also demonstrate and practice
making a ground bed (Webelos Scout
Book). Have short rope lengths on
hand for practice, supervised by the
den chief, in tying such camp knots as
the taut-line hitch, clove hitch and two
half-hitches. Play Knot "Champ-Nit"
and other knot-tying games (Webelos
Den Leader's Book).
Give each father-son team a check-
list of equipment needed for the camp-
out. (Father-son teams bring their own
tentage, unless other arrangements
have been made, and cooking utensils
and food.)
Activity 2 — Demonstrate and practice
various fire lays, emphasizing safety.
See the Scout Handbook. Use the fuel
that will be used on the camp-out. Fol-
low with a quiz on fire safety rules
(Webelos Scout Book). Ask fathers and
sons for ideas for the camp program;
point out that there should be oppor-
tunities in camp for completing re-
quirements for such activity badges
as Geologist, Forester, Athlete,
Sportsman, Naturalist and perhaps
Aquanaut. (Later you can outline the
actual camp program. See page W23
for ideas.)
Activity 3 — Father-son cookout as
practice for the overnight camp. Fa-
thers and sons lay and light cooking
fires with guidance of den chief and
den leader. Use fuel that will be used
on the camp-out. While waiting for the
fires, play recreation games from
Webelos Den Leader's Book.
When fires are ready, have father-
son teams cook their meal. (Encour-
age them to choose simple, easily-
fixed meals, both at this activity and
on the overnight. In Webelos camping,
food preparation should be as simple
as possible.)
After the meal, clean up and wash
dishes, just as you will in camp. Stress
making sure fires are dead out. If de-
sired, end with a marshmallow roast.
Activity 4 — This is the overnight
camp. Have a schedule of activities,
but keep it flexible. One of the high-
lights should be a campfire program in
the evening. For a good sample pro-
gram, see "Campfire Capers" in Out-
doorsman Activity Badge Helps.
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PLASTIC TENTAGE. In most Webelos
dens, fathers and sons are respon-
sible for getting their own tent for
overnight camping. (The den should
not invest in tents for only a couple of
outings a year. Some Scout councils
will rent tents for a nominal charge.) A
tent suitable for August weather can
be rigged with an 8x1 2-foot sheet of
six-mil-thick polyethylene. Strengthen
it by running strips of glass-fiber rein-
forced plastic tape at two-foot inter-
vals. To fasten lines to the plastic, tie
round stones or cork fishing floats into
the tarp as shown.
W9
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Boy Scouts of America. Scouting, Volume 64, Number 2, March-April 1976, periodical, March 1976; New Brunswick, New Jersey. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth353694/m1/83/: accessed May 2, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Boy Scouts of America National Scouting Museum.