Good morning!
It was into an ominous cloud hanging over the Superstitions our intrepid backpackers headed this weekend, but a marvelous walk in the park ensued. Dry all the way in, passing a magnificent balancing rock and views of sunlit Weaver’s needle, the boys set up camp in a small thicket of trees at Bluff’s Spring around noon as a steady sprinkle began. During the slow and peaceful rain that
continued until after dark, we set about learning about nature – which turned out to include two ‘largests’. After a terrific day hike, we marveled over the 50-in-1 saguaro, thought by some to be the largest now that the ‘Grand One’ died after the Cave Creek fire.  Google ‘50-in-1 saguaro’ – you’ll be amazed! Later, some natural historical folks came to our camp asking if they could ‘check up on her’. Turns out that they were caretakers for the National Historical Register, and were coming out to check on the tree the
adults had set up camp under, as it created the only 3×5 dry spot in the neighborhood. It is the largest Sugar Sumac in the country – who knew! Speaking of who knew, who knew that breaking down your tent poles in the early dawn after an all day rain followed by a below freezing night could be such a challenge? Who knew that attempting to eat a Power Bar under those same conditions is like trying to bite plywood? Amazing the things one learns on the outstanding opportunities we have to explore our world. The views of snow on the mesas, sunlight breaking through thick fog in the valleys – what an awesome end to a wonderful weekend!
I hope that your holiday plans are coming together nicely. We will have few activities upcoming, other than our weekly troop meetings during this busy holiday season. Young Mr. McFetters is coordinating a donation gathering for US service men and women, supporting ‘Packages from Home’. Please bring food, hygiene, or recreational items to the troop meeting on Tuesday for inclusion in this day-brightener for our troops. Please contact Mr. McFetters with any questions. We will be having PLC tomorrow night before the troop meeting, and on the 13th, we are planning to have a parent meeting from 7-8:30 during the troop meeting. Come explore and plan with us, and perhaps find ways to participate in areas of focus for our troop in 2012.
Looking ahead, we are anticipating having one of our own Eagles return to a holiday meeting and describe the amazing military career he has embarked upon since being a member of T648. We have Webelos Weekend on January 20th, so all boys should
plan to attend and support our troop in representing ourselves well to our guests. For you skiers, the snow is already approaching 30 inches in the White Mountains – building a good base for our outing on 2/3. And don’t forget the family campout coming on 3/23 at Catalina State Park north of Tucson – the one time a year your whole family can join your troop family on a camping outing.
See you tomorrow night at scout meeting
Mr. Cole.