Historian

11/13/2010 – 11/14/2010

On November 13 and 14, 2010, Troop 28 went on a two day hiking trip on Mt. Monadnock. The mountain is known as the world’s second most climbed mountain. Troop 28 had climbed Monadnock many times before this trip but didn’t always make it to the top. When we did the trip last year it was raining cats and dogs so we didn’t make it to the top.

At seven in the morning on Saturday, the scouts from Troop 28 were picked up in their designated cars and headed for New Hampshire. It was a 2 hour drive and around nine in the morning everybody started to show up at the campsite in Mt. Monadnock State Park. The campsite was spacious and had plenty of room for the tents and cooking area. We tried not to spend too much time setting up camp and were on the mountain by 9:30. It was a hot day and we were all tired and sweaty pretty quickly. Soon in our hike the slopes got very steep and tricky to climb. As we got higher the view started to become progressively more amazing because Monadnock is the only mountain for miles. As we progressed we started coming to false peaks which got on everyone’s nerves. Every once in a while as we got higher we’d see a ledge that looked like the summit but was only an outlook. When we eventually got to the summit we arrived in small groups that had split off of the main group. The view was spectacular as we broke up for lunch. You could see for miles and miles. There was absolutely nothing except miles of flat ground until we saw mountains on the horizon. After we had lunch and our energy was restored we headed back down the mountain. It took us a shorter time going downhill but everyone had sore toes from the angle when we got back to the campsite.

We got back to the campsite at around 3:00 and everyone was sore. As soon as we got back the cooks started making dinner. The cooks made delicious Dutch oven meals. This historian’s patrol had delicious mac’n-cheese with hamburger bits that was cooked in a Dutch oven. Another patrol made a tasty looking chili pie that took a while to make but was delicious. The last patrol had plain old macaroni and cheese. All the meals were delicious but not as good as the adults’ food. The adults made an Indian stew that smelled awesome. After dinner we cleaned up the cooking areas and did the dishes. When everything was clean and organized we did roses, buds and thorns. When everyone had shared their roses, buds and thorns, we retreated to our tents for a good night’s sleep.

In the morning, everyone quickly put down their tents and put gear in the cars. When camp was put down, we enjoyed a nice breakfast of bagels, cereal and oatmeal. Breakfast was good and filling so everyone was in a pretty good mood. After breakfast we did a sweep of the campsite and left.

Scouts that attended: Nick Rosen, Andrew Leighton, Jack O’Brien, Robbie Hillman, Greg Berube, Brody Jackisch, Jack Thomae, David Hillman, Levente Haber, Luke O’Brien, Dylan Marat, Joe Deyeso, John Clay, Cal Robbins, Matthew Fitzpatrick, Patrick Slater and Sam Greenip.

Adults that Attended: Kirk Jackisch, T.J. O’Brien, Pascal Marat, Tom Clay, Scott Robbins, Rich Fitzpatrick, Paul Berube and Marty Thomae.

Respectfully submitted,

Nick Rosen, Historian

10/23/2010 – 10/24/2010

On October 23, 2010, Troop 28 met at the Wheelwright Park entrance on Main St. in Cohasset to go on an advancement camping trip. During this semi-annual trip, scouts have an opportunity to work on requirements for advancement to their next rank. This trip was organized by Jack O’Brien and was special because the Webelos II group who will move up to boy scouts in April got to see the campsite and observe what we do as boy scouts.

After we met in the parking lot, we loaded our gear into Mr. Hill’s truck and he brought it up to the campsite. Troop 28 followed up the trail shortly after. Once we arrived, we set up camp and had lunch. We had until 2 pm to work on advancement, then the Webelos II group joined us. The Webelos that came were: Jerome Vainisi, Liam Geyer, Alexander Arnold, Sullivan Mulhern, TJ Coffey, Amby Tierney, Josh Liberty, Josh Rosen and Sam Gainey. These eager Webelos went on a short hike for an Arrow of Light requirement. Later that day their parents got to come see the campsite and talk to our SPL Robby about Scouts and Troop 28. At about 4 pm the cub scouts and their parents left the site and we resumed advancement.

Levente Haber and Adam Koropey made an awesome shelter out of twigs and branches for the Wilderness Survival merit badge. Later that night they actually slept in it. Other scouts earned their totin’ chip or worked on rank advancement. At around 5:00 p.m., the cooks started to make dinner. The individual patrols made things like hotdogs while the adults talked to us about better cooking and helped us make a sample of good cooking. They made an excellent broth that blew our taste buds away. For dessert, the scouts had s’mores but the adults were nice enough to let us have some of their dessert, apple crisp. It was absolutely delicious. After dinner, we did dishes and went to bed after roses, buds and thorns. It was a moderately cold night that most people probably slept through well enough.

In the morning we woke up and put down camp. After the camp was put down we had breakfast. One patrol had bagels while the other had pancakes. Again the adults talked to us about more elaborate and healthy meals. After breakfast we packed everything into the cars. When everything was packed away we went on a small troop hike around Wheelwright. After the hike we walked down to the entrance and left the park.

The following Scouts attended: Quentin Hill, Nick Rosen, Evan Ackley, Jack O’Brien, Luke O’Brien, Robbie Hillman, Reagan Butler, Sam Greenip, Adam Koropey, Cal Robins, Derek Benson, Ryan Conforti, John Clay and Jack Thomae.

The following adults attended: Mr. Ackley, Mr. Hillman and Mr. Thomae.

Respectfully submitted,

Nick Rosen, Historian

10/09/2010 – 10/11/2010

On the ninth of October at about seven a.m., Troop 28 set out to Crawford Notch in New Hampshire. The troop had plans to take multiple hikes throughout the three day camping trip in the White Mountains. The cars taking the scouts to the site all arrived at different times but the whole group had made it to the site by about 11:00 am. Once the entire group was there we set up camp and had our bagged lunches. After lunch our leader, Greg Berube, led us on a short hike. On the way to the head of the trail, we went over train tracks and this historian placed a dime on the rails for later. When we came back down the trail we found a train had flattened the dime. It was an excellent warm up hike to prepare us for Sunday’s hikes. It took us about an hour to hike up the mountain and an hour to hike down. At the top there was an amazing view because the small mountain was located in the middle of Crawford Notch and you could look up either side of the valley. After taking in the view we hiked back down to camp and had a dinner consisting of delicious chili. After dinner and a day in the cold, everyone went to bed early to escape the cold.

On Sunday, everyone woke up after a cold night and had a small breakfast of cereal and oatmeal. While others dined, certain people started making Gorp for the trail and peanut butter and jelly for lunch on the trail. After that chewy bars were distributed, daypacks were packed and the troop split into hiking groups. There was an advanced hiking group and an intermediate hiking group. The advanced hiking group went on a 12 mile hike and climbed Mt. Webster (3910 ft) then up Mt. Jackson (4052 ft) and then down to the highlands center. The intermediate hiking group went on an 8 mile hike and climbed the Frankenstein cliffs. Both groups had lunch on the trail and were tired and hungry when they returned. After both groups were back in camp, we had a scoutmaster-prepared dinner of macaroni mixed with hamburger bits that was especially delicious after hiking all day. When everyone was done with dinner and the dishes were washed, the troop had an end of trip treat of s’mores by the fire and went to bed. That night everyone slept better after the hikes and were more used to the cold.

On Monday morning, the troop got up after a good night’s sleep and had a breakfast of scrambled eggs and sausages. In my opinion, this breakfast was the best I’ve ever had while camping. After breakfast, the troop put down camp and loaded everything into the cars to go. Once everyone was ready, Troop 28 left Dry River Campgrounds and began the drive home.

12 mile participants: Jack O’Brien, Luke O’Brien, Nick Rosen, Jack Thomae, Evan Ackley, Brodie Jackisch, Andrew Leighton, Pascal Marat, Kirk Jackisch.

8 mile participants: Greg Berube, Cal Robins, Dylan Marat, Joe Deyeso, Gavin Dunkelberger, Quentin Hill, David Hillman, Roger Hill, Rob Hillman.

Respectfully submitted,

Nick Rosen, Historian