Introduction to Boy Scouts

This weekend was James' first Boy Scout camping trip. He, Aidan and about 498 other Boy Scouts converged at Sadler's Creek State Park. It was about as beautiful as the picture on the website. The stars were fabulous and the moon just a luminous sliver hanging above the horizon. The first night we arrived and set up the tent - I love modern tents, so easy. Eliza bought filet mignon and I had sauted mushrooms and onions and constructed a beautiful green salad - it was lovely. We had bagettes from the bakery to sustain the boys while the food was set up. One little boy fell in instant love with the bread and came back again and again for more! We made new friends and got to know other people we knew already a little better. It was a very interested experience in the sense of the mass male energy which suffused the event. Lots of boys chasing each other, playing star wars, and generally whooping it up. The activities were very physical- obstacle course (including two zip lines), orienteering and a magic show to end. The girls arrived at the second zip-line- the higher of the two and I was thrilled to watch all four kids launch themselves, without any hesitation, into the void.
Our second supper was hobo dinners - thank goodness for garlic salt and onions! After supper we laid out three places with lime where we might be able to observe animal tracks - we saw deer, raccoons and some thought bear tracks. Rodney (our fearless leader) baited the traps with stinky sardines - they got some really nice tracks that they preserved in plaster of Paris. The evening meeting was everyone and we got there late- by way of the stunning moon and a stroll along the lake edge. The bonfire was huge and James was incredibly impressed. By now it was gone 8.15 and we had been going all day. I took the disgruntled children back to the tent for a sleep.
We rested so well- like a three person sandwich. In the middle of the night Chloe and I went to the restroom and on the way back I was able to show her Orion- a personal pleasure, the only constellation which is also visible in the Southern Hemisphere.