Wilderness Trail with Troop 1
Where: Pemigewassett Wilderness, Wilderness Trail
When: 9/26-9/28, 2003
With: Hopkinton Boy Scout Troop 1
Throughout Andy's Cub Scout career I was an active parent, but never served in any official capacity. When he joined Boy Scouts I hoped to become an assistant Scout Master and participate on as many trips as possible but that didn't work out. Schedule conflicts kept me on the sidelines and Andy went on the trips on his own. When this year's schedule came out though, I noticed a backpacking trip in the White Mountains and decided to sign up as a parent volunteer. I knew the area well and welcomed the opportunity to get out hiking. It worked out well, because two Scout Masters were the only other adults participating.
We gathered at the usual meeting area Friday night and drove north in three vehicles. Most of the kids were in the Scout Master's (Randy) huge van and the assistant Scout Master (Pat) had another crew in his car. I had Andy and one other boy in my car, and we made our way through the usual pre-weekend traffic up route 93. The boys demanded a couple of pit stops, but we still made the trip in good time. The first night was spent at the Hancock National Forest campground, just across the highway from the Lincoln Woods trailhead. Some boys from Pat's van met us as we pulled in and directed us to the parking area. It was pitch black, and we unloaded and organized ourselves using headlamps. Randy arrived a few minutes later and the entire crew (3 adults, 13 boys) made its way into the camping area to locate a site. I felt bad for the other campers already in place as we thrashed about with our noise and lights, but Pat's crew soon found a good spot and we quickly set up a dozen tents and made ourselves at home. It was the last site on the path and right on the river...quite nice.
The food was stashed up in the cars (bear regulations), then we pretty much just climbed into our tents and crashed. I'd planned to bring my hammock for the trip, but the forecasts called for lots of rain so I switched to my Clip Cirrus tent. I didn't learn about the hike plans until I showed up at the gathering area, and had assumed we'd be night hiking Friday to a camp site then using that as a base camp for day hikes on Saturday. A tent would do a better job of keeping my gear dry and would give me a bit of stretch-out room if I had to spend several hours inside riding out a storm. The actual plans had us spending the first night at this campground then spending the next day on an all-day hike to a backwoods campsite. No hang-out time after all. No matter. I hadn't used the Cirrus in about 5 years and it was nice to get it out again. [Originally said it's been about 9 years since the last use of the Cirrus, but it had been used as recently as the summer of 1998]
I slept somewhat fitfully, but generally okay and woke to the sound of some of the boys already up. Soon the entire troop was awake and moving. Breakfast was the first order of business. The boys had been formed into three patrols and each had put together their own menu, while the adults took care of their own needs. In our case, Pat took care of all of the food and he prepared bagel & egg sandwiches for us. The boys had oatmeal for the most part, though Andy didn't eat much of his so I slipped him some snacks to keep him going. The tents came down soon after and we started packing up for the day ahead.
It was a short drive across the highway to the Lincoln Woods area and we were able to get on the trail fairly quickly. Keeping with National Forest regulations, we split into three small groups, each with 4-5 boys and one adult. Still no rain, but we kept the rain gear ready anyway. Randy's group led the way, and quickly set a fast pace. Pat's crew went next and I brought up the rear. We had two older boys - Jonathan and Andrew - designated as leaders and three new hikers - Andy, Tim and Kelly. It took a while to get organized and figure out a pace that kept everyone together, and there were a number of stops early on to adjust gear, but eventually we settled into the hike. Early on we passed Pat's group so we were now in the middle. I passed along whatever wisdom I could, explaining the history of the area and offering hiking tips, but I tried to stay out of the way for the most part.
The boys were pretty happy when we finally reached the first stopping point at the Franconia Brook bridge. There had been a lot of grumbling toward the end of the section and everyone dropped their packs and went down to the water. Randy's group returned from an exploration upstream and Pat's patrol arrived as well so we all had a good long rest and some lunch. We were there for quite a while before shouldering our packs once again and continuing on up the trail. I assured the boys that the next section was more interesting and shorter, and it actually went by fairly quickly. Before we knew it we'd reached the Bondcliff trail, then passed the old railroad bridge and arrived at the Cedar Brook trail suspension bridge.
This was a major landmark on this trip. It marked our furthest advance into the forest and the point where we'd start heading back toward the parking lot. Our plan was to hike for another couple of hours then find a campsite, leaving us with a short walk out on Sunday. We gave the boys another long break at the bridge and most of them went down to the river. The adults remained up by the bridge and all expressed a longing to continue on further into the woods.
Just as we were preparing to depart, one of Andy's friends came up and said Andy had fallen in the water while trying to retrieve a stick. Andy soon arrived, unhurt but soaking wet. I helped him get into his one remaining set of dry clothes and explained that he had to be more careful. As we packed up to go, it started to rain a bit, but it only lasted a short while as we started up the Cedar Brook trail toward the East Side trail. Andy was trailing his group, as he had most of the day. We couldn't get his pack properly adjusted and it was all resting low on his back and on his shoulders. Every few steps he'd stop suddenly and bend over to move the weight forward. Clearly he wasn't having much fun, and we both got upset with each other as I prodded him to continue.
After about an hour of walking we came to a spot where a side stream came in on our right and joined the river at a small island with a rocky point. Randy's group was already there and he thought it might be our destination, Cedar Brook. He'd done some exploring and the island looked like a great place to camp. Level sites, awesome views. Right on the river though, and that violated the Forest rules about camping (200 feet from trails and water). We were trying to set a good example, but still, it was very inviting. Pat soon arrived and the three adults conferred while the kids played. We considered camping on the island or in the woods nearby, but eventually came to the conclusion that we were not at Cedar Brook after all and we needed to keep walking a bit further.
About this time I heard Andy's name again and one of his fellow Scouts reported that he'd fallen in a second time. I was so disappointed and I let him know how upset I was as I helped him with his clothes. I quickly realized how unhappy he was though and I apologized for giving him a hard time. Together we went through his gear and started to work things out. First we got him some food - a bagel from his food supply - then we found another pair of dry socks and a sweatshirt he'd been using for a pajama top, so we were able to put together another set of dry gear. A garbage bag served to act as boot liners to keep his socks dry. His pack was still a problem, but at least he wasn't wet as the troop saddled up again and continued the hike.
A short time later we came to a significant stream crossing and knew we'd arrived at the true Cedar Brook. A few kids tried to cross but it was rough going so we decided to set up camp where we were. A little exploration found a decent site several hundred feet off the trail and we all moved back to it. It was still an inappropriate distance from the brook, but that led to a group joke: "How far is it to the stream from here, Boys? 200 feet!" The area had one old camp site that accommodated most of the boys' tents. Two other tents and the three adult tents all wound up in various spots nearby. A cooking/dining area was set up a good distance from all of the tents. Again, bear precautions. We all had freeze-dried meals, with the boys using Whisperlight stoves to heat the water. Some patrols were eating pretty quickly but Andy's didn't do as well. The leaders weren't organized and they focused on getting their own meals made versus taking care of the younger boys first. They also hadn't brought some required ingredients for the mac & cheese they'd brought so Andy and Kelly were out of luck. I gave Andy a freeze-dried meal I'd brought for myself (Pasta Primavera) and helped him get it cooked, but he didn't like it much and wound up just eating some snacks. For my dinner Pat had apparently not read a note I'd given him about being a vegetarian, and he brought instant chili (beef-based, no doubt) and Mexican Chicken & Rice. I politely ate the chili and had a moderate portion of the entree, then begged off more food.
It was rapidly growing dark, so we cleaned up then started work on a bearbag. The first design had it strung across the brook but the tree we were using began to break so we changed plans. We found some good trees in the woods but had some trouble getting the line up to the limbs we wanted. Finally I jumped up one of the trees and hauled myself up to the limb, then called for the line. Thrown up to me, I passed it over the limb then made my way down. The food bag went up okay, though it wasn't quite as high as we might have liked. Good enough for me though, so I returned to my tent. The rest of the bearbag crew stayed another 40 minutes and managed to get the bag another 10 inches higher.
I checked out the sky through the trees as I prepared for bed and was surprised to see stars. I'd really expected an all-night rain. As the camp shut down I crawled into my tent and was disappointed to find I hadn't brought batteries for my radio, so I'd have no Red Sox game to help me kill the hours I expected to need before I'd fall asleep. I took a few ibuprofen and some Sominex and lay down and crashed. It was probably my best sleep in the woods in years. I awoke briefly a couple of times during the night, but overall I probably got in a solid 10 hours of deep sleep. I attribute part of it to the soft mossy ground I was on. Almost didn't need a pad.
We awoke to clouds the next morning and quickly set about making breakfast and breaking camp. The bagel Andy had eaten the day before was supposed to be his breakfast so I gave him some granola bars I had. Andy has prepared to walk out wearing his sleeping sweats and water shoes but I had him change back into his wet shorts, figuring they'd dry by the time he got to the car. I also insisted he wear his boots and made yet another attempt to get his pack fit properly. This time we finally got it right, cinching the hipbelt tight enough to actually allow the pack to rest on his hips. I could see the shoulder straps raised up above his shoulders and Andy said it felt much better.
The whole troop packed up, policed the camp, then made its way back to the stream crossing. Everyone made it across without getting wet except Tim, so my group had to wait while he changed his socks. Pat offered to take over Andy's patrol and I was sent on ahead with Randy's crew. What a difference. Five kids and all fast, hardy hikers. We set a solid pace and only stopped a few times for rest & water. The last stop was at the relocated Franconia Brook campground, where we explored down to the water and checked out the stepping stone river crossing. Not sure if I'd try it with a full pack.
It started raining in this section but we knew we were close to the end so no one stopped to put on rain gear. As always the trail seemed to go on longer than expected but eventually the ranger's cabin appeared and we were done. I dropped my pack in my car then joined the boys on the porch of the cabin to await the rest of the troop. Randy's group arrived first, then Pat and Andy's patrol. All of the boys bought snacks from the rangers before we piled everyone back in the cars for the ride home. It was a straight ride this time...no stops, though I found later than Pat & Randy had made a McDonald's stop with their passengers. As a result we arrived back at the parking lot a half hour before the others. I had Tim call his mom to tell her we were there and I called Jane as well, then we sat and talked with some of the parents who were waiting. The other cars showed up before too long and at last we declared the adventure to be completed.
Thoughts & notes:
I love hiking in this area and thoroughly enjoyed the easy pace and the chance to be out in the woods. The first night campground was actually rather nice. A good idea for a future trip with Chip, perhaps. I still haven't decided if it was good or bad for me to be the adult for Andy's patrol on Saturday. I was more of a dad than an unbiased adult helper, so Andy got a fair amount of assistance and attention. The latter wasn't that good, because Andy perhaps reacted to it and whined more because he knew he'd get a response. On the other hand, I knew him well and was able to help out in ways another adult might not. At a couple of points he broke down a bit, an emotional release he probably wouldn't have demonstrated with someone else. Would he have been better off if he'd been forced to deal with it on his own? Perhaps. I was certainly glad he got to hike with Pat on Sunday. Pat's got a lot more experience with this than I and probably did a better job with Andy. At one point Pat had suggested to me that I stay out of the way and make the patrol leaders (Jonathan & Andrew) make more of the decisions. Good advice.
When: 9/26-9/28, 2003
With: Hopkinton Boy Scout Troop 1
Throughout Andy's Cub Scout career I was an active parent, but never served in any official capacity. When he joined Boy Scouts I hoped to become an assistant Scout Master and participate on as many trips as possible but that didn't work out. Schedule conflicts kept me on the sidelines and Andy went on the trips on his own. When this year's schedule came out though, I noticed a backpacking trip in the White Mountains and decided to sign up as a parent volunteer. I knew the area well and welcomed the opportunity to get out hiking. It worked out well, because two Scout Masters were the only other adults participating.
We gathered at the usual meeting area Friday night and drove north in three vehicles. Most of the kids were in the Scout Master's (Randy) huge van and the assistant Scout Master (Pat) had another crew in his car. I had Andy and one other boy in my car, and we made our way through the usual pre-weekend traffic up route 93. The boys demanded a couple of pit stops, but we still made the trip in good time. The first night was spent at the Hancock National Forest campground, just across the highway from the Lincoln Woods trailhead. Some boys from Pat's van met us as we pulled in and directed us to the parking area. It was pitch black, and we unloaded and organized ourselves using headlamps. Randy arrived a few minutes later and the entire crew (3 adults, 13 boys) made its way into the camping area to locate a site. I felt bad for the other campers already in place as we thrashed about with our noise and lights, but Pat's crew soon found a good spot and we quickly set up a dozen tents and made ourselves at home. It was the last site on the path and right on the river...quite nice.
The food was stashed up in the cars (bear regulations), then we pretty much just climbed into our tents and crashed. I'd planned to bring my hammock for the trip, but the forecasts called for lots of rain so I switched to my Clip Cirrus tent. I didn't learn about the hike plans until I showed up at the gathering area, and had assumed we'd be night hiking Friday to a camp site then using that as a base camp for day hikes on Saturday. A tent would do a better job of keeping my gear dry and would give me a bit of stretch-out room if I had to spend several hours inside riding out a storm. The actual plans had us spending the first night at this campground then spending the next day on an all-day hike to a backwoods campsite. No hang-out time after all. No matter. I hadn't used the Cirrus in about 5 years and it was nice to get it out again. [Originally said it's been about 9 years since the last use of the Cirrus, but it had been used as recently as the summer of 1998]
I slept somewhat fitfully, but generally okay and woke to the sound of some of the boys already up. Soon the entire troop was awake and moving. Breakfast was the first order of business. The boys had been formed into three patrols and each had put together their own menu, while the adults took care of their own needs. In our case, Pat took care of all of the food and he prepared bagel & egg sandwiches for us. The boys had oatmeal for the most part, though Andy didn't eat much of his so I slipped him some snacks to keep him going. The tents came down soon after and we started packing up for the day ahead.
It was a short drive across the highway to the Lincoln Woods area and we were able to get on the trail fairly quickly. Keeping with National Forest regulations, we split into three small groups, each with 4-5 boys and one adult. Still no rain, but we kept the rain gear ready anyway. Randy's group led the way, and quickly set a fast pace. Pat's crew went next and I brought up the rear. We had two older boys - Jonathan and Andrew - designated as leaders and three new hikers - Andy, Tim and Kelly. It took a while to get organized and figure out a pace that kept everyone together, and there were a number of stops early on to adjust gear, but eventually we settled into the hike. Early on we passed Pat's group so we were now in the middle. I passed along whatever wisdom I could, explaining the history of the area and offering hiking tips, but I tried to stay out of the way for the most part.
The boys were pretty happy when we finally reached the first stopping point at the Franconia Brook bridge. There had been a lot of grumbling toward the end of the section and everyone dropped their packs and went down to the water. Randy's group returned from an exploration upstream and Pat's patrol arrived as well so we all had a good long rest and some lunch. We were there for quite a while before shouldering our packs once again and continuing on up the trail. I assured the boys that the next section was more interesting and shorter, and it actually went by fairly quickly. Before we knew it we'd reached the Bondcliff trail, then passed the old railroad bridge and arrived at the Cedar Brook trail suspension bridge.
This was a major landmark on this trip. It marked our furthest advance into the forest and the point where we'd start heading back toward the parking lot. Our plan was to hike for another couple of hours then find a campsite, leaving us with a short walk out on Sunday. We gave the boys another long break at the bridge and most of them went down to the river. The adults remained up by the bridge and all expressed a longing to continue on further into the woods.
Just as we were preparing to depart, one of Andy's friends came up and said Andy had fallen in the water while trying to retrieve a stick. Andy soon arrived, unhurt but soaking wet. I helped him get into his one remaining set of dry clothes and explained that he had to be more careful. As we packed up to go, it started to rain a bit, but it only lasted a short while as we started up the Cedar Brook trail toward the East Side trail. Andy was trailing his group, as he had most of the day. We couldn't get his pack properly adjusted and it was all resting low on his back and on his shoulders. Every few steps he'd stop suddenly and bend over to move the weight forward. Clearly he wasn't having much fun, and we both got upset with each other as I prodded him to continue.
After about an hour of walking we came to a spot where a side stream came in on our right and joined the river at a small island with a rocky point. Randy's group was already there and he thought it might be our destination, Cedar Brook. He'd done some exploring and the island looked like a great place to camp. Level sites, awesome views. Right on the river though, and that violated the Forest rules about camping (200 feet from trails and water). We were trying to set a good example, but still, it was very inviting. Pat soon arrived and the three adults conferred while the kids played. We considered camping on the island or in the woods nearby, but eventually came to the conclusion that we were not at Cedar Brook after all and we needed to keep walking a bit further.
About this time I heard Andy's name again and one of his fellow Scouts reported that he'd fallen in a second time. I was so disappointed and I let him know how upset I was as I helped him with his clothes. I quickly realized how unhappy he was though and I apologized for giving him a hard time. Together we went through his gear and started to work things out. First we got him some food - a bagel from his food supply - then we found another pair of dry socks and a sweatshirt he'd been using for a pajama top, so we were able to put together another set of dry gear. A garbage bag served to act as boot liners to keep his socks dry. His pack was still a problem, but at least he wasn't wet as the troop saddled up again and continued the hike.
A short time later we came to a significant stream crossing and knew we'd arrived at the true Cedar Brook. A few kids tried to cross but it was rough going so we decided to set up camp where we were. A little exploration found a decent site several hundred feet off the trail and we all moved back to it. It was still an inappropriate distance from the brook, but that led to a group joke: "How far is it to the stream from here, Boys? 200 feet!" The area had one old camp site that accommodated most of the boys' tents. Two other tents and the three adult tents all wound up in various spots nearby. A cooking/dining area was set up a good distance from all of the tents. Again, bear precautions. We all had freeze-dried meals, with the boys using Whisperlight stoves to heat the water. Some patrols were eating pretty quickly but Andy's didn't do as well. The leaders weren't organized and they focused on getting their own meals made versus taking care of the younger boys first. They also hadn't brought some required ingredients for the mac & cheese they'd brought so Andy and Kelly were out of luck. I gave Andy a freeze-dried meal I'd brought for myself (Pasta Primavera) and helped him get it cooked, but he didn't like it much and wound up just eating some snacks. For my dinner Pat had apparently not read a note I'd given him about being a vegetarian, and he brought instant chili (beef-based, no doubt) and Mexican Chicken & Rice. I politely ate the chili and had a moderate portion of the entree, then begged off more food.
It was rapidly growing dark, so we cleaned up then started work on a bearbag. The first design had it strung across the brook but the tree we were using began to break so we changed plans. We found some good trees in the woods but had some trouble getting the line up to the limbs we wanted. Finally I jumped up one of the trees and hauled myself up to the limb, then called for the line. Thrown up to me, I passed it over the limb then made my way down. The food bag went up okay, though it wasn't quite as high as we might have liked. Good enough for me though, so I returned to my tent. The rest of the bearbag crew stayed another 40 minutes and managed to get the bag another 10 inches higher.
I checked out the sky through the trees as I prepared for bed and was surprised to see stars. I'd really expected an all-night rain. As the camp shut down I crawled into my tent and was disappointed to find I hadn't brought batteries for my radio, so I'd have no Red Sox game to help me kill the hours I expected to need before I'd fall asleep. I took a few ibuprofen and some Sominex and lay down and crashed. It was probably my best sleep in the woods in years. I awoke briefly a couple of times during the night, but overall I probably got in a solid 10 hours of deep sleep. I attribute part of it to the soft mossy ground I was on. Almost didn't need a pad.
We awoke to clouds the next morning and quickly set about making breakfast and breaking camp. The bagel Andy had eaten the day before was supposed to be his breakfast so I gave him some granola bars I had. Andy has prepared to walk out wearing his sleeping sweats and water shoes but I had him change back into his wet shorts, figuring they'd dry by the time he got to the car. I also insisted he wear his boots and made yet another attempt to get his pack fit properly. This time we finally got it right, cinching the hipbelt tight enough to actually allow the pack to rest on his hips. I could see the shoulder straps raised up above his shoulders and Andy said it felt much better.
The whole troop packed up, policed the camp, then made its way back to the stream crossing. Everyone made it across without getting wet except Tim, so my group had to wait while he changed his socks. Pat offered to take over Andy's patrol and I was sent on ahead with Randy's crew. What a difference. Five kids and all fast, hardy hikers. We set a solid pace and only stopped a few times for rest & water. The last stop was at the relocated Franconia Brook campground, where we explored down to the water and checked out the stepping stone river crossing. Not sure if I'd try it with a full pack.
It started raining in this section but we knew we were close to the end so no one stopped to put on rain gear. As always the trail seemed to go on longer than expected but eventually the ranger's cabin appeared and we were done. I dropped my pack in my car then joined the boys on the porch of the cabin to await the rest of the troop. Randy's group arrived first, then Pat and Andy's patrol. All of the boys bought snacks from the rangers before we piled everyone back in the cars for the ride home. It was a straight ride this time...no stops, though I found later than Pat & Randy had made a McDonald's stop with their passengers. As a result we arrived back at the parking lot a half hour before the others. I had Tim call his mom to tell her we were there and I called Jane as well, then we sat and talked with some of the parents who were waiting. The other cars showed up before too long and at last we declared the adventure to be completed.
Thoughts & notes:
I love hiking in this area and thoroughly enjoyed the easy pace and the chance to be out in the woods. The first night campground was actually rather nice. A good idea for a future trip with Chip, perhaps. I still haven't decided if it was good or bad for me to be the adult for Andy's patrol on Saturday. I was more of a dad than an unbiased adult helper, so Andy got a fair amount of assistance and attention. The latter wasn't that good, because Andy perhaps reacted to it and whined more because he knew he'd get a response. On the other hand, I knew him well and was able to help out in ways another adult might not. At a couple of points he broke down a bit, an emotional release he probably wouldn't have demonstrated with someone else. Would he have been better off if he'd been forced to deal with it on his own? Perhaps. I was certainly glad he got to hike with Pat on Sunday. Pat's got a lot more experience with this than I and probably did a better job with Andy. At one point Pat had suggested to me that I stay out of the way and make the patrol leaders (Jonathan & Andrew) make more of the decisions. Good advice.
