<p> TROOP 226 WEB NEWSLETTER March 2005 Edition www.troop226tccs.com</p><p>March brought more adventures for Troop 226… the Destination Unknown backpacking trip was great fun!! The troop will be GROWING soon!! We met with potential new Boy Scouts that will crossover from Pack 226 next month into our troop!! </p><p>ANNOUNCEMENTS: Troop Dues: Just a reminder to all of our Scouts that dues are $5.00 per month. This money is used to cover the troop’s expenses for the materials needed to complete troop activities during our weekly troop meetings, troop insurance, cost of patches, ribbons, pins, etc. awarded to our boys, and for troop equipment needs (camping equipment, troop flag, etc.). Dues are to be paid to Dora Hill, who serves as an Assistant Scoutmaster and our Troop Committee Treasurer. Upcoming 2005 Ocanosta District and Sequoyah Council Events: Our next district events will be Scout Expo in May 2005. Then, before you know it, it will be time for Boy Scout Summer Camp again!! Troop 226 Planning Calendar for 2004-2005 – Everyone should now have a copy of our 2002-2003 Calendar. If not, an updated copy is always available on our website, www.troop226tccs.com. Troop 226 Planning Calendar for 2005-2006: I need EVERYONE to be looking at your calendars! We need input for our 2005-2006 Calendar of Events for September 2005 through May 2006. </p><p>UPCOMING EVENTS!! (see 2004-2005 Troop 226 Calendar for more information) April 1-3, 2005 Troop Fundraiser – Work BMS Souvenir Stand, 9:00 a.m. – 6:00 p.m. Bristol Motor Speedway April 5, 2005 6:30 p.m. – 8:00 p.m. Troop Meeting @ TCCS – Airport Campus April 7, 2005 Early Bird Scout Expo ticket sales turn-in (get an extra 5% return for troop!) April 11-15, 2005 TCCS Spring Break!! April 16, 2005 SCOUT DAY FOR BUCS BASEBALL: All Boy Scouts, Cub Scouts, and Leaders are admitted FREE at the gate with a current BSA membership card OR in uniform... parents that are not leaders must purchase tickets. The Bucs will play Wofford at Cardinal Park at 2:00 p.m. on Saturday, April 16th. April 19, 2005 6:30 p.m. – 8:00 p.m. Troop Meeting @ TCCS – Airport Campus April 22, 2005 Troop Crossover Ceremony: Troop 226 crossover Webelos into Troop as Boy Scouts!! April 23, 2005 Scout Training Day with JCRC RADIO CONTROL AIRPLANES at Bowser Field April 26, 2005 6:30 p.m. – 8:00 p.m. Troop Meeting @ TCCS – Airport Campus April 26, 2005 6:30 p.m. – 8:00 p.m. Troop Meeting @ TCCS – Airport Campus May 2, 2005 6:30 p.m. – 8:00 p.m. Troop Meeting @ TCCS – Airport Campus May 6-8, 2005 Scout Expo at Bristol Motor Speedway - Troop 226 will campout at speedway on Friday and Saturday (May 6th & 7th). May 9, 2005 6:30 p.m. – 8:00 p.m. Troop Meeting @ TCCS – Airport Campus May 14, 2005 8:00 a.m. – 11:00 a.m. Health Screenings at V.A. Hospital for Scouts who will attend Summer Camp at Camp Davy Crockett SCOUT DAY AT BAYS MOUNTAIN!! Saturday, May 14, 2005 is Scout Day at Bays Mountain. Admission is FREE for all Scouts in uniform (a $3 savings). May 16, 2005 6:30 p.m. – 8:00 p.m. Troop Meeting @ TCCS – Airport Campus May 20-22, 2005 Spring Ordeal at CDC May 23, 2005 6:30 p.m. – 8:00 p.m. Troop Meeting @ TCCS – Airport Campus May 26, 2005 LAST DAY OF SCHOOL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! May 28, 2005 12:30 p.m. Flag Decoration @ Mountain Home V.A. </p><p>WHAT WE’VE BEEN DOING: </p><p>Troop 226 Goes Backpacking… Destination Unknown!!: On Saturday, March 19th, Troop 226 met at Sam’s Wholesale parking lot at 8:00 a.m. Everyone made it except for Grayson, Josh Baker, and Malachi. The boys worked on properly packing their backpacks. We checked the backpacks and weighed them. At 9:00 a.m. we were ready. We had Aaron and Cameron pray and we left. We had fun with the boys since they don’t know where we’re going!! Coach Landers mentioned West Virginia!! We got to the drop site on the Fall Creek Loop. It was a small tight gravel lot on a dead end road. It was funny watching them try to figure out where they are… until they saw the Warrior’s Path Park sign at the trailhead. Dora and Brenda will take our vehicles to the campsite. We got on the trail at 9:15 a.m. The Lord blessed us with a beautiful day and hike!! It didn’t take long for all of us to shed our jackets… and find dead limbs to use as walking sticks!! The boys were working well together. Alan was the “scout”, Josh Landers was our leader in the middle, and I was the “smoother-upper” in the rear. Everyone did well with the backpacks. We completed the Fall Creek Loop and looked at some old settlements… old log cabins and an old house. We stopped at the old house for about a half hour. We then headed back out for Devil’s Backbone… that proved to be quite a challenge. Matthew was having a hard time… he said, “Why didn’t we hike up God’s Backbone, that would be easier!” We finally made it to the top and were treated to a great view!! We had lunch up there and then headed down the other side toward the Warrior’s Path Golf Course. It began to sprinkle a little rain, but we pressed on. We golfers enjoyed seeing the boys in full packs and talked with them. We then crossed the Fall Creek Road bridge and caught Daniel, Josh, and Cameron waving to some cute girls in a Honda… and they did wave back!! We then got on the Riverbank Trail and hiked to the boat ramp. We then got on the Lakeshore Trail and hiked on to the main campground. We came up out of the woods and walked to our campsite at 2:15 p.m. We saw a white, 12 foot enclosed trailer and silver/grey Chevy Tahoe that belonged to a Boy Scout Troop...in our spot… but they were leaving. We set up camp. Ben Hill, Alan’s uncle is the host camper here this week and came down to see us. He said the other troop left without paying!! Bad witness for the scouts. We set up camp and let the boys play and roam. The boys snacked and the Flying Eagles decided to eat supper at 3:00 p.m.!! Cindy and Tammy came by to visit and we enjoyed talking with them. The Lord blessed us with a great day, great hike, and fun!! The Flying Eagles hatched a plan to go over to Daniel’s house to get snacks!! We thwarted the plan and told the boys, NO; this is supposed to be a backpacking trip!! Packing everything in was part of the plan. We thought we were being nice by coming up into civilization and camping here. The Road Runners ate supper around 6:00 p.m. Alan fixed the leaders a nice package meal of lasagna, beef stew, and cobbler. The boys got a nice fire going. We had a campfire at 7:30 p.m. We had a reflection about the hike, Aaron had a VERY nice message, and then we told some stories. We let the boys play until it began raining at 9:30 p.m… and we all turned in for the night. We had a raccoon visit us during the night. </p><p>Sunday, March 20, 2005. We got up at 6:30 a.m., had a quick breakfast, and started breaking camp. On nice thing about backpacking, breaking camp is quick and easy. Alan had the boys to empty the rented backpacks so he can return them to Mahoney’s Outfitters today. Everyone was picked up by 8:00 a.m. Our tents were just a little wet so we took them down and put them back up at home to dry. </p><p>Troop 226 Meets With Pack 226: Troop 226 met with Pack 226 Tuesday, March 22nd at Trinity Church of the Brethren to present the boys and parents with information about Troop 226. It’s always exciting to have NEW Boy Scouts making the Webelos-To-Scout transition into the troop!!</p><p>Tune in next month for pictures and stories about our troop’s NEWEST patrol as they crossover in April, camping adventures, flying radio controlled airplanes, and other Scouting FUN!! </p>