Freedom Trail 2022

Troop 4 had a fantastic trip to Boston last weekend to complete the Freedom Trail historic Trail Medal hike through downtown Boston.

We camped at the New England Base Camp outside of Boston in Milton, MA and had beautiful weather all weekend. The Scouts learned about the events and visited places that shaped the American revolution, including the USS Constitution, the Massachusetts State House, the site of the Boston Massacre, Paul Revere's house, the Bunker Hill Monument, and several others. During the hike, the Scouts collected information on the BSA Freedom Trail worksheet, learning details about the historic events along the way.  

On Sunday after breaking camp, we visited one more site, the North Bridge in Concord, MA, where the "shot heard round the world" was fired. This was a great ending to our weekend, as we were able to explore the grounds, found a great tree to climb, and again learned a lot about the founding of the U.S.A.

Click here for photos -- https://photos.app.goo.gl/mfcuQNomBYTFt3Ta9

Liam Smith -- Troop 4's Eleventh Eagle Scout

Troop 4 Purdys is extremely pleased to announce that Liam Smith, our current Senior Patrol Leader, has passed his Eagle Board of Review and is now Troop 4's eleventh Eagle Scout! He is also now the third Smith brother to earn Eagle out of Troop 4. One more to go! 

We are extremely proud of Liam for his accomplishment and his example of leadership and Scouting at its best. 

Congratulations, Liam and the Smith family!

Camp Read/Gore Mt. 2022

Troop 4 had a great weekend at the Camp Read cabin and skiing/boarding at Gore Mt.

Check out the photo album. If you were on the trip, add your photos.

 

Gavin Smith -- Troop 4's 10th Eagle Scout

Troop 4 Purdys is extremely pleased to announce that Gavin Smith has passed his Eagle Board of Review and is now Troop 4's tenth Eagle Scout! We are extremely proud of Gavin for his accomplishment and his example of leadership and Scouting at its best. 

Congratulations, Gavin!

Camp Read 2021

We had eight scouts and three adult leaders participating in Camp Read this summer from July 18-24. The troop stayed at the Waubeeka camp within the Camp Read Scout Reservation, which means that we stayed in a platform tent campsite and cooked our own meals on camp stoves. 

Despite the rainy weather challenges early in the week and the fact that this was the first time at camp for more than half the scouts, we all had a great time, learned a lot, and earned lots of merit badges. 

Plans for next year were already being discussed as we dismantled the campsite on Saturday morning, and everyone agreed that they want to return next year and stay in our new campsite, Sunrise, which is now booked for 2022. Come join us!

Click here for more pictures

Jasper Gitlitz - Troop 4's 9th Eagle Scout

 

Last night Jasper Gitlitz became Troop 4's newest Eagle Scout.  Jasper has been a Scout since the 1st grade when he joined Cub Scouts and has served the Troop as a Patrol Leader and as our Senior Patrol Leader.  Besides serving the Troop, Jasper has given back to Scouting by being a member of the Order of the Arrow and serving as a staff counselor for the Youth Training Program run by the Council.

Congratulations Jasper, we expect great things from you.

 FINALLY!

Back on the road again.  This time overnight on the AT.

We started at the trailhead for Nuclear Lake and hiked past the lake north on the AT.

From Scenic overlooks

To our awesome lean-to

And some great grub

We all had a great time back on the trail, sleeping under the stars, watching the sunrise, and exploring the natural world.

We got some really great photos of our weekend which can be viewed here at our Troop photo page:

https://photos.app.goo.gl/Pw5nP6n9o8dPaYmo6

Bones & Phones and a new BSA camp discovered

 

Ok, so the giant lumberjack at the camp entrance is a little creepy, but Camp Bullowa is a fantastic gem of a find.

We hiked the perimeter of the Camp on what the camp office claimed was a 5-mile hike but my GPS said was 3 miles, we explored lean-to sites, tent sites, the waterfront, and the amphitheater.  On the hike, we found the bones and carcasses of two different animals and discovered an iPhone under a pile of leaves at the Amphitheater.

Lunch and dinner turned out great as did the tin foil brownie dessert experiment we cooked over a bed of coals.

We will definitely be back for a weekend campout.  For a look at all the pictures from the day please check out our Troop album page here: https://photos.app.goo.gl/9HerYkPnooNwnkJAA 

Clear Lake Day Trip & Hike

 

Finally!  We had a great day on our 1st wilderness outing since the September Canoe Trip.  Spent the day at Clear Lake and hiked the ridge trail along the edge of the camp.  Some fine food and badly needed catch up on rank advancement.  

We can't wait for our first overnight in April.  For a complete view of our day in the woods please check out our Troop Photo Album here: https://photos.app.goo.gl/gPqajJbuNHSa4cWs7

Two more Eagles

Within the last eight days Troop 4 gained 2 new Eagle Scouts.  Please join us in congratulating Tyler Sandor and Colin Smith on achieving the rank of Eagle. They are Troop  4's 7th and 8th Eagle Scouts.

For more pictures of our new Eagles after their Boards of Review check out our Troop photo album:

https://photos.app.goo.gl/9uFVfvWztTQ7BqEMA

Perfect Day for a Winter Hike

 

A perfect winter day.  Hike over 2 miles and explored some of the less-visited crevices of the Baxter Preserve.

When we were done we dug holes in the snow and enjoyed hot chocolate and baked goods from the DiBarts.

All in all a good day.

We're back - Our 1st outing since February

 

Slowly, and with an abundance of caution we are getting back together for outings and adventures.  Our first group activity was the ropes course at Boundless Adventures.  Many thanks to Tyler S. who planned and organized this event and Tony Abrantes and Barbara Centofanti the parents who made sure everything went smoothly and we had the BSA two-deep leaership on site.

Next up is the September canoe trip and a Trail Medal Hike is in the works for October.

For more pictures of the event please check our our Troop 4 Activity Album page at:

https://photos.app.goo.gl/WvGDP7RdLDp4sjaM9

Virtual Hike Archive

PQ to Bloomerside Trail Loop

This is where we will post all our virtual hikes.  Anyone who cannot get out can follow the hiker's story or better yet we can download the maps and GPS instructions and take each other's hike to experience them in person.

First Hike:  PQ Trail to Bloomerside Trail Loop

Second Hike: Halmi Preserve

Third Hike: Reservoir Hike

Fourth Hike: Leatherman's Loop

Fifth Hike:  Leonard Park

Sixth Hike: Trickle HIke

Seventh Hike: Mt Lakes Lookout


Email the Troop the URL of your hikes story from Rambler and we will post here.  Have fun!

Coral Reef Sailing Adventure 2020

6 Scouts and 2 leaders spent the week aboard the Adventurer a 41 foot Morgan Out Island sloop in the Florida Keys.  Our time was spent sailing, snorkeling coral reefs, and fishing.  In the process, our Scouts got to experience the only coral reefs in North America before they go extinct.  Over the last 20 years, the reefs in Florida have shrunk by 50% with no end in sight.

We got to fish a lot and the Scouts caught hundreds of fish (no fish story) including a massive 30+ inch Grouper.  Sadly the Grouper was out of season and we had to release it instead of making it feed the crew for the week.

We learned about navigation and sailing and put up and hauled in the sails numerous times to power ourselves around the  Keys.

We lived on board the boat for the week anchoring off the coast along the way with a mid-week mooring at John Pennycamp State Park to use the showers, empty the garbage, and use flush toilets.  Most nights we spent sleeping on deck under the stars.

For a full accounting of our week please check out our photo album from the trip:

https://photos.app.goo.gl/ooPXfXJG2FgZNqvY8

First AT Segment on the Appalachian Trail

This past weekend we extended our coverage of the Appalachian Trail into CT covering the section from the NY/CT border to the Bulls Covered Bridge in in Kent, CT.

On the hike we had Eagle, Puppy Dog, and Worm (AT trail names) along with dads Joe C. and Peter D.  First day we covered 5 miles (3 with packs to the lean-to) then 2 more miles of after lunch hiking, then on Sunday we slogged 1 more mile through the rain to pack out.  Its been a while since we faced any serious weather and I am happy to report it didn't phase the new Scouts who embraced the Troop 4 way of "uphill both ways in the rain" as the ideal outing.

The CT AT facilities are the best we have ever encountered.  The Lean-To was immaculate and well maintained.

They provided an onsite Bear Box for food and garbage storage overnight,

and the Outhouse was a thing of beauty.  Bigger than the bathroom in my 1st apartment and way cleaner too.  Check out the door, it has a knocker.

For a complete photo record of the weekend please check out the Troop album at: https://photos.app.goo.gl/ZzWkwuVBEvst2We29

Hoyt

Back to Hoyt with our new Scouts to start on learning basic camping and outdoor skills.

We worked on firebuilding,

Knots and lashings,

And cooking amongst other skills to help everyone come up to speed for the May Camporee Challenge where these skills will prove helpful in the competitions.

For a full photographic review of our weekend please check out the Troop photo page for this event here:

https://photos.app.goo.gl/gdw8BW9jaw99Tfd77

Troop 4's Newest Eagle

Last night Michael Divestea became Troop 4's newest Eagle Scout.  Michael completed his Board of Review and is now officially an Eagle Scout.  Its a well deserved honor, Michael put many hours and lots of planning into earning his new rank.  Michael's project was to build a new garden and outdoor seating area for Putnam Hospital.

Many thanks to his Eagle board (from left - Paul Dengler, Ed Isler, Bruce Markert for coming out in the cold last night), the volunteers who gave dozens of hours to Michael's project, and to his Parents who supported him through this effort.

Michael will bring his Eagle Workbook to the next meeting for anyone who is interested in reviewing it for ideas.  According to his Eagle Board, Michael's workbook is an excellent example of what a final package should look like.  In the future, Michael will lead a lessons learned session so we can all learn from his experiences on what went well and what he would do differently.

AT Segment #3

Last Saturday we had a spectacular autumn day for a hike and completed our third AT segment. 

Our Troop goal is to hike the entire length of the AT in NY State.  We completed 19 miles and have 65 miles to go.

Completed Segment Map

Still to be Completed

For a complete photo record of the trip check out our Troop album here:

https://photos.app.goo.gl/WDJELRraQ2MHyUEB7

Backpacking in the Adirondack Mountains

Henry Balch and Chris James returned from college to accompany the older scouts on our annual Mini Venture.  This year's trip took us to the West Canada Wilderness Area in the Adirondack Mountains for a backpacking trip.  The Troop ended up hiking 27.7 miles through breathtaking scenery and some ferocious downpours over our 3 days and four nights on the trail.

The lean-tos along the trail were in relatively good shape and placed in convenient and scenic spots.  After hiking for over an hour in the rain we were extremely happy to stumble across one where we could wait out the worst of the day 2 storm.

We carried everything we needed into the wilderness and in true Leave No Trace fashion packed all our garbage out.

For a view of all the picture from this awesome trip please check out the Troop picture folder here:

https://photos.app.goo.gl/YhD34fZRdDESWwJz8

Summer Camp 2018

Waubeeka

Camp Read 2018

Summer Camp is in the books.  Ten Troop 4 Scouts attended Scout Camp up at the Curtis S Reade Scout Reservation.  Once again the Troop participated in the Patrol cooking camp at Waubeeka where they were responsible for their meals during the week as well as the upkeep of the campsite.

The Troop stayed at our traditional site above the waterfront in Haystack.

Days spent working on merit badges and relaxing in Haystack are a great way to wrap up the summer.

I would like to thank all the fathers and leaders who gave some time and were onsite this week, but I wanted to specifically call out John Vilkelis for a very special thank you.  John spent the entire week onsite and without John camp this year would not have happened.

For all the photos from this year's Camp Read experience please check out the Troop photo album here: 

https://photos.app.goo.gl/yb4KJk9NAP9XDVMYA