On January 30th, five troop families and one Scout from both Troops 581 & 582 (GUMC’s Scouts BSA Girl Troop), took advantage of a winter outdoor adventure opportunity by hitting the slopes of Bryce Resort, Basye, VA. Scott Houchin, our planner for this adventure, had to exercise much patience and flexibility as we adapted our plans to the continually changing state mandated COVID restrictions and NCAC protocols. That meant that we couldn’t revisit Whitetail Ski Resort in PA to do an overnight or visit some of the other familiar resorts to our Scouts, but this gave us a chance to try out a new place while honing our skills.
The day began with a few 9:30am reservations, as the resort required families to reserve a start-time as a means of controlling the number of people entering the rental facility in compliance with COVID safeguards. Not having the lockers available for storing daypacks and shoes made for a lot of back-and-forth between the rental facility and the parking lot, but the adults took this in stride.
The weather cooperated for the whole day—granting us a comfortable mid-40’s temperature with sunny skies, causing some members of our group to strip off some clothing and outerwear layers. As the day progressed, the bunny and beginner trails were getting slick and chunky in areas, but those who braved the more intermediate slopes found those trail conditions more pleasant.
Varying skill levels were represented by the six Scouts and six adults that spread out over the six trails that were open that day—some gliding the packed powder surface with skis and a few with a snowboard. Troop camaraderie was evident as individuals braved the grades that were a little above their comfort zone so that their buddies could be challenged. Those that normally take more runs on the challenging trails, stayed with their buddies on the beginner level trails. Those who were learning to ski for the first time made great strides and fell down less and less as the afternoon wore on.
Of course, you can’t do the slopes non-stop all day without some downtime and a chance to refuel at the Shenandoah Center Grill. A Scout or two managed to get some shut-eye for a bit before hitting the slopes for one more run prior to heading home around 6pm.
Submitted by Jen Houchin, troop parent
Excellent!!!