This past February, 11 adventurous Scouts from Troop 581 traveled to BSA Camp Rock Enon to work on the Wilderness Survival Merit Badge. Each year, there are stories in the news of people getting lost while enjoying the outdoors and requiring rescue. The Wilderness Survival Merit Badge strives to teach Scouts what to do if they are ever in this situation. It is one of the more difficult Merit Badges to earn. Scouts must learn and demonstrate practical skills necessary to survive (and be rescued) if they were ever lost in the wilderness. Focused on the seven priorities of wilderness survival, these include shelter building, fire building, water purification, and signaling to ground and air rescue. It is also one of the only Merit Badges that requires Scouts to memorize and recite key knowledge from memory.
Upon arrival at Rock Enon, Scouts set up camp just in time for the storm that dropped several inches of snow on the ground. This made the next day’s activities challenging but also provided a realistic environment for practicing their skills. Unfortunately, the next night’s plummeting temperatures combined with the overly saturated environment forced the troop to halt activities and the Scouts were unable to spend the night in survival shelters but valuable lessons were learned and everyone remained cheerful! We look forward to our next chance to practice wilderness survival!
