Scouting is awsome.

I am now the 11 year old scout leader. I started back in July so I guess it has been a little while. This last weekend I took the boys on a camp out. We had a few of them who have just turned 12 and a few others who will be turning 12 in the next little bit so we decided to take them and the older boys so they could get used to each other. It was a great camp out. We did not have as many of the older boys go but the two that went are awesome.

My Adam and Jackson Balser were the two older boys who showed up. What I like about these two is they show up and generally carry their weight around camp. You don't have to be their mother. Their packs are packed with the right stuff, you never hear them say, "my mom didn't pack me..." nor do we have to tell them everything to do. They are a good influence on the younger boys and I was glad to have them along. I told all the younger boys that these guys are the ones to watch and be like. I think a key part of the scouting program is good scout leaders and older scouts to roll model the younger boys.

There were 8 boys and 3 leaders/parents who went with us and in the picture they are left to right, Daniel, Tanner, Adam, Brother Gardner(Cadens Dad), Brendon, Pk, Brother Balif(Scout Master), Jackson, Caden and Ben, I was taking the picture. I am excited for this group as they are all really good together and have the potential to be a solid group of good peer pressure.

We went hiking up American Fork Canyon by Tibbel fork. It was a little bit past the season of fall colors. There were still a few leaves left on the trees but not many. It would have been a lot better 3 weeks earlier. It was only relatively cold so all in all the whole things was a success. We did a 5 mile hike that was quite an adventure. We took a wrong turn and indeed up having to climb strait up the side of the mountain through the underbrush to get back on track after the trail we were on ended. I would recommend that hike to anyone who wants to see some of the beauty that exists in the rocky mountains, just make sure that you take the turn to the left when the trail forks.

There were some breathtaking views when we got to the top. I saw a hawk circling over the lake below and watched him with my binoculars. It was really cool. The lake you see way down below the boys on the left is Tibbel. Adam is about half way up the side of the mountain where we had to blaze our own trail. I did not have enough room for all the pictures but just out of the picture of Adam there are two caves on the far mountain. Maybe some day I will hike up there and check them out.

I try to be the last one in line when on the trail so that I can pick up any stragglers that might be falling behind. This was a section of the trail that I pictured as being just beautiful 3 weeks ago. Right now it is just bare oak trees but picture all those leaves you see on the ground still attached to the trees above and full of color. I love the outdoors and I love the scouting program because it gives me an excuse to go out and enjoy it.