​Venture Crew 1799 Completes 10 Day Backpacking Odyssey!

Venture Crew 1799 Completes 10 Day Backpacking Odyssey!

Burlington Venture Crew 1799 had an incredible 10 day backpacking adventure at the famed Philmont Scout Ranch in Cimarron, New Mexico. 18 youth Venturers and 6 adult Advisors set off from Logan Airport on July 6th, arriving at Philmont on July 7th for a day of orientation, food and gear collection and general preparation for the experience to come. All gear and supplies needed for the trek were carried on their backs, with packs averaging better than 50 lbs! The next day, they kicked off their trek by hiking to their first camp in a high mountain meadow, where they were able to put into action the skills that they had been learning for past year: setting up the campsite, purifying water, stringing up bear bags, back-country cooking, disposing of food waste correctly, and more.

The Venture Crew selected a rugged itinerary that included a mix of long hiking segments, including a 14 mile day, great program elements such as cowboy action shooting, rock climbing, search and rescue training, panning for gold, and the zenith, literally and figuratively, of climbing storied Baldy Mountain, reaching a height of 12,441 feet.

The Crew hiked 120 miles over 10 days, climbing 9000 vertical feet. The Crew stayed at 9 different campsites, of which 3 were staffed camps with programs offered, including a replica logging camp that featured a spirited match of “Major League Logger-Ball” – similar to baseball, but no gloves, a duct-tape ball and axe-handles for bats. The Crew also participated in Spar-Pole climbing and a rousing campfire program that included some great acting by a few of our very own Venturers! The next staff camp featured a fun and interactive astronomy program. The Philmont staff had so much fun with our Crew that they sent them a thank you note! The last staffed camp was the Western Town of Ponil. This was also the Crew’s last camp of the Trek, and included a luxury many of the Crew had forgotten – showers! This was the first opportunity in the last 10 days for the team to get (mostly) clean, and was well received. Camp experiences included slugging down Root Beer in the Cantina, enjoying a beef-stew, biscuit and cobbler dinner prepared for us (with some help from several Crew members), and an incredible Cantina Show featuring both old-timey and more modern musical performances. The next day the Crew participated in a horse program on some (mostly) well behaved “Caballos” and returned to base camp. After a long day of washing tents, sorting/returning gear and getting ready to go home, a good night’s rest at base camp was well deserved. The next day, July 19th, the Crew headed home to Boston and were very happy to be greeted by family members at Logan Airport at midnight!

In between the staffed camps, the Crew would participate in programs on the way to their unstaffed campsites, including rock-climbing, mine exploration, blacksmithing, team building exercises and more. The unstaffed camps were amazing, with incredible views and rugged terrain – true backcountry experiences that brought the Crew through the Valle Vidal segment of the Rachael Carson National Forest and the Heck Tract of Vermejo Park, offering stream-side camping in valleys as well as open ridge campsites with incredible nighttime vistas.

The youth members of the Crew worked very hard to get ready, including planning the itinerary, splitting into two Crews, electing leadership, improving physical fitness, and conducting several training camping trips to make this happen. On the trail, they were supportive, fun and had a great attitude as they worked together to accomplish their goals. The physical and mental challenges were myriad, and watching them cooperate and succeed was truly inspiring.

Crew 1: Kevin Twohig (Leader), Dan McCarthy (Wilderness Guia), Billy Corrigan (Chaplain’s Aide), Will Rizza, Neil Ford, Nathan Walzer, Nick Papia, Sebastian Little, Ian Casciola

Crew 2: Clayton Davison (Leader), Luke Iler (Wildnerss Guia), Sarah Iler (Chaplain’s Aide), Sebastian Beuchelt, Ian Ford, Becky Krupp, Sarah Plummer, Michael Seeley, Michael Pascale.

This incredible experience was the brain-child of Bill McCarthy, Crew 1799 Advisor, without whom this simply would not have occurred. The amount of work involved in planning, delegating, tracking and working the two-year project to make this trip happen is truly amazing, and Bill did a great job. Associate Advisors who also participated in the trek included Alan Krupp, Rich Walzer, Brian Twohig (who also made the Travel Arrangements!), Chris Ford and Deb McCarthy. They also contributed significant time and energy working on various phases of the project plan, getting certified in Wilderness First Aid and CPR, attending formal and informal training sessions, and participating in the many hikes and campouts necessary to get the Crew ready to go. Phil Pascale handled the burdensome task of paperwork maven and was also the physical conditioning guru for the Crew.

Anyone interested in high adventure activities such as hiking, canoeing and backpacking in a co-ed Venture Crew (organized under the auspices of the Boy Scouts of America) can view the Crew website at crew1799.org, or email Bill McCarthy at billm787@gmail.com.