Sabattis Log 11 July 2004

Morning broke with the sounds of Drew watering a fern outside the tent and the hustle of Basko and Bender trying to catch yet another bass from the post. At this time Drew also spotted another bear behind Weller?s truck.

Since we arrived a day early, Sunday's activities consisted of a 2.5 mile hike up and down Lookout Point which is one of the features trek activities at Sabattis. We started by hiking through the soon-to-be-full camp and pausing at the closing campfire location overlooking Little Hornet Pond. Rather than waste time searching for the scantly marked trail, we shose to navigate soley by map & compass to the top of the point. Weller & Sleight took the bearings and up we went to the point. It was nearly straight up on hands and knees through moss covered rocks and fields of dew-covered ferns. Being in perhaps the worst shape of the group, I brought up the rear but still felt suprisingly good for the lack of exercise in my everyday life. Drew did very well and didn't even flinch at the elevation. We then observed the pleasant Adirondack view (and one bear dropping) consisting of well-treed peaks decorating the skyline. The weather was partly cloudy so the crawl to the peak was worth it. After Mitchell "stepped aside" for a moment using leaves for cleanup, we made our way for the real trail at my insistence in order to avoid blowing out my knee going downhill.

The time is 23:16 and we just returned from a number of activities with the boys including a troop photo, knife & axe briefing, and the opening ceremony. Given the wide age range of scouts in attendance, the campfire antics were met with some mocking due to the high level of "corn", however, this ASM appreciated the animated presentation techniques. Mark & I also attended a leader meeting where I realized that Sabattis is not just about collecting merit badges but seeing the hundreds of acres of God's beautiful handiwork. Since it was Sunday we also attended a "Scout's Own" religious service that was diluted and void of any spirituality. In retrospect, we should've have chosen the Jewish service and did mention our disappointment with the service. Apparently, it was thrown together at the last minute because of some last minute staffing changes. No need to worry, our boys have a solid sense of discernment.