Boy Scout Troop One from Logan, Utah (Sponsored by the Logan Lions Club-Trapper Trails Council-Old Ephraim District) is celebrating its’ 100th anniversary as a continuously chartered scouting unit with specially scheduled activities each month throughout the year 2010. Troop One is the oldest Boy Scout Troop west of the Mississippi River and has created a strong foundation of leadership, service, and community for hundreds of Cache Valley’s youth over the past century. Boys between the ages of 11-17 who are interested in joining Troop One are encouraged to visit our troop meetings at First Presbyterian Church, 12 South 200 West in Logan, Tuesday’s between 7:00-8:30 pm. Troop One is a non-denominational scouting unit.
August 22, 2010
By Alex Silvester, Ashford District Scouts, Ashford, Kent, UK
BSA Exchange 2010
This is Alex Silvester’s report on the exchange 2010 with Troop 1 in Logan and Ashford District scouts in England. I am 12 years old and have been involved in scouting since I was 5. I have been a Scout for the last 2 years. I had been really looking forward to the trip but felt a mixture of excitement, uncertainty and a bit nervous. I had been given the name and address of the host family, the Grimes, and I had exchanged several Emails with Calvin. I was very lucky to be staying with such a friendly family.
The day finally came and we met at 3 am, feeling very sleepy and made our way to Heathrow for the long flights to Salt Lake City. When we arrived we were met by the Patrol Leaders, the Scout Master Tom Hogan and the Assistant Scout leaders. We were made to feel very welcome – they had made posters which we saw when we collected our baggage! We went straight to a welcoming party where we met our host families. We had some food and played softball and finally went home with the hosts to get some sleep.
Over the next few days we were introduced to the Logan area by our host families and different things were experienced by the Scouts. I was having a great time, I went kayaking and sailing and ten pin bowling and played golf. We then went off to Camp Loll. It was an early start but I was very excited and looking forward to having the swim check in the lake. When we arrived the views over the lake were beautiful and again we had a very warm welcome from our camp friends. I went on small boat sailing merit badge course and the best part was when our boat tipped over and we had to be rescued by the rescue boat! We had to help keep the boat afloat until help arrived. Some of the UK Scouts did the Polar Bear challenge which they thought was awesome! We all won our red and white beads. Camp Loll was great and I was pleased we didn’t meet any bears!
After Camp Loll we headed off to Yellowstone Park on the next part of our adventure. I was looking forward to sleeping in the lodge and going horse riding. Both were amazing. The scenery was lovely and we saw Old Faithful erupt. There were also sightings of moose, elks, bison and even an eagle, none of which we can see in the wild here in the UK. We carried on to Jackson Hole via the Grand Tetons which were amazing – wow. The rest of the scouts went white water rafting which they thought was fantastic but myself and another scout Rob could not go because of injuries which was very disappointing. We then went back to Logan to spend a few more days with the host families and then met up with the scouts to see some sights in Salt Lake City. We saw the biggest conference centre in the world, which was amazing. I had a fantastic time, the best time of my life!
There were so many first experiences – first baseball match, sailing in Bear Lake, visiting the jail, going to the rodeo and floating in the Great Salt Lake. The American people were so welcoming and friendly and treated us so well. I learnt that I can trust others through some of the exercises we did. (I also learnt that I could look after my passport for 3 weeks!)
When it was time to head home I felt very sad to be leaving but thankful for the experiences I have had. I have lots to tell my family and the scouts in my troop and many memories. I will stay in touch with my host family and I hope to be able to come again in the future.
Thanks to all those involved who made the trip such a great experience.
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