Troop 344

Over the weekend of Nov 5 and 6, Troop 344 went backpacking at Meramec State Park. We got there early Saturday the 5th morning, and at the head of the trail we rapped up our preparations and set off. The loop was 8 miles, 6 of which we did that first day. The hike was filled with singing, admiring the woods, talking about anything and everything, and, of course, waiting infinitely for lunch. Speaking of which, we had lunch at the creek crossing about 4 miles in, which served as a great refresher and a boost of already high morale. Passing the first campsite also filled us with anticipation, and even better was the feeling of finally setting down our packs, and setting up our site. We hung out and enjoyed the time on our hands as we built the fire and started to take out our MRE’s for dinner. (hint; always get the beef stroganoff). Some were good, some not so, but they were filling and led to a good night’s sleep. The next morning we woke up, took down the bear bag, and ate our cold breakfast before striking camp and heading off again. We once again filled the woods with our “interesting” singing that was definitely 100% on pitch, and the 2 miles left were over in no time, with the only things slowing us down being the sinster thorn bushes. All and all, this was a great trip, and was great practice for those who are going on Philmont as well.