The scouts in Cordova's Heartsong Church Troop 365 trained for their 11-day Philmont adventure for nearly two years, and Scout Ben McCraw said it's a good thing they did.
Scout James Pearson makes friends with a burro at Philmont Scout Ranch in Colfax County, N.M., during his troop's 11-day adventure.
The two-year training that scouts in Cordova's Heartsong Church Troop 365 did to get in shape for their recent 11-day Philmont adventure paid off. Their 10-day trek carried them 71 miles on foot, with nothing but the contents of their backpacks to keep them going. Pictured leading the pack is Eric Ruleman, followed by Ian Murphy and the rest of the troop.
Their trek carried them 71 miles on foot, with nothing but the contents of their backpacks to keep them going.
"Everyone had to work together," McCraw said.
Each Scout had a specific task to carry out. McCraw learned the group's schedule from the time they left Memphis to the moment they left Philmont. His twin brother, Alex, was on nature control. He had to know what animals live in the area, how to deal with them, what plants are poisonous, what's OK, what to avoid and more.
Three boys were CPR-certified and another took 20 hours of medical training. They had a chaplain, a cook, someone to control water rations, a navigator and one person who made sure the area was left exactly as they found it.
"The adults were just there for support," McCraw explained. "The trips are completely boy-run. They were just there to make sure we didn't do anything stupid or get hurt." Adult leader Denton Pearson hopes the boys had as good a time as he did. A Scout leader for 12 years, this was his first Philmont experience. "After months of training, we felt like we were in pretty good shape," Pearson said. "There weren't any real surprises and the boys really came together as a team."
The twins' mother, Donna McCraw, was there to see the boys train every step of the way. She wasn't nervous about the trip. In fact, she was jealous. "Oh, girls were allowed, but the leaders needed the spots more than I did," McCraw said laughing.
Alex McCraw said the ultimate reward came as they got ready to come home.
"I know I can do a 70-mile hike," McCraw said. "You get a feeling of accomplishment after doing something that big."
