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New advice published in Scouting, the official in-house magazine, says neither Scouts nor their parents should bring penknives to camp except in "specific" situations. Scouts have traditionally been taught how to use knives correctly, using them on camping trips to cut firewood or carve tools. At one point Scouts were allowed to carry a sheath knife on their belt as part of their uniform although this is no longer the case. In recent years the Scout Association guidance has been that parents should carry knives to camps or meetings. Dave Budd, a knife-maker who runs courses training Scouts about the...

A shooting on Saturday that claimed the life of a 25-year-old Olympia man “appears at this time to be a legitimate act of self-defense,” Grays Harbor Undersheriff Rick Scott said this morning. Westin Wolff was shot and killed at a remote campsite on Wynooche Lake early Saturday morning. The name of the person who shot Wolff is not being released. While the Sheriffs Office is investigating Wolff’s death as a homicide, Scott said the shooting appears to have been justified. “Homicide takes many forms, including justified homicide to criminal homicide. In criminal homicide there are varying degrees,” Scott added. No...

A federal warning to beware of campers in national forests who eat tortillas, drink Tecate beer and play Spanish music because they could be armed marijuana growers is racial profiling, an advocate for Hispanic rights said Friday. The warnings were issued Wednesday by the U.S. Forest Service, which is investigating how much marijuana is being illegally cultivated in Colorado's national forests following the recent discovery of more than 14,000 plants in Pike National Forest. "That's discriminatory, and it puts Hispanic campers in danger," said Polly Baca, co-chairwoman of the Colorado Latino Forum. A spokesman for the U.S. Forest Service had...

This is one political tent virtually no one wants to be under. Libyan President Moammar Khadafy will pitch a massive tent in the middle of a quiet New Jersey suburb when he is in town for a UN General Assembly meeting next month, according to The New York Post. The terrorist-harboring leader -- recently photographed warmly embracing newly released Pan Am Flight 103 bomber Abdel Basset Ali al-Megrahi -- typically travels with an air-conditioned tent and plans to set up camp on the front lawn of an Englewood, N.J., home that is owned by the Libyan Mission to the UN,...

British backpacker Jamie Neale has been found alive after going missing in the Australian bush for nearly two weeks, the Foreign Office said today. Mr Neale, 19, had not been seen since July 3 when he left his hostel in the town of Katoomba, New South Wales, for a walk in the Blue Mountains. The Briton was discovered by two hikers exhausted and dehydrated. Speaking from his hospital bed, he said: 'I really thought I was going to die. I could see the helicopters flying overhead but they couldn't see me.' Miracle: Richard Cass (left) with his son Jamie Neale...

MUSKEGON, Mich. (WOOD) - Daniel Nichols, who accidentally ran over his 5-year-old son while the boy lay sleeping in a tent, says the state is threatening to take away his children. A Muskegon County Department of Human Services worker visited Nichols' wife Thursday at the hospital, where his son is recovering, and told her a campground was no place for children to live, Nichols told 24 Hour News 8. "She went to the hospital and told my wife that she doesn't think it's acceptable for us to be staying in the campground, which we weren't staying in the campground, we...

EC just returned from an adventure in the wild with Pack 21, an overnight adventure that left EC grimy, exhausted, and with a better understanding of WHY our fight to keep America free, and to preserve our liberties is so important. Will our generation be the first in American history to leave a world of LESS opportunity for our children?

CHEYENNE -- Federal officials began arriving in Riverton on Monday to prepare for the Rainbow Family gathering, which is expected to be held on U.S. Forest Service land in the Big Sandy area near Pinedale. A national incident management team made up of about 40 Forest Service and Bureau of Land Management personnel was setting up shop to deal with the potentially thousands of people who could turn out for the event in early July. "The Rainbow Gathering of Living Light" is a weeklong campout that has been held on federal lands around the country each year since the early...

GADSDEN, Ala. - The throngs filling campgrounds across America this weekend will include hardy outdoors types and those who prefer creature comforts, but they'll have at least one important thing in common: Nearly all of them are white. ADVERTISEMENT A small but committed group of campers is trying to change that by growing a generation of black campers, one person at a time. The National African-American RVers Association is composed almost exclusively of black people who camp, although it includes a few whites and Hispanics. The group doesn't have much money to buy ads or solicit new members. Instead, it...

The throngs filling campgrounds across America this weekend will include hardy outdoors types and those who prefer creature comforts, but they'll have at least one important thing in common: Nearly all of them are white. A small but committed group of campers is trying to change that by growing a generation of black campers, one person at a time. The National African-American RVers Association is composed almost exclusively of black people who camp, although it includes a few whites and Hispanics. The group doesn't have much money to buy ads or solicit new members. Instead, it always holds its major...

CASAR — Nancy Leedy and Joanie Beasley are unabashed environmentalists, Christians and lesbians. But some people give the couple and others like them a hard time about their lifestyle. The couple has been bounced from church to church in the county — told not to attend or to attend only at early, less-attended services — and is at times ostracized by their community, they said. The solution? A camp dedicated to creating a friendly environment for all types of people: straight, gay, bi-sexual, lesbian or transgender. Born from a stretch of nature a short distance across the Cleveland-Rutherford county line,...

Fewer people are visiting national parks and taking part in outdoor activities such as camping, according to new research that suggests people are falling out of love with the natural world.The study by US conservationists discovered an "ongoing and fundamental shift away from nature-based recreation" that they say could threaten future efforts to preserve wilderness areas. The experts say people now make up to 25% fewer trips than they did in the 1980s, and say the rise of computer games could be to blame.Oliver Pergams, a biologist at the University of Illinois, and Patricia Zaradic of the US Environmental Leadership...

Old fashioned values stand firm in a high tech world http://www.villagevoice.com.au/article/20070806/LFS07/708030330/ http://tinyurl.com/34qcm3 Source: Village Voice Balmain Author: Nicole Hasham Posted: Mon 6 Aug, 2007 In an era when pitching a tent generally means clipping plastic poles to a dome-shaped piece of nylon, knowing how to tie a knot may seem a little quaint. But for the young members of the Leichhardt 1st Scouts group, knowing how to square lash two wooden poles can mean the difference between a good night's sleep and a face full of canvas. "When we camp we use old army tents like they used in World...

'Utterly cared for': Minister writes of finding peace, link to God in nature http://www.southbendtribune.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070726/Lives/707260476/1047/Lives http://tinyurl.com/2uf995 Jul 26, 2007 CHRISTINE COX Tribune Staff Writer John Lionberger, a United Church of Christ minister and religious author, admits there are times when he is tempted to not believe in God. "Faith just isn't a head thing at all. I could talk myself out of God just in a heartbeat," he says in a telephone interview. "But if I listen to my heart, I think that's the truer voice. That's the grounded voice. I guess, the ancient voice." It's a voice he didn't hear...

An 11-year-old boy is killed by a black bear overnight at a popular campsite in American Fork Canyon. This morning authorities are searching for the bear. The boy was asleep inside a tent he was sharing with his family at the Timpooneke Camp area, about 10 miles up the canyon. The family was camping about two miles up a dirt road from that campground. The boy, his mother, stepfather and a 6-year-old brother were sleeping in a large tent with several sections, and the 11-year-old was in a section of the tent by himself. Around 11 p.m. family members heard...

<p>WHITE HAVEN, Pa. — A bear tried to pull a Girl Scout out of her tent during a camping trip, the girl and scout officials said.</p> <p>Celeste Tietz, 11, said Wednesday that she managed to grab a tent pole and slide out of her sleeping bag as the bear was tugging at it early Sunday morning at Camp Mosey Wood.</p>

Scouting leaves positive glow http://www.fergusfallsjournal.com/news/2007/feb/02/scouting-leaves-positive-glow/ http://tinyurl.com/yraqhv By Dave Churchill, The Daily Journal Published Friday, February 2, 2007 For reasons unknown, the Northern Lights Council of the Boy Scouts mailed me a copy of its newsletter last week. I don’t have a connection with the council, haven’t had much involvement with the Scouts for several decades, but the newsletter’s arrival was the second reminder this month of my Scouting past. Earlier in January, I was having lunch in a cafeteria-type place and, as I walked to a table with my tray, another diner called out, “Hey, were you at Philmont?” He...

SHIRAZ, Iran -- Honking horns. Gridlock. Crowded stores. In the United States, camping offers an escape from the sounds and hassles of city life. Here, families from surrounding villages and towns travel into this city of nearly 4 million to pitch tents right in the middle of the urban hustle. It's vacation, Iranian style. Increasingly popular among families seeking a change of scenery, but more and more irritating to city officials who must handle the influx, urban camping has changed the face of Iran's cities during the warmer months of the year. Earlier this month, brightly colored tents dotted the...

Ten ways scouting outranks televisionhttp://www.auburnpub.com/articles/2006/08/30/news/lake_life/lakelife03.txt http://tinyurl.com/pex7t By Don Grillo Wednesday, August 30, 2006 10:12 AM EDT Any time of the year is a good time for parents to enroll their sons in Scouting. But most boys join Scouting in September and October. During this period, annual recruiting programs are conducted by Cub Scout Packs and Boy Scout Troops throughout the Cayuga County Council. Boys are attracted to Scouting for the obvious reasons - camping, hiking, uniforms, pinewood derby races, earning badges and awards, making new friends, learning new things and having fun. Parents want their sons to join Scouting because...

Camping and Lewis and Clark BY DAVE BARRY (This classic Dave Barry column was originally published on April 7, 1996.) Now that it's warmed up, I'm thinking about camping. Don't misunderstand me: I'm not thinking about actually going camping, in the sense of venturing outdoors and turning my body into an All-U-Can-Eat buffet for insects. I'm just thinking about camping. What got me on this topic is a book I'm reading, called ''Undaunted Courage,'' by Stephen E. Ambrose, about the ultimate camping trip: the Lewis and Clark expedition. If you're a product of the U.S. educational system, you no doubt...

Nature-deficit disorder is ruining our kidshttp://www.nevadaappeal.com/article/20060816/OPINION/108160053 http://tinyurl.com/zchy3 by jim stiles August 16, 2006 No matter how old I live to be, there will never be a place so full of mystery and adventure as a place of my childhood called The Woods. The stories that grew out of those trees still kindle powerful feelings, even after all these years. My friends and I knew the place was haunted. It had no boundaries, and in our 10-year-old minds, it went on forever. Jump ahead a few decades to a familiar topic: the commercialization of wilderness. What created the demand for such...

Finding God on the Mountainhttp://www.beliefnet.com/story/197/story_19711_1.html A scoutmaster discovers he had to get lost in order to find what was missing from his life. By Tony McIntosh I'm a scoutmaster for a small Boy Scout troop in my town. This summer during camp I went along with two of the older scouts--my son, who is 14, and another boy, 15--on what's known as "The Adventure Trek," a 28-mile backpacking trip that includes two days of white-water rafting. Our troop had gone backpacking in the past but never like this, so it was going to be a challenge for all of us....

A disconnect at camphttp://www.thestar.com/NASApp/cs/ContentServer?pagename=thestar/Layout/Article_Type1&c=Article&cid=1154728213922&call_pageid=970599119419 http://tinyurl.com/mb4ox Kids are OK with new no-cellphone rules, but not so for some of their parents Aug. 5, 2006. 01:00 AM FRANCINE KOPUN FEATURE WRITER Ali Goodwill, 14, spends three hours a night on her cellphone. "I usually have to gossip with my best friends, and I just talk with random people for another hour. ... I love my cellphone so much. ... It's my baby." So you would think there would have been tears, tantrums, perhaps a smuggling incident, when the Grade 9 student was asked to hand over the phone at the gates of...

Scouting survives: Even in high-tech age, youths learn to 'Be prepared'http://www.herald-mail.com/?module=displaystory&story_id=144116 Sunday August 6, 2006 by CANDICE BOSELY candiceb@herald-mail.com TRI-STATE - These are a few of their favorite things: Cell phones and cookies, iPods and pop-up tents, video games and wilderness badges. Seeing teenagers - and children even younger - talking or sending text messages on cell phones, fiddling with mp3 music players and playing video games are common sights. Girl Scouting and Boy Scouting might almost seem passé, given the associated images of camping, surviving in the wilderness and sleeping in wooden cabins at camp. But it's not antiquated...

A boy tries to light dry grass under a pyramid of twigs. Eventually, it catches and he lies on his side to blow the embers into crackling life. Tonight he and his friends will dine on a thin stew made of thistles and heather leaves, cooked over the fire. They will sleep in a makeshift bivouac on a bed of ferns. This is not a scene from Swallows and Amazons. It is an increasingly popular kind of educational holiday for children. On this particular course, groups of children aged from nine upwards will be pretty much alone. They have a...

Want healthier kids? Send them outsidehttp://www.dailyherald.com/story.asp?id=212657 BY JASON KING Daily Herald Staff Writer Posted Monday, July 31, 2006 Sean Taylor watched as 5-year-old son Payton played "snake tag" with other children at the Grant Woods Forest Preserve in Lake Villa. The father and son were participating in the Lake County Forest Preserve District's Knee High Naturalist program, which focused on snakes that day. Taylor said he wants his son to play outdoors as much as possible and, luckily, Payton loves to do so. "If he stays inside all day, at night he's just crazy," said Taylor, of Lake Villa. "He...

Camping, hiking and fishing in the wild as a child breeds respect for environment in adults, study findshttp://www.news.cornell.edu/stories/March06/wild.nature.play.ssl.html http://tinyurl.com/ljnj3 By Susan S. Lang March 13, 2006 If you want your children to grow up to actively care about the environment, give them plenty of time to play in the "wild" before they're 11 years old, suggests a new Cornell University study. "Although domesticated nature activities -- caring for plants and gardens -- also have a positive relationship to adult environment attitudes, their effects aren't as strong as participating in such wild nature activities as camping, playing in the woods, hiking,...

I am going camping next weekend and think it would be cool to start a campfire using a fire bow drill. I have all the parts, but can only seem to get just a bit of smoke at best. I'm not sure what I'm doing wrong. I put pine tar on the string to keep it from slipping.The wood for the fire board is cedar, and the spindle is made of poplar.I watch Survivorman on the Science Channel, and he makes it look so easy, but it is not easy!

I'm always drawn to stories about dads and sons who share a hobby or passionate pursuit. A few months ago, I read a story about a couple of father-son pairs in the Dallas area who have climbed three of the seven summits – the highest peaks on each continent. Jackson, my 10-year-old son, and I have done some indoor rock climbing at our community recreation center. But like a lot of boys these days, his passion is video games. He's always asking me to play – bad as I am at it. I usually choose NBA Live 2005 because I...

/09/2006 - Californians for Schwarzenegger announced the release of new television ads. "House" highlights Governor Schwarzenegger's leadership in moving California forward. "Bird" highlights the clear choice California voters have in this election. Both ads will be released in Spanish versions.

Fresh Idea: Survival Kits For Kidshttp://kutv.com/freshidea/local_story_143180939.html May 23, 2006 4:07 pm US/Mountain The summer is here and you may have a lot of outdoor activities planned. But before you send family members out in to the wilderness, Michelle King shows us what every parent should equip their child with. In case of any emergency being prepared for the worst may save your life or the life of someone you love. Last summer 11-year-old Brennan Hawkins went missing for four nights, but was found alive. Just one year prior to Brennan, 12-year-old Garrett Bardsley also went missing during a scout trip...

Utah Scouts preparing to push summer safetyhttp://deseretnews.com/dn/view/0,1249,635212541,00.html http://tinyurl.com/kcvon Deseret Morning News, Saturday, June 03, 2006 By Pat Reavy and Ben Winslow Deseret Morning News In the wake of high-profile outdoor tragedies in recent years, the Great Salt Lake Council of the Boy Scouts of America is revising its rules to help keep Scouts safe this summer, and one Utah mom has developed an outdoors safety pack for children. The organization has made sweeping changes to many of its camping policies, including new safety measures for hikes, precautions against lighting strikes and new guidelines for campfires. "We now have in place...

Boy Scouts of America Selects Campfire Cafe Cookbook http://www.prweb.com/releases/2006/5/prweb384364.htm (PRWEB) May 16, 2006 -- Over The Open Fire, a unique cookbook featuring open fire cooking recipes and methods from the popular television series Campfire Cafe, has been chosen for worldwide distribution by the Boy Scouts of America (BSA). Boy Scouting is designed to take place outdoors. In the outdoors, the skills and activities practiced at troop meetings come alive with purpose. Outdoor cooking has long proved to be an activity that helps make outdoor excursions more fun and educational. Over The Open Fire takes traditional open-fire cooking methods enjoyed by...

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Pentagon has begun drawing up plans to send troops and equipment to the U.S. border with Mexico, where hundreds of thousands of migrants enter the country illegally each year, a defense official said on Friday. Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld discussed border issues at the Pentagon with his Mexican counterpart, Defense Minister Gen. Gerardo Clemente Ricardo Vega. Mexico and the United States share a 2,000-mile border. "The U.S. and Mexican governments continue to work together to control the border and collaborate on these important efforts," said U.S. Navy Lt. Cmdr. J.D. Gordon, a Pentagon spokesman. "This cooperation...

Some freepers no doubt have heard of the Wounded Warrior Project and their programs/outreach services for our wounded vets returning from Iraq and Afganistan. I have been working with Jeff Searcy, their marketing director, in setting up contacts with hunting/fishing resorts, guides, and outdoor manufacturers, to provide opportunities for these warriors to enjoy the great outdoors. Since FreeRepublic has the most talented people I have ever known, I'd like to ask all of you for any ideas, suggestions, and help in bringing the great outdoors to those who have sacrificed the most for all of us. Below is a link...

Two weeks after Cindy Sheehan left her anti-war campsite by the road leading to President Bush's ranch, county commissioners have banned parking along 23 miles of roads in the area. Before the 4-1 vote Tuesday, McLennan County Commissioner Ray Meadows said about 80 residents had complained of blocked roads, loud music and public health and safety concerns during the 26-day protest near Bush's ranch outside Crawford, about 20 miles west of Waco. "It's not a First Amendment issue. It's a safety issue," Meadows said, adding that "no parking" signs could be put up this week. Sheehan began camping in ditches...

Tent? Check. Coleman stove? Check. Laptop? Darn right!Camping essentials used to include Coleman lanterns, goose-down sleeping bags and water purification kits. But a growing number of campers are adding laptops to that list, and wireless Internet access in the great outdoors is becoming the new must-have. Private campgrounds across the nation have been adding wireless Internet access in recent years, and state park campgrounds are apparently following suit in a number of places. And while few campsites in national parks offer wireless Internet so far, that could change if demand warrants. Alan Friedman, CIO of the California State Parks system,...

FORT A.P. HILL, Va. -- About 43,000 Boy Scouts departed this Army installation Aug. 3 after 10 days of scouting, camping and learning. As part of the 2005 National Scout Jamboree, Boy Scouts nationwide gathered to make new friends, practice their scouting skills and earn "merit badges." Thanks to retired Lt. Col. Tom Sawner, a former pilot, about 1,000 of those young men left the Jamboree with a new merit badge and a greater appreciation and understanding of aviation. The aviation merit badge is particularly difficult to get, Colonel Sawner said, because the resources needed to complete the requirements for...

An invasion of poisonous snakes ran some Floyd County campers out of their campsite twice in less than one week. Campers say they killed dozens of copperheads as well as one rattlesnake and a water snake at their favorite campsite. Quincy Cook has been camping with his friends and family at this campsite for years and says he's never seen poisonous snakes until a few days ago when they were invaded. "I had a light on my head and looked down and they was crawling everyway like night crawlers. We shot everything all to pieces, I'd say that first night...

20TH WORLD SCOUT JAMBOREE Sexual shenanigans spice up camp life It's nothing unusual, say teenage visitors Anucha Charoenpo Young love birds share an intimate moment yesterday during a party for participants in the World Scout Jamboree at Haad Yao beach in Sattahip. _ JETJARAS NA RANONG Scouts from Western countries say having sex and forming relationships is common practice among participants at the 20th World Scout Jamboree in Sattahip. They say they are well aware of the risk of sexually transmitted disease and take the necessary precautions. Rob Rolfe, 17, from Britain, said he believed some couples were having sex...

ANCHORAGE, Alaska — Two people camping along the Hulahula River in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge were killed by a grizzly bear, officials said Sunday. Officials discovered the bodies and an unused firearm in a tent Saturday at a campsite near the river. They also shot and killed the animal. The couple, whose names were not released, was believed to be in their late 50s or early 60s, North Slope Borough police said. They were from Anchorage and had been on a recreational rafting trip down the river, Alaska State Troopers said. The victims were in their tent when the...

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Yellowstone is a world wide draw By Cara Eastwood outdoors@wyomingnews.com Published in the Wyoming Tribune-Eagle I scoured Yellowstone National Park during the first week of June, surrounded by European and Asian tourists. At each turn in the road, I found another tour bus squeezed onto the side of the road as its passengers pressed their faces to the windows to ogle an elk, a herd of deer or in one case, a dead bison. Other tourists I saw drove expensive SUV rental cars to explore the park. They all must have gotten the memo that American schools weren't out yet,...

Dear Mom and Dad, We are having a great time here at camp. Scoutmaster Webb is making us all write to our parents in case you saw the flood on TV and worried. We are OK. Only 1 of our tents and 2 sleeping bags got washed away. Luckily, none of us got drowned because we were all up on the mountain looking for Chad when it happened. Oh yeah, please call Chad's mother and tell her he is OK. He can't write because of the cast. I got to ride in one of the search and rescue Jeeps. It...

Change your view Stop and smell the flowers along scenic byway By Ty Stockton outdoors@wyomingnews.com Published in the Wyoming Tribune-Eagle CENTENNIAL - If your idea of a summer vacation is more about secluded hiking trails, breathtaking vistas and crystal-clear fishing waters than long amusement park lines, $2.25-per-gallon gas prices and overpriced hotel rooms, a drive through your own backyard may be your best bet this summer. Wyoming Highway 130 from Centennial to Saratoga is more than just a scenic byway. The road is a springboard for endless summertime outdoors activities. You could spend the entire summer on that road and...

For Michael and Sally Morone's family, camping is a favorite activity. They and their children, Ella, 6, and Benjamin, 4, try to make a camping trip every summer or fall and especially enjoy RVing. But they sometimes can't venture far afield because he's on call for work as a neurosurgeon at Deaconess Billings Clinic. "Whenever we can't go too far ... we will go to the Billings KOA," Sally Morone said. This year, however, Morone, a lieutenant colonel, is thousands of miles from his family and their usual camping adventures as he serves as a general medical officer with the...

MUNCIE, Ind. — Confederate battle flags have been banned from a city-run campground, prompting a fight between city officials and some campers.

Some of the guys and I are presently at the camping lodge and we’ve got a problem that requires the help of a sensible woman. My brother-in-law managed to get something in his hair this morning, and he wanted to wash it out. I can’t tell you what that something was, because he’s refused to divulge that to us thus far (I suspect that he fabricated the “tainted hair” theory to save himself some embarrassment.) My brother-in-law believes that his wife has, at some point, told him that peanut butter is a useful household hair cleaner / conditioner. His wife...

Camping Part 1 Well, it had to happen eventually, though when it came, I wasn't ready for it. My son, only ten years old--they grow up so quickly, don't they?-- finally approached me and asked, you know, THE QUESTION. He caught me off guard—but then, is a father ever really ready to have his once innocent boy come up to him, eyes solemn and full of trust, and so very bluntly ask, "Dad? Why can't we ever go camping?" Normally I handle his requests for information with a very patient and caring, "Ask your mother." Somehow I know, though, that...

<p>I hate camping. I've tried sleeping in tents, pop-up campers and rustic cabins many times over the years to please and appease my outdoor-loving sons and their dad. No go, this body needs a real bed and walls. So, the closer it got to loading the minivan for a week in the woods in northern Ontario's Algonquin Provincial Park last month, the less I wanted to join them.</p>