October Campfire Program & Overnight Campout

The Campfire Program is open to families and well behaved siblings of Pack 735. Overnight Camping is open to Pack 735 Families/Scouts (youth must be in Kindergarten or older to camp overnight-Parent or Guardian must be present). Not in Pack 735? Sorry you cannot camp unless you join but you are very welcome to join us for the Campfire Program!

Everyone should plan to attend the Campfire Program which is our October Pack Meeting. Camping is optional and sign up is required to camp overnight. …sign up sent via email only.

Our lively Campfire Program starts promptly at 5PM at the council ring, Reading Town Forest. Signs and glow sticks will mark the path from Compost Center to council ring…about a 15min walk.

Program Times/Details (camp details below this)

In the Morning/Early afternoon dens are getting together to work on a rank adventure at the time and location that works best for them. Each den is doing their activity separately and your den leaders should have communicated where and when your den is meeting for their adventure. If you don’t have an email from your den leader, please contact them to get the information.

Saturday:
3:30pm The whole pack will meet at the Old Council Ring in the Town Forest for the buckthorn pulling service project. The Old Council Ring is the one with the benches around the fire pit. We will have signs and glow sticks to help guide your way on the 15 minute walk from Strout Ave (compost center).

4:30pm The tiger den (1st grade) and any new scouts who joined the pack this year will work on their bobcat requirements with me at the Old Council Ring. You can find the bobcat requirements in the first few pages of your scout’s book to get an idea of what we will be doing. Some of our older scouts will be assisting in teaching the new scouts. Tiger and new scout parents, as part of the bobcat requirements, please complete the exercises in the pamphlet How to Protect Your Children from Child Abuse: A Parent’s Guide. This is the small booklet that is glued into the cover of the scout books.

5:00pm We will start the campfire program and each family will eat the picnic dinner they brought. Our program will include skits, songs, and awards earned during the den activities earlier in the day. We will wrap up the campfire program with s’mores. The campfire program will end by 7:00.

7:00pm Families that are not camping will hike out of the Town Forest back to their cars parked on Grove Street.

For those that are camping:
9:15pm Quiet Time
10:00pm Lights out
10:30pm Fire out, all campers sleeping

Sunday:
7am-8am Breakfast and coffee sponsored by Pack735 and prepared by the Wolf Den
8:15am-9am Camp Tear Down and Clean up – all attendees help with site clean up, then hike out together

Please note: Overnight Campers must provide their own Camping gear, tent, sleeping bag, lights, refillable water bottle, jackets, gloves, socks, etc. Please pay close attention to the weather and temperature to assure your child will be safe and warm.  Attendees/Participants must comply with specific rules regarding Guide To Safe Scouting and Youth Protection requirements shown below. Cub Scouts know: BE PREPARED

Please note, this is not a drop-off event. Each overnight youth must be accompanied by their parent or legal guardian. All participants and attendees must comply with BSA Scouting’s Guide to Safe Scouting, Youth Protection, fire and family safety rules & requirements listed below. All participants will be provided these rules prior to the event and at the event. We ask for your help in assuring the safety of our Scouts during this fun family event. These safety rules are non-negotiable.

Rules, Guide to Safe Scouting and Youth Protection

All participants must follow the Guide to Safe Scouting, Youth Protection rules and our Pack 735 rules. These are non-negotiable. Pack 735 Leadership may ask any attendee to leave the event for violation of any rule below or stated in BSA Youth Protection or the Guide to Safe Scouting. Thanks for your commitment to safety and respecting our rules.

Scout rules apply- Remember the Youth Protection Training Guidelines. These are established to keep everyone safe and healthy. https://www.scouting.org/training/youth-protection/

We follow the Guide to Safe Scouting and Youth Protection rules-Everyone must follow these rules https://www.scouting.org/health-and-safety/gss/

Youth Protection rules:

Tent Rules

  •  No adult may enter any tent occupied by a Scout or child other than their own family member..  If there is a Scout or Child other than your own child who is in a tent (even your own tent) you cannot enter the tent until the non-family member Scout or Youth/Sibling vacates the tent. These are BSA National rules. The rules won’t change or budge. Please follow them.
    • If you run into an issue where another kid will not leave your tent please find the child’s parent or Cubmaster immediately. Thanks following these simple rules.
  •  There is no mixed gender camping allowed in same tent unless from the same family. As a rule, Scouts sleep in their own families Tents. These are the rules. Follow them. Boys and Girls cannot share a tent unless from the same family
  • Two adults, who are not married, may not share the same tent at Cub Scout event. This is especially true if kids from one adult are present in tent. No adult can tent with a child who is not from their own legal family.
  • Boys and Girls may not share the same tent unless from the same family.

4 Webelos Scouts may share the same tent only if the youth are the same sex, if permissible by the Scout’s Parent/Guardian and if within 2years in age of each other. No adult may share this tent in this situation. Scouts greater than 2years difference in age may not share the same tent unless from the same family.

Buddy System

  • All Scouts must follow the buddy system. A buddy should know the whereabouts of their buddy at all times.
  • The number one buddy of our youth participants (Scouts or visitor) is their parent. You the parent are responsible for your child on all Pack 735 outings. We do everything possible to keep all Scouts safe but this is the responsibility of all Parents in the Pack.

Two deep Leadership, two deep “Adulting”

  • Two Adults (one Leader & one Parent) are required at all Cub Scout Events.
  • No one adult may be alone with any one youth other than their own child at any time. This extends to carpooling, to and from Scout Events, going to toilet, or even finding another adult. If the child is not your child you cannot be alone with that child going to or from or during Scout events, regardless of permission from the child’s parent. There must always be a third. These rules are non-negotiable and are designed to protect our youth and to set clear expectations with our cohort of parents. Leaders are required to report any suspicious activity related to Youth Protection violations to Council Leadership and local authorities.

Toilets, wash rooms and showers

  • At Scout Jamborees and Council Locations these facilities are separated by Youth and Adult. Adults may not enter Youth facilities. Youth may not enter Adult Facilities.
  • At Pack 735 Overnights- We provide Porta-toilet at our Campfire/Overnight. This toilet may only be occupied by one person at a time.
  • Parents- we try our best to keep it clean and will do all that is possible to assure cleanliness and safety. We look for your help in this effort. Fellas, teach your boys to not pee on the seat. Beyond being rude, it is a mess to clean up.

Guide to Safe Scouting

  • We give the kids a long leash so they can grow and develop, however certain behaviors and actions are not acceptable:
    • No Bullying- Each parent has responsibility to assure all youth feel welcome and safe. This starts by assuring our own children are welcoming and do not bully.
    • No Hazing- we do not allow any rituals or activities of initiation or hazing. This may have happened in Scoutings past but is not allowed today or in the future.
    • No touching, no wrestling, no fighting. In Cub Scouts we keep our hands to ourselves. The only time we allow touching between Scouts is during programmed group activities where Scouts work together to accomplish a game or task.
    • No adult should touch any youth other than Scout hand shakes and high fives.
  • Only Scouts who have earned their Whittling Chip  (Bear Den or older) may possess or use a pocket knife at Scout events.Pocket Knives may only be used inside the circle of safety meaning no other person, youth or adult may be within arms reach of the Scout who using their pocket knife.
    • Pocket knife usage for Whittling Chip awarded Scouts is at the discretion of the CubMaster or Den Leader.
  • FireMaster- this person is in charge fire safety and the fire. Their job is to keep everyone safe so please listen to them and follow their rules. There are no exceptions. Rules will be communicated at beginning of program.
  • No Scouts may play with the fire or interact with the fire unless cooking marshmallows.
  • Youth and adults must keep clear of Fire Pit edge. No running or horseplay
  • Only the FireMaster may tend to the fire. This is non-negotiable.
  • No liquid, gel or gaseous fuel allowed. Matches, Logs only.
  • Cub Scout fires are not bonfires. Larger bonfires are for older youth in BoyScouts or Venture Crews.
  • No Alcohol of any kind is allowed at our Campfire Event or Overnight events-none. Please don’t bring it. Many of us love an adult beverage from time to time but this is not the time or event for beers or flasks or adult beverages or smoking. Please be an adult and leave it at home during this event.
  • No smoking or vaping at Cub Scout Events, inside or outside.
  • No Guns or weapons at Scout events regardless of permitting. Do not bring Guns, Bows, Arrows, Throwing Stars, or Hatchets or any other weapon to Cub Scout Events. This is non-negotiable.  Be an adult, leave it at home.
  • No Pets – Sorry. I LOVE dogs but we cannot have pets at this Scout event, nor cats or goats or small pony’s other things people try to sneak on airplanes and into malls. (but no joke, leave the pets at home)