by Rich Harrington

Created on: March 07, 2009

Summer is coming and like migratory birds, Boy Scouts head to a summer camp. Not all camps are equal and not all camps offer the same level of program. Here are a few tips in evaluating a BSA Camp.

As a boy led troop, your boys should have a say in what camp they go to. As adult leadership, you have a responsibility to find a camp that offers all the boys a fun and safe camp. Most troops go to the council camp that is usually not that far away. But after a few years, the older boys have done everything, seen everything and are bored. You may see this problem when you ask an older Scout what merit badges he is earning and his response is "I have them all". Boys by nature are creatures of habit and what to return to what they know. A new camp isn't the easiest decision for them, but a sales job by adult leaders can help.

A summer camp needs to offer a basic program of merit badges, activities and fun events. The food set up, basic living arrangements, sanitary facilities and management is an important. From a boy's point of view, the fun stuff is the most important. But about six days into the camp, the food, tents, showers become very important and can change a fun week to a rotten week.

One way to evaluate how good is the merit badge program is to show the list of offered merit badges to an older scout. Is there anything for them to take? If they can find one or two, it may mean that the other boys can find other things to do. Activities are items such as Order of the Arrow training, COPE or other higher adventure programs. The problem with high adventure programs is the difficulty of getting boys into the program. These are usually a higher cost item for a camp and can be limited in number. To me, the fun events are what keeps the boys from getting homesick or getting bored. Do they have an event every night? Do they keep the boys active all the time? A tired boy is actually a happy boy.

How food is served can be as important as good activities. A Boy Scout Troop does run on its stomach. There are three styles of food service, dining hall, hot food in camp and cooked in camp by patrols. Each has their own merits and disadvantages. The balance of time and work can make a difference. Personally, I like dining halls, but the boys hate the songs and skits etc. I don't like cooking in camp, but other Scoutmasters have felt it was the time to learn to work together. Your troops personality should come into play here. Sanitary facilities are very important. It is tougher to get boys to shower if the showers are a mile away.

The management of the camp will tell you about the feel of the camp. I strongly recommend you visit the camp if you can during the summer to look it over. If possbile, take two older Scouts with you to get their opinion. You should feel the camp reflects the Boy Scout principles and gives you a idea that this is a fun place to be. You should be greeted and not allowed to look around on your own for safety reasons. The staff should be as interested in you as an adult as the boys. The grounds should be neat with no trash. The Scouts you see should be engaged in the activities not just hanging around the trading post. I also find evaluating emergency preparedness programs an interesting way to see how top of their game the management is.

The best place to find out what camps are in the area is to attend your local Roundtable. I've found the best resource is a recommendation from a friend. If you attend a camp in an area, google Boy Scout Camps and the state to see what other camps are available. Googling will also tell you if there were any good or bad news reports.

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