Troop 95 prevails in Klondike Derby
Troop 95 from Georgetown recently brought home first-place honors in the Klondike Derby held at Horseshoe Scout Reservation in Chester County, Pa.
Preparing for the weekend's activities, scouts worked together Friday night to set up tents and assemble two canopies on the Boonesboro campsite, located on the Mason-Dixon line that separates Pennsylvania and Maryland. Then they headed to bed in chilly 13-degree weather.
After breakfast Saturday morning, scouts assembled their handmade sleds and made their way to the parade field for a briefing on the day’s planned activities. A winter tradition in BSA, this year’s Klondike Derby featured an ‘80s video game theme, offering a variety of fun challenges. One standout was the duck hunt event, where a scout from each patrol was tasked with shooting five clay pigeons using either a 20- or 12-gauge shotgun. Each shooter had five attempts to hit the flying clay pigeons, with their scores based on how many they successfully shot down. Throughout the day, Troop 95 scouts enjoyed engaging in numerous activities including fire-building, improvised shelter creation, knot identification and scavenger hunts.
Patrols took a break to prepare and eat a hot lunch, and recharge their energy before diving back into the fun for afternoon events.
At the awards ceremony, Troop 95’s accolades included first place for sled decoration and second place in an activity inspired by the iconic game Pitfall. With a remarkable score of more than 360 points earned by the Spartans patrol, Troop 95 secured first place overall.
Returning to the campsite for the evening, scouts cooked dinner, played cards and shared stories around the fire before settling in for the night. Sunday morning, the scouts ate breakfast, cleaned up the campsite and participated in a chapel service led by Logan Keenan, the Troop 95 chaplain's aide.
Once everything was in order, the troop headed back to Georgetown to unload equipment and meet parents for pickup.
To learn more, go to troop95georgetownde.com.
