WHEN / WHERE?
Monthly camping trips can be found on the tentative Monthly Trip Calendar.
They are every month from Aug – April (not in May due to school final exams and recitals and athletic tournaments). There will be a designated adult trip leader for each trip.
These trips are usually to campgrounds less than 2 hours away. They generally depart from Atlanta around 5pm on Friday afternoon and return to Atlanta around 1pm on Sunday. Carpools are planned to minimize the number of cars. Drivers are reimbursed to help with gas costs.
Trips and are rain / shine / cold. However, if there are extreme hazards (flooding, hurricanes, etc) then the camping trip will be cancelled.
Typically the December trip is during the winter break from school, so is often more than two nights away. Recently it has been at winter camp at Bert Adams Scout Camp or cabin camping with skiing/snow tubing.
Typically the Jan trip is over MLK weekend, which allows for a saturday morning departure and a Monday afternoon return, and therefore enables camping futher south in Georgia.
WHO GOES / CAN I GO?
Sometimes the monthly trips are open to all adults who have completed Youth Protection Training (YPT) – typically the August trip is designed for attendance in this way. Sometimes (due to space limitations etc) the monthly trips are only open to several adults who are Assistant Scoutmasters (ASMs).
Please RSVP in the “Band” app for the monthly camping trips you plan to attend. Scouts must have their own login and RSVP for themselves so that we don’t assume the adult is attending when it is in fact the scout who is planning to attend. Adults can attend even if their scout isn’t attending!
You will receive a bill after the trip, after receipts are in!
Scouts do not have to attend all (or even most) of the camping trips, but the more they attend the easier it is for them to advance to higher scout ranks (if that is their goal).
COST?
With the exception of the December trip, these trips generally involve camping in state parks and the cost is typically around $50 per person for the whole weekend (plus any fees for specific activities that the youth plan ahead of time).
Typically youth will need to provide their own dinner on the Friday evening drive to camp (bring a packed meal or money for a fast food stop), and they sometimes bring cash if there is a chance to buy ice cream and/or souvenirs at our destination.
YOUTH PROTECTION TRAINING (YPT) ON OUTINGS?
All adults on trips with the youth must have completed youth protection training (YPT) and must be registered with the troop as a registered adult. Please click the “Quick Links” tab to find the relevant links.
To keep to YPT guidelines, no adult should be alone with a kid. When groups break off to do different activities, each group should have two adults assigned and one of those adults must be female
All youth must buddy up in groups of two or three at all times, no scouts alone. If a scout is feeling overwhelmed by too much socialization they can step away but must remain in view. A quick breather can be obtained by a bathroom break too!
MONTHLY TRIP PLANNING
The scouts plan an approximate annual calendar of trips, and the adults facilitate the implementation of these trips. Scouts should make sure to be involved in the trip planning meetings that occur in May each year so that they can go on trips they will enjoy during the following school year.
There are also mandatory planning meetings, typically the Monday before each trip. Click here for the finer detials of Monthly Trip Planning.
Scouts BSA Troop 29 Atlanta 