Philmont - Have you been there?

[RVThere]

This Monday, I have the honor of taking a group of Boy Scouts and some other leaders to the Philmont Scout Ranch in NM.

We fly to Denver and then take a bus to Cimarron, NM and the camp. After some logistics, we get to spend 11 days backpacking in the Sangre de Cristo Mountains.

No cell phone. No email. Only doing some real camping - sleeping in tents, eating freeze dried food, hiking 6-10 miles per day with a 50lb backpack. Plus spending some quality time with my 16 year old son!

I did the trip in 2007 with my middle son and the memories were great.

Did anyone else ever go as a Scout or a leader?

[JeepnChief]

I went to Philmont twice- in 1968 as a Scout and in 2000 as a Scoutmaster with my son. At the time, my son was 16 and unsure of his course in life. The Ranger that went out with us for the first few days was an Air Force Academy cadet.
Today, my son is an Air Force Academy grad and a pilot for USAF who just completed a tour in Iraq. You just never know how the things you do will effect your kids!
I had more fun there as an adult than as a kid. I hope you experience the same.

[njs42]

I have been to Philmont many times. There is a volunteer training center there and I tought classes on various subjects for three years or so. Attended courses there myself and enlisted my youngest daughter in a high adventure backpacking camp. When she took off (she was not a huge camper) you would have thought I had sold her into bondage. After two days a ranger arrive in my class and said my daughter forgot her hair brush----guffaws all around. When she came back she was a changed woman---her group won the prize at the closing campfire for being able to make the most noise-----whoop, whoop, whoop----!!!!! It is a magical place.

[sadiebug]

Both of my boys and my husband have hiked the ranch many times and all have achieved the rank of Eagle Scout. Both boys have worked at the Ranch many summers and the youngest still continues. One summer, our oldest lost his appendix and we spent two weeks with him in the hospital in Taos (gangrene). The next summer he lost his wallet when they had to evacuate his camp because of the forest fires in the National Park. The summer after that his 1990 S10 Blazer bit the dust and we had to rescue him. It was our plan to celebrate both boys 21st birthday at the St. James but appendixes and job changes got in the way. Beautiful place and the ultimate adventure.

[RVThere]

Thanks for everyone's memories!

The trip went great and all the boys had a great time. I put a summary video on youtube:

Philmont 2011 Crew Saders - YouTube