Hometown News from Boy Scout Jamboree

By Taylor Huber Wednesday, July 28, 2010

The scouts of Williamsburg Troop 1741 ride a coach to the 2010 National Scout Jamboree at Fort A.P. Hill.

Taylor Huber, a Boy Scout who attends Bruton High School, is among the 45,000 attending this week's National Scout Jamboree at Fort A.P. Hill near Fredericksburg. He'll be filing dispatches from the weeklong event exclusively for WYDaily. This is his first report from the field.

Excitement rippled through the bus as 40 eager attendees of the 2010 National Scout Jamboree imagined the activities of the week. A constant chatter of events yet to come filled the air.

The Williamsburg Troop 1741 arrived at Fort A.P. Hill - site of the 2010 National Scout Jamboree - around 12:30 p.m. on Monday. The local scouts joined some 45,000 other Boy Scouts and adult leaders from across the nation to celebrate 100 years of scouting in America.

Once the bus was unloaded the scouts began setting up camp. Fifteen 10- by 12-foot tents were arranged around the perimeter of the designated camping area for the Williamsburg troop. In the midst of setting up camp a lunch of chicken salad sandwiches was served, though once finished preparations resumed. Setting up camp took until about 4:30 p.m., when the quartermasters were sent to retrieve food for dinner.

Around 6 p.m. the camp was finished and the cooks for each patrol began cooking pork and beans. Plates, cups and utensils were washed, dried, checked and stowed at the end of dinner.

The final task of the day for the Williamsburg troop was to build the gateway at the entrance to their campsite. The gateway was a wood-crafted entry way with a canvas cover and a banner depicting Colonial Williamsburg.

The canvas cover produced a real physical challenge because only one ladder was available to match the height of the framework. But with the assistance of the trusty Green Bar, a separate group of youth leaders that runs the troop, the cover was finally put in place. By the time the gateway was completed the sun had set and the boys began preparing for their next high adventure day at the 2010 National Scout Jamboree.