Welcome to the Troop 350 Philmont High Adventure Page

Follow the Trail of Crew 615-B1

Follow the Trail of Crew 615-B2

2009 Philmont Resources

• BSA Philmont Page
• Official Philmont Treks
• Tooth of Time Trading Post
• The Great Selden Ball Philmont Reference

Crew Advisors

Leaders: Please get yourselves a copy of the Philmont Advisor's Guide by visiting the Philmont Advisor's Guide Website and fill out the order form. Mr. Cooper Wright provides these individually for a small $10 fee as a troop fundraiser. It's well worth the read!

Gear Talk

• Mountain High Outfitters (now at Bridge Street in Huntsville)
• MSR Gear
• Gander Mountain
• Got Broke Boots? Get 'em fixed!

Also, Mr. Brower, having just come off the Appalachian Trail in preparation for the Troop 350 Double H High Adventure Trip, took detailed inventory of his pack and generated a gearlist spreadsheet and weight distribution graph that worked well for him. Note the three separate TABS (post-AT hike, pre-HH hike, and post-HH hike).

Training and Preparations

Mesa Crew Draft Preparation Calendar

 Feb 7 - Practice hike - Rainbow Mtn - 11:00 - St. John's & mtn loop
 Feb 14-16 - Oak Mountain State Park - route & details TBD
 Feb 21 - open
 Feb 28 - open
 Mar 8 (Sunday afternoon) - Rainbow Mtn - 2:00 p.m. - Rainbow Mtn Trailhead - 2 loops
 Mar 14 Begining of Spring Break (Wetzel Out of Town) - open
 Mar 21 End Of Spring Break (Wetzel's Home) - Practice hike - Monte Sano - 9:00 a.m. hiker parking lot - trail TBD
 Mar 27 - 29:  Savage Gulf; troop heading to Camp Westmoreland that weekend.
   - OR - 
 Mar 28 Practic hike - Monte Sano - 9:00 a.m. hiker parking lot - trail TBD
 April 4 Practice hike - Rainbow Mtn - 9:00 a.m. Rainbow Mtn Trailhead - 2 loops with Jamooko
 April 11 - open
 Apr 17 - 18: AT or Bankhead; my recommend is Bankhead to avoid the early AT thru-hikers
   - OR - 
 April 18 - Practice hike - Rainbow Mtn - 9:00 a.m. St. Johns - to loop trail then 2 loops & back
 Apr 24 - 26:  Pinhoti or AT; Venture Patrol headed to Pinhoti
 May 2 - open
 May 9 - open
 May 15 - 17:  Pinhoti or AT (Springer); this weekend is nestled in between Mother's Day and Graduation Week
   - OR -
 May 16 - Practice hike - Walls of Jericho
 May 23 - open
 May 29 - 31:  AT (Springer)
   - OR - 
 May 30 - Crew meeting & gear check
 June 6 - final crew meeting, gear check, & gear shakedown
 June 13 Depart for Philmont.
 June 27 Return home.

Medical Information

• Sample Medical Forms

The following email was posted on another Troop's Philmont Mailing List:

                         Philmont Scout Ranch - Boy Scouts of America

                   "Delivering Wilderness Adventures That Last a Lifetime"

June 13, 2008

TO:  2008 Crew Advisors
FROM: Mark Anderson, Director of Program
SUBJECT: Philmont Health Forms

It will only be a few days before you and your crew will travel to
Cimarron, NM and participate in a backpacking adventure at Philmont
Scout Ranch.  We look forward to your arrival!

As the Crew Advisor you have a number of very important
responsibilities.  One of these responsibilities is to carefully
review the completed Philmont Health Form for each participant.

Through this effort you are attempting to be sure that each member of
the crew meets all the health requirements to participate.

Here are a few points to consider:

  - Do you have a Philmont Health Form for each participant?

  - Does each form have a copy of the Health Insurance Card attached?

  - Are all required signatures on the form?  (participant, parent or
guardian if needed, physician)

  - Has the tetanus immunization been administered in the last 10
years?

  - Is the participant's blood pressure within the range acceptable by
Philmont?  (Those individuals with a blood pressure consistently
greater than 160/100 at Philmont will be kept off the trail until
their blood pressure decreases.)

  - Has each participant who takes some kind of medication been
reminded to bring at least a 15 day supply for the trek?

  - Does each participant meet Philmont weight limits for backpacking
and hiking?  Detailed information about Philmont weight limits for
backpacking and hiking are found on page 6 of the health form.  It has
also been mailed to you with each major mailing from the Ranch
including the information that was sent out to inform groups of the
reservation process.

During the first 5 days of operation - June 8, June 9, June 10, June
11, June 12 and June 13 - Philmont has sent 16 participants home who
did not meet the guidelines.  Fourteen were adults and two were youth
participants.

The health form is very specific.  For participants 21 years of age or
older they will not be approved to participate if they exceed the
maximum weight for their height.  NO EXCEPTIONS ARE GRANTED.

For participants under 21 years of age we can allow 20 pounds more
than the maximum acceptance weight provided that the participant is an
active young person who has been training for the experience.  Please
call Philmont at 575-376-2281 and talk to the Health Lodge to obtain a
pre-approval for a youth participant.  Exceptions are not made
automatically and the maximum allowable exception will be 20 pounds.

Please review the health forms today!  If you have a person who will
not qualify, then begin now finding a replacement.  To be sent home
once a person arrives at Philmont is very hard on the crew.  Don't let
it happen to your crew!