Assateque Island

Agua Puntana mentioned that he was on his way south to Florida's beaches. This weekend our Troop also went to the beach - Assateque Island. The day had a high of 19 degrees to start with, but that did not stop a crew of 31 to go:



The beach was full of Scouts walking the 6 miles to Pine Tree campsite in the bright sunshine and invigorating breeze. We were soon down to no more than 3 layers of clothes:



Because of the unexpectedly high turn out, we had to also use the Lower Level campsite site. Normally, this is a tough place to pitch a tent in the sand. But as the dunes were frozen, a couple of boot stomps were necessary to set the stakes. The next day the stakes were frozen into the sand and had to be kicked loose.



Pine Trees is located on the lee side of the dunes:



All of the lee side of the Barrier Islands are known for their horse flies. But the crisp temperatures and ice kept them away.

Sunset was great:


The Scouts had a smoky fire for their cooking. The wood was plentiful, but did not really seem to want to burn. The temperature started dropping, going down to 8 degrees. However, the predicted gale winds never came.



The troop on their way back to the parking lot the next morning as a warm-front moved in. Temperatures soared to the mid 20's, but a breeze kept layers on.



The final stop:

Looks like the lads had a great time.
Richard

Thanks for sharing! Looks like a good time.
When we lived in Delaware, we would drive down to Assateague almost every weekend. We'd take our '78 Westy camping or our 4X4 Suburban - had an over sand vehicle pass for it. Winter and early Spring you had the beach to yourself. We would find hundreds of conch shells washed up after stroms. Late Spring through Fall, the mosquitoes and flys will carry you away. As long as you're on the beach, your ok - the sea breeze keeps them away. It's a great place to visit, any time of the year.
Bruce

See any ponies?

What was the purpose of this scout outing, besides freezing you butt off?

The standard -
Monthly camp outs year around
Scout leadership experience (this trip the Scout leadership pulled off the organization over the phone/texting, as we had 2 canceled meetings in a row - thus no meetings to organize the trip - VERY impressive).
Practical experience on not freezing your butt off - whether hiking, standing or sleeping
Practical experience of other skills - cooking, camping, back packing, hiking, gear selection
Bragging rights
Getting the guys out of the house and sorta away from the electronics
Adult leadership observing Scouts for High Adventure qualifications
Adult leadership observing new adults for leading the next set of trips

The legend of the last Scout trip to Assateague died away, so we went on another this weekend. The wind was about 25mph and gusting, eventually with 3 downpours. Of the 9 tents, all but 2 collapsed or suffered bent and broken poles.



Next day was clear and only a bit windy for the beach hike


Pine Tree campground was reliably good



And the horses were reliably annoying


When we returned to the base camp, 5 of 13 were able to get COVID vaccine reservations for the next day on the way home - v none available in our community.

How friendly were the horse(s)? Can't believe masks were used in such open space.

When I saw those temps, my initial thought was:
What are those Canadians doing that far south...........
It had to be Celsius right?
BTW, whats all that wet looking stuff.?.......

Mark (in Tucson, 7" of rain last year.....)

Hungry horses are not friendly horses. Masks are still BSA policy in order to have these outings. Most BSA troops have stopped their campouts for the last year plus, whereas we have not.

3Play said:

BTW, whats all that wet looking stuff.?

Click to expand...

You mean the water on the collapsed tent?