Summer hike up Steiner Canyon

Putting May's theme of "Leave Nothing But Footprints: Take Nothing But Pictures" into practice this past weekend our scouts demonstrated true mettle in a 4-mile hike up the Bonneville Shoreline Trail to Steiner Canyon. Prior to launching off, Den Leader TomZ and CubMaster ScottW discuss trail safety and setup all scouts using the buddy-system.

...who then tag-teamed the taming of a purple dinosaur (not Barney).

Several times our scouts were able to investigate the local flora and fauna, observing giant black ants, fuzzy red spiders, and numerous large black beetles.

Did you know the Bonneville Shoreline Trail is named for its location along the shoreline of the ancient Lake Bonneville, which once filled this valley. TomZ explains to the scouts about the cataclysmic draining of Lake Bonneville.

Our scouts were very kind, courteous, and even encouraging to fellow hikers and bikers using the trails. At the call of "BIKER! RIGHT!" our scouts all drew to the right of the trail to make way for our neighbors.

Pine Wood Derby 2009!!!

The time has come where the skills meet the pavement/track. After earning their Whittling Chip's, certifying each scout has been trained in knife safety, Pack 4684 honed their carving skills in the creation of some really creative Pinewood Derby Cars.




Judging the artistic merits of the cars was tough considering the level of time, skill, and sweat that went into the production of each car.

Roger loads the cars up for another heat.



Most of the cars flew down the track in under 3 seconds easy. Below they show up as just a blur. Look at those cars go!

The heart-pounding sight each scout experienced as they brought their car for placement on the track.


Truly magnificent pieces of artwork, each car entailed many hours of designing, planning, carving and painting. More than just something to race, each scout produced an individualized work of art.



The weigh-in table. All cars must be below the maximum weight limit of 5 ounces before they can race.







We all tip our hats and salute Roger Anderson (sitting with son Todd) for running an incredible race! Not only did he provide a Pinewood Derby track par excellence, he contributed his phenomenal expertise, software, wit, and software to run a fast-paced race that every scout came away from feeling exuberant! Our collective thanks to you, Roger, for ensuring we all had a superlatively enjoyable race and Pinewood Derby experience to remember!

A Brisk Winter Hike

Just because spring is here doesn't mean there isn't winter hiking to be done! This past week we were able to hike the Little Cottonwood Creek Trail. Despite the generally warmer conditions in the valley, there was still a good 4-8 inches of snow over the bulk of the trail. The side of the trail is "littered" with ancient boulders, some larger than houses, that were the original materials from which stone was cut to fashion the Salt Lake City LDS Temple.

Although the hike up was demanding, the scouts made record time going downhill, picking up any trail trash found along the way.















Afterwards, the scouts wound down with a game of imaginary baseball.