The Scouts winter camp-out in Owen Sound went high-tech this year.
Participants used global positioning system (GPS) equipment to locate hidden treasures in an outdoor scavenger hunt called geocaching.
“It takes the compass work and it turns it high-tech,” said Chris Poole, a leader with 1st Owen Sound Venturers, a senior scouting group for youth aged 14 to 17.
Poole co-ordinated the geocaching exercise for the weekend camp-out at Harrison Park. He brought three units, paid for by the Bruce Grey Trails Association and local health unit, to use at the event.
Geocachers seek hidden containers, called caches, using co-ordinates. GPS uses satellites to pinpoint the location down to about three metres.
Poole said compass reading is still required of all Scouts, but using GPS is a fun alternative.
“Kids are attracted to electronics,” he said. “This just makes it more fun.”
Poole hid three caches in “easy” locations Saturday and four in more difficult-to-find places. The game was open to both Scouts — boys and girls aged 11 to 14 — and Venturers.
Lyle MacDonald, a 15-year-old West Hill student in her first year as a Venturer, said geocaching is among her favourite outdoor activities.
“I think it’s interesting to see how the satellites can guide you,” said MacDonald, who spent three years as a Scout.
She remembers having to crawl through the mud to locate a cache in the fall which was hidden under a boardwalk at Weaver’s Creek in Harrison Park.
Scout leader Doug Bastien, a geocaching enthusiast, said the activity is a fun way to get youth outdoors.
“It gets the kids being active,” he said.
Poole organized a geocaching game as part of Owen Sound’s 150th Homecoming celebrations. He hid 10 caches between Harrison Park and Inglis Falls. He said geocaching is an international game, with multiple caches hidden across Ontario. Co-ordinates can be found at www.geocache.com.
More than 330 Scouts and their leaders camped out at Harrison Park during this year’s annual winter weekend event. The Scouts are from across Ontario and Ohio. This year included Venturers.
The Owen Sound camp-out started in 1964 when two city troops decided to camp for a weekend to earn their winter camping badge. The event has grown to attract hundreds of people each year, with a handful coming from foreign countries like Argentina and Thailand over the years.
Saturday is the busiest day for the campers with activities taking place everywhere, all related to survival in the cold. There was compass reading, fire lighting, knot tying, log sawing and a simulated rescue mission.
Source: http://www.owensoundsuntimes.com/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=876581&auth=Denis+Langlois
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