The Last Frontier

By Whitney W.

“I am lucky”, I thought as I watched the prairie grass roll like ocean waves until it collided with the base of a mountain. I had gotten to travel to a place where I met men and women who all shared the same passion that burned inside of me. I was standing at the Philmont welcome center in Cimarron, New Mexico. I got to go to Philmont because I am a member of a venture crew in the Indian Waters Council of the Boy Scouts of America.

On June 10, twelve members of Crew 411 of Lake Murray Presbyterian Church boarded a flight to New Mexico to participate in one of the most revered and strenuous programs offered to youth today in the United States; the Boys Scouts of America’s Philmont Ranch. Crew members; Eric L., Jeffrey L., Taylor P., Ashlyn R., Stefka S., Caroline W., Whitney W., Kensey L. (crew leader), and advisors Kim L., Pat S., Rick R. and Charles W. hiked over 75 miles for 10 days in the Sangre de Christo (Blood of Christ) mountain range of the southern Rocky Mountains.

The first full day at Philmont was spent in base camp as the crew members got to meet their ranger, Jonathan H. Rangers spend all summer working at Philmont, maintaining the trails, operating the camps, and going out with a crew their first two days on the trail to teach them safety precautions and how to respect Philmont’s wilderness. Jonathan carried a camp guitar and was able to delight the crew with music and song as they laid out in a meadow and looked at the stars.

Many campsites along the trail have staff stationed there. At a staffed camp called Ponil, the crew learned how to rope cattle and brand, the ranch maintained at Philmont has horses, cattle, and buffalo. In addition, the crew members visited an authentic western cantina (minus the intoxicating drinks), and were treated with a cantina show with skits and songs. Staffer, Eric B., a local Carolinian from Ballentine, participated by playing songs on the piano. Throughout Philmont, activities the crew participated in included spar pole climbing, black powder rifle shooting, tomahawk throwing, horseback riding, and rock climbing.

The trek at Philmont was rich with animals, giving a full spectrum of local wildlife. Among the extensive wildlife sited were mother and four polts of Merriam turkeys at Vista Grande; as well as a great number of mule deer, (with a total count at twenty-four). Undoubtedly, the most frightening encounter with wild animals during the trek occurred the night that the crew was returning from the cantina show. Before leaving the cantina, the ranger gave a precaution to the crew members concerning mountain lions. Scanning the sides of the trail revealed a rare and frightening event; the sighting of three sets of bright green eyes not more than twenty yards away. Out of necessity, the crew sang and made a great deal of noise to discourage the mountain lions from coming closer. No one was believed to be in danger at any time.

If the mountain lions are the object of fear, then the many friendly-appearing pack burros are to be loathed. As a part of the Philmont program, the crew was loaned a pack burro to carry food and small gear for two days. Packing and naming the Burro, Luigi, after the famed video game, the crew set out on a day which was to be anticipated as easy with less weight carried by each crew member. However, within a tenth of a mile, the crew came to a stream, a dreaded event if you have selected a hydrophobic donkey. For over an hour, the crew endured trying to pull and push him across the stream, leading to many of us having bruises and cuts. To make matters worse, from the corral where the crew obtained the burro, to the next night’s camp site, there were four stream crossings, each with the same result. Luckily, the next day the crew was able to trade him out for another donkey, who was christened Mario.

The tallest peak in Philmont is Mount Baldy (12441 feet). Fortunately the crew was given the opportunity to climb it. At eight in the morning the crew checked into Baldy Town to seek permission to climb, which was granted and before long the crew was headed up the mountain. The climb to the top was both physically and mentally tough; before one could summit Baldy, there is a meadow maybe 500 ft below the summit. In this meadow, there were a few snow banks, each ten feet deep with snow. Other crews were enjoying having snow fights in the middle of June while we relaxed and ate lunch. As the crew set on the final ascent to the summit, they endured a 500 foot vertical climb. The view from the top gave forth awesome views of mountains, valleys, forests, streams, and so much more. From the summit one can even see into Colorado, with the rest of Philmont looking molecular in size below.

Day seven turned out to be one of the hottest days on the trail as we left the North Country behind and entered the Central Country of Philmont. At Vista Grande we took a break while we replenished our water supply. Another crew from Memphis, Tennessee (Troop 276) spotted our co-ed crew and offered to lighten our load by hiking with us the two miles to Upper Bench. This was a real tangible display of the Scout Slogan “Do a Good Turn Daily”.

The final day on the trail began at three a.m. for the crew. With a final thirteen miles to hike that day and a driving desire to make it into base camp by twelve noon drove the crew to wake so early. The majority of the hike on the last day is over rocky volcanic rock which forms the Tooth Ridge, apply named for the famous “Tooth of Time”, a rock formation when viewed from the north appears as a massive molar tooth. The crew was able to ascend this landmark (see picture below) and enjoy a last serene moment before descending into base camp. Much appreciated and needed showers were taken by the crew before taking a bus into Cimarron to have some real food. Enjoyed was the traditional pizza at Simple Simon’s Pizza. The crew walked around the small town, walking the same streets that Jesse James, Buffalo Bill, and Annie Oakley had walked many years ago.

As one leaves Philmont, you can see a rock formation on Tooth Ridge that resembles an arrowhead in shape. A saying at Philmont is that if you look at the arrowhead as you are leaving you are destined to return. As the crew left, everyone looked over their shoulder to take part in one last Philmont ritual. Seeing the morning sun slowly inching its way up over the arrowhead, I watched it until it was out of sight. Then turning around, I was satisfied knowing it would be there many more years, welcoming scouts in and saying good-bye to them on their journey home.

Crew 411 on top of the Tooth of Time.