Boy Scout Troop 23 - Hoover, AL - bsatroop23

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The crew looks on at a hatchet throwing demonstration

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He can throw them backwards!

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Overhand, too!

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Listening to a demonstration of antique guns and canons.

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True Scout skills. Starting a fire with sunlight and a magnifying glass.

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True Scout skills. Starting a fire with sunlight and a magnifying glass.

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A "volley" demonstration with muskets.

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The canon firing is always popular.

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Native American demonstration.

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Now that we are "Home-Sweet-Home" and had a chance to rest, I want to tell you how much fun the trip was with the boys and fellow adult leaders.  Our Keys Adventure program had been dubbed "the sampler platter" and it was truly wonderful.  Fortunately both crews were able to do nearly all activities together; the only exceptions being on our sailing and fishing trips when we had to take two boats (a couple hours each).  To help you understand what we did, I'll give you a brief run-down of each day's activities.
 
Saturday-was the travel day.  Those that didn't get bumped did swim checks, issued snorkel gear, dinner, and an opening campfire.
 
Sunday-those that got bumped did swim checks EARLY, issued snorkel gear, breakfast, and went fishing by crew.  The breeze was blowing hard and creating some waves and splashing into the boat so we could not troll out in the ocean but had to fish in the channels protected by the islands nearby.  The fishing was not spectacular - lots of small fish but it was hard to get any that we could keep or were in season.  Lunch was on the boat.  About 3 p.m. we were taken to Big Munson Island - actually to the floating docks about a quarter mile off-shore where our gear had been deposited.  We had packed what we needed for the island in a dry bag and the SeaBase staff carried it to the docks while we fished.  After we cleaned the fish on the dock, we had to wade onto the beach (a quarter mile starting at about 3.5 feet of water) with our gear.  This is what the dive booties were for - walking in on the coral bottom.  It took multiple trips for some to bring in the fresh water (none on the island).  After choosing campsites, we prepared supper (brought food with us and the fish we had cleaned) and then had a campfire on the beach.  Tents stay pitched all spring and summer long for SeaBase campers.
 
Monday-we prepared breakfast on the island, then went for a sea kayak trip among the mangrove trees for about an hour.  Think of it as a floating maze of trees, roots, and shade.  After that was a walking tour of the island where we learned of its history, plants, and stories.   Back to the campsite for lunch then we packed our gear and waited for our pickup.  Again, we had to wade out through the water with our gear back to the floating dock to get picked up.  We got back to SeaBase in time to shower up and eat supper.  That night as the sun set we went fishing on the bridge along Highway 1 adjacent to SeaBase.
 
Tuesday-after breakfast we and other crews got on a big flat boat (the "Scoutmaster") for a day of snorkeling on Looe Key.  Looe Key is the third most popular snorkeling site in the world (after the Great Barrier reef and Belize).  It was a little breezy with some swells but the coral was beautiful and the fish spectacular.  We ate lunch on-board again then headed back to SeaBase in time to work our conservation project which was to pick up trash along a stretch of local beach.  Since it was late afternoon we headed over to Bahia Honda State Park where we got a brief history lesson about Henry Flagler's railroad built down to Key West (finished in 1912), the hurricane that destroyed the railroad (1935), and the remaining bridge at the State Park.  We had a few minutes to get a cold drink or some ice cream, dip our toe in the water if we wanted to, then we headed back to SeaBase for supper.  After supper we took sea kayaks out into the channel and bay for some sunset/night time paddling.  Starting out we paddled against the tide which was moving pretty well in less than 3 feet of water.  After an hour we headed back to SeaBase in the dark.
 
Wednesday-after breakfast we headed down to Key West.  First we went to Fort Zachary Taylor and the nearby public beach.  We had brought lunch with us (hot dogs) which the staff grilled while we took a tour of the Fort (much like Fort Morgan).  One crew who went to town with us was doing the Florida Fishing Adventure and had some tuna they had caught left over - we we grilled it/warmed it up and it was delicious.  After that we walked into Old Town down to Mallory Square to designate it as our rendezvous point.  Then up Duval Street we went.  Did you know Key West has a (million) t-shirt shop(s) on Duval Street?  Feels like it anyway.  We walked up to the Southernmost point for a group photo then back to Duval Street where we split into two groups.  One group went in-and-out-of alot of shops.  The other did the Pirate Museum and the Nascar Simulator.  We joined back up at 5 pm for dinner near Mallory Square at an open-air restaurant named "Blue Fish Red Fish".  After dinner we went to Mallory Square along with all the other tourists to see the street performers and watch the sunset.  This was enjoyable - the street performers are funny, talented (mostly), and know how to entertain.  The sun set about 730 pm then the staff brought the vans to Mallory Square, picked us up, and we drove back to SeaBase.
 
Thursday-after breakfast we were ferried out to our sailboats anchored offshore for a day of sailing.  One crew sailed out to Looe Key for another day of snorkeling; the water was very clear and warmer than Tuesday.  The other crew sailed out off Munson Island and snorkeled around Munson Rocks there.  Lunch was on the boat.  In the afternoon we sailed directly back into the SeaBase marina (it was high tide and the boats could clear the channel).  Before the farewell luaua supper we played some games.  There were several crews at SeaBase during the same week as we were;  there were three crews doing the Keys Adventure (we were two of them; the third was from Minnesota).  Three crews were there doing the Out Island Adventure from Jasper, AL (where they camp on the island all week plus snorkel and fish).  One crew from Houston/Galveston was there doing the Fishing Adventure as I mentioned.  There may have been others but I think that was it.  Our dinner included some baked dolphin, crab cakes, chicken, plus salad, veggies, and little Key Lime custard pies.  Each crew performed a skit and we got our patches.
 
Friday-we travelled home (we ate lunch at Mrs. Mac's in Key Largo).  A big thank-you to Steve Baker for making our reservations and seat assignments for the trip home.
 
Ask your sons about our Mates (each crew had one staff member called a Mate that was with us the entire week).  One was a guy named Brian Johnson and the other was a girl named Carina Schneiders.  They were literally with us 24x7 except when sleeping on the base and the afternoon of walking around in Key West.  They did a great job and we appreciated them tremendously.  The days were planned such that we stayed pretty busy from 7 am until about 9 pm but there were a few windows of rest while we waited for boats, etc.  Every morning and evening at SeaBase we had a flag ceremony in our Class A's.  Dinner was served cafeteria style upstairs and we carried our trays down to the "quarterdeck" on the ground level and ate in the shade on folding tables.  Food was good - better than summer camp.  No one got seriously hurt or seasick during our stay.  The weather was great - highs near 80, lows near 70 and we slept with the windows open every night at SeaBase.  Even the overnight on the island was nice (except the sleeping-on-the-ground part).  The little store which sold t-shirts, personal items, snacks,etc. was open for 1-2 hours after breakfast and dinner and in the afternoon on Thursday.  It was very popular with the boys!
 
Finally, I will have a disk of my pictures for you tomorrow night at the CoH meeting.  I tried to take as many as I could of both crews and also of the settings around us.  If anyone else has pictures they can share, please do.  I am also attaching a digital of the official group photo for inclusion on our troop website and your filing.
 
YiS,
ED