Boy Scouts learn survival skills in wilderness

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By Dan Bain

Story Published: Jan 28, 2007 at 7:07 PM PST

Boy Scouts from all over southwestern Oregon headed for the snow this weekend to work on survival skills in the wild.

The scouts gather for the annual Klondike Gold Rush, at the Lemolo Lake Junction just off Highway 138 in eastern Douglas County. And there was plenty of snow for them to practice their wilderness
skills.

Chairman of the Klondike event, Lucky Chandler says it's a good
chance for the scouts to learn skills that most kids are not normally
exposed to in today's society. "They can build a shelter, they're able to build a fire without matches, they learn first aid skills, how to treat injuries, broken legs, and how to transport them."

Many of the scouts come on Friday and camp out for two cold nights at about 45-hundred feet elevation in the snow. But Chandler says what they learn, is valuable life lessons, all the
while they're earning their badges. "They learn a lot of valuable traits, they learn about survival first aid, working together as a group. They have a lot of merit badges they can work on."

The scouts build fires from scratch, one of the most intense
activities....trying to burn a string in two. They work on snow shelter construction, ravine crossing, marksmanship....first aid and many other outdoor survival skills.

Chandler says almost 350 boys showed up for the weekend event.

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