The only thing I would point out to them is that a mile diameter centered on camp is over 3 square miles to be search. If you have a tile floor where you meet, if they are a foot on a side, ask them how big they are.

I think that was one of the most amazing things to them. One of the concepts we talked about was how easy it would be to walk a mile or so from camp, and yet how big an area that is to search in the woods. It helped reinforce the importance of signalling, and also the importance of stopping before they go too far. I like the analogy of the floor tiles, I might use that one in a future meeting, thanks.

I guess the point of my message was that I felt a lot better knowing that something we were doing was actually getting through to these guys, because it's often hard to tell if anything happens between those ears!

It's kinda sad now that we hear about how he was trying to hitch hike home, and that his dad was essentially paying him to go on the camping trip. As others have mentioned, there are always boys that are basically on these trips as extended daycare for the parents. I think that is sad, but, I look at it a different way. From my perspective, those boys need us even more than the ones who have parents actively involved with the troop, so we always go out of our way to make them feel "at home".

I have our summer camp photo of our 20 or so boys on my desk at work. 2 other dad's, who are my Assistant Scoutmasters look forward to spending "summer vacation" with our extended family each July. I feel lucky to have such a good group of boys and adult leaders, and wish more of the moms and dads would join us. They are missing a chance to see their kids in a different light, and see them grow from boys to men. I guess my comments are starting to stray from Survival Forum to Campfire, so I'll stop now