Hello All,
I have a question / scenario for you to ponder...

I'm a new Cub Scout Den Leader this year and have put together a number of my own BOB's, shelter-in place kits, car kits, FAK's etc. over the last number of years. Thanks to this forum, I've been far more prepared than I was previously.

Last summer at scout camp I was prepared with a small First Aid Kit (FAK) and was able to help out with a few minor bumps & bruises. One Scouter dad was pretty impressed that, to his surprise,I had some children's tylenol along in my kit. He ended up giving some to his kid. I told him my kit was customized for that weekend activity, and that I had tried to "be prepared". In this case, the camp was run by a quality staff with medical training and plenty of medical supplies with a few minutes walk. I just happened to have My FAK on me, in my backpack when it was needed.

I'm starting to think that as my son grows older (he's 8 now), I should create a kit that's more appropriate to the activities we'll be doing together. This includes Cub Scout camping activities like easy hiking, outdoor games, fishing, boating, etc.

For those of you who don't exactly push the high adventure boundaries of the great outdoors, what ingredients are in your day hike backpack? I know the Boy Scouts of America has their recommended essential items. I also know that sometimes those lists can be oversimplifications. Since I'm comfortable building my own kits, I'd like to hear your thoughts. I already have one of those small Adventure Medical Kits - Ritter Pocket Survival Pack (I think that's what it's called?). I also have a few other "essentials" like a whistle, flashlight, compass, etc.

As part of this effort, I'd like to create a small FAK small enough to not weigh me down. I'd especially like your suggestions for a pocket first aid book, booklet, guide, (or Internet downloadable sheet) to keep in the FAK.

My goal is to never be the leader of one of those scout groups we see from time to time in the news... you know the ones... "that guy" who decided to take the boys on a short hike in a national forest, got a little lost, or got slowed down by someone who got hurt and didn't have a FAK ... and then the worried parents dispatched the SAR team to go find them. I know i dont want to be the leader who didn't have a compass, a bottle of water or a change of clothes with him.

Please help me not be "that guy".

So the question is.... What's in your Cub Scout leader backpack? (Even if you're not a Scouter ... theoretical rsponses welcome too)

Thanks in advance!

If you never want to be that guy - take the 2 day Wilderness First Aid course from NOLS or another provider. Knowledge and training and experience pack down fairly small in your bag. Repeat every 2 years while you have a son or daughter in Scouts. Encourage other Scout leaders to take WFA. And if you find a capable Scout aged 15 yrs or more interested in WFA, by god pay his way, you might be launching him into careers in medicine or an EMT. Surprise! You're a repeater, and someone the Scouts can really rely on when the chips are down. And you no longer think so much about squeezing down your FAK, WFA teaches you your FAK is the sum of what you carry (insulation, webbing, foam pads, etc etc)

My FAK fills a gallon zip lock. I say never think small when it comes to wilderness first aid, not when you are responsible for bringing Scouts back to the trailhead intact. You are better off searching for lists that contain what you know how to treat with, and adapting when you gain knowledge.

Oh yeah, when you go more than ~5 miles or ~24 hours of self-powered evacuation to a TH (~your comfort zone for reaching advanced medical assistance) - purchase a PLB and take it with you. Spend a half hour at a troop meeting introducing Scouts to what it is and when you activate, and show them where you keep it in your pack. You will have just made you scouts that much braver and more capable in an emergency.

I think Lono has nailed it - training is key. It is your prime requirement, first and foremost. Your attitude is exemplary - if only more Scout leaders felt the same way!

This subject always gets my attention.My introduction to SAR was an extensive search for three Boy Scouts over fifty years ago. We found them all right - about two weeks after they had perished in an epic storm. They were unprepared, to say the least. I will never forget my memory of a distraught Scoutmaster breaking down at the command post (we called them base camps back then).

Later in my NPS career, I have met other troops. While many were great, far too many were not. I never encouraged my sons to engage in the Boy Scouts.

I like the You Tube video series by USNERDOC... variety of different levels of kits, and I think he puts them together for sale

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P60_sELRkqw

I'm with Lono, get as much training as you can. The more you know, the more clearly you'll think, both before and during anything that might arise. Scouts Canada offers lots of training throughout the year, and many leaders fail to take advantage of it. It can be daunting to give up family time to go to training but from first aid, to planning, to equipment, to training your youth, networking, etc... the payoff is worth it.

Beware that that confidence doesn't become complacence though. A lot of the horror stories we hear seem to stem from overconfidence, or an under appreciation for the risks. As for basic equipment, I'm sure to carry a cell phone, group-sized FAK, extra water, snacks, sheltering (i.e. blanket, tarp, etc.) and paperwork, regardless of what we're doing. In the summer I add a kid-sized hat, sunscreen and bug spray to my must carry list, and in the winter I add kid-sized hats, mitts and socks.

We also have group supplies, like whistle lanyards for everyone, and a group equipment backpack. We could probably spend hours talking about all the bits and pieces...

Training and preparation, added to our detailed trip plans and excellent communication, a attention to the weather forecast, make me much more confident taking the man-child and his peers out for adventures.

Cub Scouts is pretty much community-based, so they don't really go too far from their area until the last few years - and until Boy Scouts. Given that, help is simply not that far away - usually.

I first got into equipped.org when I was a new Cub Scout leader and my worse case scenario was a lost (missing) boy. I knew I could deal with first aid issues, but the horror of realizing that a boy was missing haunted me.

While visiting a local county event I came across a search and rescue team, chatted with them, and came away determined to teach "my boys" how to prepare for - and react to - finding themselves lost.

Given that, besides the excellent advice already provided in this thread, I would suggest you find the "Survival For Kids" link on the left side of Equipped.com, read it carefully, and help you boys (and their siblings?) gear up and prepare. I found orientaltrading.com an excellent source of cheap little fanny packs and whistles. Go to you local highway department and ask for orange plastic trash bags. If you tell them its for Cub Scouts they'll by more than happy to help.

I also had my boys create SIMPLE little first aid kits with wet wipes, band-aids.

Now that my son - and Eagle Scout - has aged out of Boy Scouts and is in college, and I think back to those days...

The best advice I ever got was to avoid letting my excitement about exposing the boys to outdoor skills try to do too much too soon. The Boy Scout program is VERY carefully designed to expose boys to age-appropriate skills. Eventually they will be amazingly independent and able to prepare, buy, pack, and carry out adventures with limited input from adults. It doesn't have to all come in the first few years of Cub Scouts.

Oh, my other bit of advice is to try to get the other Cub Scout parents involved too. Not as helicopter parents, but to bring their own experiences and talent to the boys. I had an amazing group of parents that came with even more amazing boys. Great times!

Just a frame of reference, I am a Boy Scout Scoutmaster. Cub Scouts do not camp in primitive camp sites, and they rarely hike very far from help. That said, I think they should first be trained to "hug a tree", carry signaling devices, and remain in buddy teams, and I prefer groups of three over two. Cub Scouts should always have a parent with them, for safety (required for campouts) and as Ken said, it makes the experience that much better for the scout. Survival training for Cubs is to remain in place, protect their body temperature, and signal for help.

For my pack on hikes, in addition to the ten essentials:

Shelter (poncho, tarp)

Signaling (sound, light for night and day, orange panels, cell phone, PLB for more serious hikes)

Water purification

Trauma Kit (over and above a first aid kit, for major bleeding, obstructed airways, anaphylaxis, etc.)

Night vision scope (I have all of my scouts carrying more than one light, and at times I mark them with red lights; The scope helps me keep track of them)

Push to Talk Radios (for the scout leadership and for the adults on the trip)

Not a comprehensive list, but the stuff I need to handle the more extreme emergencies. I am with Hikermor, I have seen too many scout groups going far beyond their true capabilities. I am fortunate to have the background I have, and other Assistant Scout Masters with similar backgrounds and skills.

This may not map to other packs/troops, or bear out statistically, but at our last bridging ceremony for Webelos we found that the Cub leaders had been busier in terms of administering first aid: one case anaphylaxis, one concussion, one dislocation from a cub who took a tumble running down a hill, and one bad encounter with a likely peanut allergy. All required trips to the ER. Pin a medal on any adult who took on all that!

Not being a Scout guy, I can only offer crazy hypotheticals/theoreticals. I always like the idea of having a healthy dose of paranoia and pessimism. I try to visualize the event and invite Mr. Murphy along for comedic relief. I then start to build the kit/pack from there. There is a lot to be said for being Eeyore - anxiety-ridden, paranoid, and pessimistic

My $.02
YMMV
IMHTAO (In my humble, though accurate, opinion)