Troop Activities

We have had a blast over the last few months! We were having so much fun we forgot to take any pictures! Here is a quick summary of our activities over the past few months:

In January we did a lock in where our scouts worked on earning their electronics merit badge, several scouts have now completed the requirements and earned another badge!

In February we went skiing at Liberty Ski resort for a day trip with all scouts returning safe and sound!

In March our troop welcomed our new members on our annual cooking merit badge outing where scouts spent most of the day preparing meals and learning about different methods of camp cooking.

For our March Spirit Night our scouts put their brains to the test and took on an escape room and escaped!

Our April Spirit Night was at Funland where our scouts had fun climbing, racing, and playing in the arcade. 

December can be a busy month for all of us but as a Troop we manage to carve out some time to get a little camping in!

Our December campout takes us on our annual caving outing where scouts practiced navigation and teamwork skills. They also got to explore some cool caves!

All our scouts and adults had a blast and we even had some older scouts who returned from college to help guide the boys through the caves. 

This month Troop 1530 took to the Appalachian Trail! We took a few of our younger scouts who needed to fulfill their 5 mile hike requirement for their second class rank and an older scout or two on a five mile hike of the trail starting in Bears Den. 

Scouts learned how to orienteer, pack a well stocked day pack, and leave no trace principles while on the trail.  Mr Jones and Mr Lim fearlessly led us across the trail while Mr Jobson stayed behind and made us a delicious Pumpkin Pie and Beef stew.

This month we took our Scouts to Culpeper to learn about Rifle and Shotgun Safety. Our scouts had a blast learning range safety and how to safely handle and fire a Rifle. This campout had a majority of younger Scouts participate and it was great to see them working together to cook their meals and set up their campsite.  We had two scouts fufill the marksmanship requirements for the Rifle Merit Badge. 

A special thanks to Mr Longworth for organizing the event and making sure if went smoothly. 

Man have we been busy! Since our last post we have been to Camp Rodney, had our pool party, and have been meeting for almost two months! On October 17th we had our Fall Court of Honor where we awarded several merit badges from camp and 3 rank advancements! 

On June 3rd we held or end of year Court of Honor at which we recognized scouts who earned rank advancements: Arjun, Arav, Rohan, and Zack!  Adults who gave extraordinary service to the troop: Mr. LeHew! Our Seniors: David, John, and Eduardo! And last but most definitely not least Eduardo who achieved the Rank of Eagle! Congratulations to all of the Young men who earned ranks today and Mr. LeHew for your dedication!

A Special Thank you to Mr Longworth for the Great Pictures! 

On Friday, May 19th We took our annual trip to Harpers Ferry. Saturday Morning we woke up and biked from the campsite into Harpers Ferry, despite weather predictions we had a lovely sunny day exploring and learning about the history of the town. Saturday night we enjoyed a nice fire put together by the scouts

On Friday, April 28th the troop headed up to Camp Rodney for a weekend getaway. Rodney where we normally go for Scout camp offers a weekend campout for troops registered for their summer program. This is the first time in a while that we have taken advantage of this, and the Boys had a Blast! We got to show the new boys around camp and experience some of the opportunities camp offers.  Many of the younger scouts took the initiative and worked on their totem and firemen chits .

On Friday, March 24th our scouts took to the walls of SportRcok to work on our climbing skills. Scouts vote on what spirit nights they want to do every 6 months and the committee makes it work. Thanks to all who made this a successful event!

On Saturday, March 11th we delivered all of our Mulch orders in about an hour and a half!  A can-do attitude and good turnout helped us get this done! A big thank you to our community for supporting our mulch sale!

This past weekend Troop 1530 saddled up and rode into the mountains to test our abilities at climbing, rappelling, and orienteering. Even against a difficult rock face our scouts persevered and did their best and most of our scouts rappelled down the same rock face. Troop 1530 is very lucky to have several highly qualified assistant scoutmasters who are able to lead such great activities! 

Man have we had a busy past few months! In October we participated in the 2022 powhattan district camporee. November brought us the 3d archery campout with some astrology! December included the leadership lock in, in which our socuts learned how the troop founctions and we had our holiday party! Just this past weekend we went skiing at Ski Liberty in PA. Everyone had a blast including the adults!

We kicked off our new year with an Orienteering and Pioneering campout, we had a few new scouts join us! We built a monkey bridge, hopefully, the first of many in the next years. Additionally, we retired a US flag as one of only three groups who have the authority to do so. Overall it was a great weekend to welcome some new scouts!

This year we returned to our favorite Scout camp on the bay, Rodney!!

Our Scouts had fun completing Rodney's First-year program called Brownsea which gives First year Scouters a boost in requirement completion and in merit badges. Our older boys completed merit badges from Orientering to Jet skiing. Some of our adults even joined in on the fun!

Every year the scouts stay in three-sided cabins called Anarondaics or Tents provided by Rodney  while the Adutls stay in a Cabin.

In June, the troop completed a local campout to Lake Fairfax where we enjoyed a nice day of fishing and field games. 

In May, some of our scouts took a day trip to the Railroad museum led by Mr. Quinn and had a great day learning about and looking at Locomotives.

This April, We took to the paths of Harpers Ferry biking from our campsite to Harpers Ferry and Back. But not before we enjoyed the history and beauty of the town. We even stopped for a bite of Ice Cream. 

Our scouts competed together in cooking related chalanges at the Parkers Farm in Berryvile. Ms Dougerty lead the competiton and our scouts learned many new cooking skills as well as made sure the horses were well feed with thier leftover carrots 

On February 28th we held hour semiannual Court of Honor were our scouts earned ranks and  new positions. We had several Scouts earn their Scout rank!

On Friday, February 18th we headed to Izaak Walton League for a great weekend of camping. While the cold weather made gave us some challenges our scouts were able to overcome it and had a great weekend! Scouts learned how to solder and made their own small circuits additionally they completed the electronics merit badge.

On January 22nd we visited the National Aquarium in Baltimore. Scouts enjoyed learning about marine animals and viewing them swim together in harmony.

On January 15th we held our first recruitment event of the year! Cub Scouts came out and learned about animals in our area, Knots, and many other scout skills!

On December 13th we gathered in Penders (brand new!!) fellowship hall and traded gifts with scouts and friends who came to join in on the fun! Our church liaison Ken Ferris came by and joined in on the phone. We enjoyed pizza and drinks with chips and many other yummy snacks. And our new space allowed us to spread out and eat safely.

On December  12 the troop went on a day hike at our local Mansass battlefield. It was led by one of our glorious ASM's Mr. Lehew, who teaches history at the high school level in Louden county as well as for NOVA. It was a great time filled with lots of knowledge and group bonding. Scouts also learned what to pack for a day hike versus an Overnight trek.

On Friday November 19th the Troop departed for Camp Highroads where our Scouts had a blast participating in Team building activities. Such as Peanut butter pit, Teeter Totter, Rope climbing and Ziplining. Overall, the Troop had a blast participating in team bonding activities with their mates.

This past weekend (11/15) Troops and Packs across the nation collected donations for Scouting for Food. Which collects and donates food to various food banks and shelters in the area. Troop 1530 collected over 120 bags of food. A big thank you goes to the neighborhoods in the Oakton and Herndon areas. Thank you!

On November 12th our Troop held one of our monthly Spirit nights at Sportrock. Which is an indoor rock climbing facility in Sterling. We had a blast!!

On the weekend of October 29th Troop, 1503 honored its 50-year heritage by going on a Repelling outing in Lions Den. We enjoyed orienteering and repelling.  The scouts enjoyed repelling down our bluff and some of the adults even got in on the action!

On October 9th the Troop held a Open house in Pender UMC's lower parking lot. We had a good turn out with demonstrations led by the boys on: Fire building, Camping, Backpacking, Knot Tying, Ax yard, and Cooking where we handed out homemade Doughnuts. Our Adults got in on it too! Mr. Jobson  gave a demonstration on stringing a bow and Ms. Dougherty showed the visitors how to cook in a Dutch oven. We even brought out our Gaga ball bit which was a great way to close the open house for the Scouts visiting. 

On September 18th,  Troop 1530 went to Pohick bay for our Water Sports campout. We rented paddleboards, Kayaks, and Canoes. We had a blast! Later on, we had a delicious pasta meal for dinner. Overall it was a great weekend and start to the year!

Troop 1530 went to  Camp Rodney scout reservation at the end of July. Our troop was there for a whole week and while there, we did a wide variety of merit badges. The Merit badges ranged from Archery to Lifesaving and from Communications to Jetski. Later in the week our troop and another troop had a Rock Paper Scissors competition(pictured). Everyone there followed the camp's COVID guidelines. All of the staff were friendly and relatable (Rodney counselor chant-”cause there ain’t no staff like a Rodney staff”). In the end, our scouts went home with valuable knowledge and many completed merit badges.

On the weekend of the 11-13 in June, right after school ended Troop 1530 went to Ohiopyle PA to go white water rafting on the Youghiogheny river. We embarked on our trip at Ohiopyle and then made our way north, going through many rapids big and small, and then eventually disembarking at a pickup point. Big thanks to the staff of Wilderness Voyageurs Rafting and Bike Tours who helped us on the river. 

On the weekend of the 21-23 in May, Troop 1530 went on a bike ride along the C & O trail to Harpers Ferry WV. We started our journey in Brunswick by the old Railyard and then made our way west to Harpers Ferry. Once there we spent a few hours in Harpers Ferry looking at the historical sights, going through the shops, and watching the trains go by. 

In April, Troop 1530 went on a fishing out. We set up camp at the Lake Fairfax campgrounds and drove to lake Brittle to fish. Everyone had an amazing time and we even caught a few fish. 

In March, Troop 1530 went caving in West Virginia. We stayed in cabins while also socially distanced. The cave we went into was called New Trout and we had a very fun time!

Our March Court of Honor was held on the 8th. We had a few scouts reach the rank of Life along with a presentation about Friends of Scouting. The scouts enjoyed being able to honor their fellow scouts while staying socially distanced at the same time.

Thank you to everyone that supported our troop through our annual mulch fundraiser. This allows us to continue providing a great scouting experience for our scouts through camping, leadership opportunities, and service projects. 

Our Troop did a scavenger hunt along the History of Scouting Trail through Washington DC. The Hike we did was called the Baden Powell Hike and information on it can be found here https://www.ncacbsa.org/baden-powell-hike/. Although it was cold we managed to complete the scavenger hunt. After the hike, we worked on the cooking merit badge by cooking with hiking stoves and making meals with ingredients that didn’t need refrigeration. As part of the merit badge, we carried our meals throughout the hike.

On the 11th of November, troop 1530 went to the Isaac Walton shooting range. Some scouts worked on the shooting merit badge while others shot for fun. We also shot an antique firearm later in the day. It was an overall enjoyable campout that let the scouts improve their shooting skills.

On Saturday Oct 31st, the scouts of Troop 1530 and Webelo's of Pack 159 went on a walk along Potomac river. The walk took us along the path of a canal that ran next to the river and through the ruins of an old town that was built to accommodate the canal travelers. The scouts enjoyed every second of it, from the nice breeze to the amazing water falls near the visitor center. The hike overall was a great learning experience and a very exciting adventure.      

Troop 1530 kicked off the 20/21 camping season with a wilderness survival campout at a local farm in Berryville. The scouts learned several different skills including starting a fire without a lighter or matches, to building a shelter to spend the night in with things you find in the wild. The scouts were able to work on the wilderness survival merit badge and to enjoy the outdoors.