The Cub Scouts of Pack 128 spent a weekend at Indian Camp and Beans Mill giving back to the community.
More than 35 cub scouts, siblings and parents and Boy Scouts from Troop 128 spent a weekend camping out at Indian Camp in September.
During this time, while logging over 300 service hours, they were able to pick up more than 30 large garbage bags full of trash and 24 tires and other miscellaneous items that were discarded by passers-by.
Cub Master Robert Osburn said that as a child growing up, he spent a lot of time at Indian Camp and has fond memories of spending the days hiking and exploring the area.
“It has since become a place largely forgotten, and I want to do everything I can to keep this place alive in our youth so it will not be totally forgotten,” Osburn said.
The Cub Scouts have also created a new trail up by the smoke hole rock.
This project was headed up by one of the Den leaders, Erin Perry, and her sons Jonathan and Andrew, who live in the area and wanted to find a way to give back to their community.
The new trail begins, with a sign donated by DNR, at the base of the rock and goes along the rock cliff to a small natural bridge and by a ‘half-moon’ shaped rock cliff and continues up and around and ends on the top of the rock.
According to Osburn, this trail came about when he took his Den camping at Indian Rock.
“My second-grade scouts decided they wanted to go exploring for an activity, so we did,” Osburn said. “During this adventure, we discovered a small natural bridge and some amazing rock ledges. We thought, why not bring our entire Cub Scout Pack up here and make a trail so others can enjoy what we have found? So that’s exactly what we did.
“During our campout we also built a fire and the scouts helped cook hamburgers and hotdogs. We had an obstacle course, a compass trail and played until dark. We went on a night hike to see and listen to the night life in total darkness and was awaken by seven very loud ‘Hoot Owls’ who decided that we needed to wake up.
“Many people have now walked the new trail and we have had many positive comments. They expressed that they did not even know that those rock cliffs existed along the trail and they plan on returning to see what we do next.”
The Cub Scouts are now planning a yearly “Pack” camp out every September that will include even more hours of clean up along the road that leads into Beans Mill and around the camp itself and many more trails to open up the area for everyone to enjoy.
“Our goal is to do what we can to help keep a largely forgotten treasure in our county clean and open for all to enjoy,” Osburn said.
