Philmont Trip Day 1

After 18 months of planning, training hikes, backpacking weekends, and team building meetings we are finally off to Philmont. Due to the excitement, neither G3 nor I slept last night. The lack of sleep before going away always reminds me of Dad. He too could never fall asleep the night before vacation.

My alarm went off at 4:20. I said goodbye to the cats—I am going to miss them terribly—Kati took a picture of me and G3, and we were on the road by 5:10. The crew—eight scouts, three dads, and me—met at the terminal. We checked in as a group and made our way through security with only one mishap. One scout’s slide for his neckerchief disappeared as his gear passed through the x-ray. We made it to the gate in time to grab a cup of coffee, but not with enough time to search out breakfast. Oh well, there will be food on the other end. On the plane, G3 quickly settled in to watch a movie. I brought a book—i, Robot, by Isaac Asimov—but I am hoping to get at least a little bit sleep en route to Denver.

The flight was uneventful. G3 had been hoping to sit with friends but the seating arrangements had him between me and the window. Surprisingly, he didn’t seem to mind. I did not succeed in falling asleep, but I did doze periodically.

We flew into Denver for a two day Colorado Springs tour, the purpose of which is to acclimate the crew to the high altitude. Our tour guide met us at the airport, handed each of us a bottle of water and herded us onto a van. Red Rocks—red rock formations jutting artfully out of the earth—was our first stop. While there we took a short hike—less than two miles—to get used to the heat and the thin air. I am not used to tours, so staying with the group, following someone else’s plan for site seeing, and not being able to wander off on my own was difficult for me. Usually, the fun in traveling is wandering at will and not feeling rushed or pressured. G3 appears to be having a great time. I am sure he’s indulging in the fact that on this trip he gets to hang out with friends instead of being stuck with his moms.

One of the scouts is not feeling well. He slept for much of the flight and after hiking a short while he asked if he could sit on the bus to wait for the rest of us. His dad is here, so the two of them returned to the bus while we continued on to the amphitheater. It is an outdoor concert venue build in the rocks. Allegedly, it’s the second best in the world for concerts. (The best is in Greece.) Obviously, we are not staying for a show, but the stage crew was busy setting up for this evening as we were walking around.

On the van back to the hotel we ate a bagged lunch, and then, with full stomachs, most of the scouts—and adults—fell asleep. We stopped briefly to see the Air Force Academy from a distance, across the airfield. Our original tour plan included a tour of the academy, but unfortunately, it is closed for reservations. If it had been a weekday we might have seen planes taking off, but since it’s a Saturday the field was quiet. It is the largest college campus in the country with the smallest student body. There are roughly 1000 graduates a year.

We are staying at Great Wolf Lodge. Our meals are included with our stay, but the food is awful. In all my years of travel, I’ve eaten some really nasty food, but the food tonight was some of the worst I’ve ever had. The mixed vegetable dish tasted like salt. Nothing else. Just salt. The baked ziti was overcooked—super mushy—and made with pepperoni. At least there was salad and the rolls were decent. Much to G3’s annoyance, I was the slowest eater. The boys were all done and wanted to race off to the waterpark, but one of the Dad’s made them wait for me. I said they could all go, I would be content eating alone, but the scouts were made to wait. G3 was extremely critical and complained, stating that even his grandfather would comment about my inability to eat quickly.

When I finally finished, the scouts headed to the waterpark. It is way too crowded for me to even consider doing anything other than supervising. Watching the kids in the wave pool all I can envision is the young ones peeing in the water. The crowd is difficult enough, but the germs—staying out of the water is definitely best. The scouts, however, lacking my hang ups are having a fabulous time in the water.

The sick scout is back from urgent care.

All tests came back negative. Hopefully, a good night sleep in a cool room will improve his health for tomorrow.