Maine National High Adventure Base
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High Adventure Bases of the Boy Scouts of America are outdoor recreation facilities located in several locales in
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operated by the Boy Scouts of America at the organization's national level. Each facility offers wilderness programs and training that could include wilderness canoeing, wilderness backpacking trips, or sailing, and provide opportunities for Scouts to earn the
50-Miler Award The 50-Miler Award is an award of the Boy Scouts of America (BSA) designed to promote the ideals of Scouting and in Scoutcraft, conservation, self-reliance, and physical fitness. The award may be earned by Boy Scouts, Varsity Scouts, Venture ...
. These bases are administered by the High Adventure Division of the National Council of the Boy Scouts of America.


Northern Tier National High Adventure Bases

The Northern Tier National High Adventure Bases are a collection of high adventure bases in Minnesota, Ontario, and Manitoba. It is made up of ''Charles L. Sommers Canoe Base'' in Ely, Minnesota operating in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness (BWCAW) and Quetico Provincial Park, ''Don Rogert Canoe Base'' in Atikokan, Ontario operating in Quetico Provincial Park, and ''Norther Expeditions Base'' in Bissett, Manitoba operating in
Atikaki Provincial Wilderness Park Atikaki Provincial Park is a wilderness park in Manitoba, Canada, located east of Lake Winnipeg along the Ontario boundary in the Canadian Shield. The area of Atikaki Provincial Park is . Atikaki Provincial Park is north of Nopiming Provincial P ...
and points beyond. Collectively, it is the oldest national high adventure base operated by the BSA. Northern Tier offers mostly wilderness canoe trips, although other activities such as cold weather camping exist as well. Typical canoe trips cover and take 6 to 10 days. With each crew is a highly skilled technician/instructor called an "Interpreter".


Philmont Scout Ranch

Philmont Scout Ranch is a mountainous ranch located near the town of Cimarron, New Mexico covering approximately of wilderness in the
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of the Rocky Mountains of northern New Mexico, near the town of Cimarron.Lawrence R. Murphy, University of New Mexico Press, Philmont, A history of New Mexico's Cimarron Country, The main part of the ranch, formerly the property of oil baron
Waite Phillips Waite Phillips (January 19, 1883 – January 27, 1964) was an American petroleum businessman who created a fully integrated operation that combined petroleum producing, refining and marketing. With headquarters in Tulsa, Oklahoma, he also develo ...
, was donated to the Scouting organization in 1938. Along with other donations and purchases, it is currently in use as a national high adventure base where crews of Scouts and Venturers take part in backpacking expeditions and other outdoor activities. It is the largest youth camp in the world by size. Philmont's terrain is mountainous, ranging in elevation from to .Rock Rohrbacher, Philmanac, A Treckers Guide to the Philmont Backcountry, CSS Publishing, Philmont is also home to the
Philmont Training Center The Philmont Training Center (PTC), located at the Philmont Scout Ranch near Cimarron, New Mexico, has been the National Training Center of the Boy Scouts of America (BSA) since 1950. The PTC offers week-long training conferences from June through ...
, which is the main center for BSA's national-level training for volunteers and professionals. In addition to its BSA programs, Philmont continues to operate as a ranch, maintaining a stock of cattle, horses, burros and
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.


Florida National High Adventure Sea Base

Sea Base High Adventure is a high adventure program base in the
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. The main Sea Base is located in Islamorada, Florida on the end of Lower Matecumbe Key. Other bases include the Brinton Environmental Center located on
Summerland Key Summerland Key is an island in the lower Florida Keys about east of Key West; it contains an unincorporated community of Monroe County of the same name. U.S. 1 (or the Overseas Highway) crosses the island at approximately mile markers 24– ...
(which oversees Big Munson Island located southeast) and the Bahamas Sea Base in Marsh Harbour,
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, Bahamas. Main programs include sailing— including open water and reef sailing —island camping, snorkeling, and SCUBA. The Florida Sea Base Conference Center has become an alternative training site to the
Philmont Training Center The Philmont Training Center (PTC), located at the Philmont Scout Ranch near Cimarron, New Mexico, has been the National Training Center of the Boy Scouts of America (BSA) since 1950. The PTC offers week-long training conferences from June through ...
. Most conferences it hosts are for professionals or national level committees, but it also hosts conferences for outside groups.


Paul R. Christen National High Adventure Base

The Paul R. Christen National High Adventure Base is a high adventure program base located at the Summit Bechtel Family National Scout Reserve. The Summit was purchased in 2009 and the high adventure base began operation in 2014. The New River Gorge region offers white water rafting rated from Class II to Class V along the more than 50 miles of river within the New River Gorge National River area. Other outdoor activities that are popular to the area include
Rock climbing Rock climbing is a sport in which participants climb up, across, or down natural rock formations. The goal is to reach the summit of a formation or the endpoint of a usually pre-defined route without falling. Rock climbing is a physically and ...
, rappelling (abseiling),
mountain biking Mountain biking is a sport of riding bicycles off-road, often over rough terrain, usually using specially designed mountain bikes. Mountain bikes share similarities with other bikes but incorporate features designed to enhance durability and pe ...
, hiking, geocaching, and
orienteering Orienteering is a group of sports that require navigational skills using a map and compass to navigate from point to point in diverse and usually unfamiliar terrain whilst moving at speed. Participants are given a topographical map, usually a s ...
. Some of the additional activities added with help from Scout feedback at the 2010 Jamboree, are
skateboarding Skateboarding is an extreme sport, action sport originating in the United States that involves riding and performing tricks using a skateboard, as well as a recreational activity, an art form, an entertainment industry Profession, job, and a ...
, freestyle BMX, mountainboarding,
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riding, paddle
boarding Boarding may refer to: *Boarding, used in the sense of "room and board", i.e. lodging and meals as in a: ** Boarding house **Boarding school *Boarding (horses) (also known as a livery yard, livery stable, or boarding stable), is a stable where ho ...
, dragon boats racing, and ziplines. The Summit is also the site for the
national Scout jamboree In Scouting, a jamboree is a large gathering of Scouts who rally at a national or international level. History The 1st World Scout Jamboree was held in 1920, and was hosted by the United Kingdom. Since then, there have been twenty-three other W ...
and a training center. The property consists of a reclaimed mine site near
Beckley, West Virginia Beckley is a city in and the county seat of Raleigh County, West Virginia, United States. It was founded on April 4, 1838. This city is the home of the West Virginia University Institute of Technology or West Virginia University, Beckley Campus. ...
. The purchase was enabled by a $50 million grant from
Stephen Bechtel, Jr. Stephen Davison Bechtel Jr. (May 10, 1925 – March 15, 2021) was an American billionaire, businessman, civil engineer, and co-owner of the Bechtel Corporation. He was the son of Stephen Davison Bechtel Sr. and grandson of Warren A. Bechtel, w ...
The Summit is being developed by Arrow WV, a BSA subsidiary. Consol Energy donated $15 million to build a bridge to connect the main activity area to the eastern property.


Former national bases


Northern Wisconsin National Canoe Base

Northern Wisconsin National Canoe Base was opened in 1940 on the site of a former Civilian Conservation Corps camp on the south end of the east shore of White Sand Lake in northern Wisconsin. The closest town to that site is
Boulder Junction, Wisconsin Boulder Junction is a town in Vilas County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 958 at the 2000 census. In 1903, the Milwaukee Railroad laid tracks to the area that became known as Boulder Junction. While the railroad served the booming ...
. The base was originally named MIWI after the initials of the four states in the region. In 1943 it was renamed Region 7 Canoe Base. The base had also been referenced in publications as Region Seven Explorer Canoe Base. Around 1967 it was renamed Northern Wisconsin National Canoe Base, as publications begin referencing the new name during this period. By that time, thousands of Scouts were embarking on wilderness canoe trips from the canoe base every summer, principally from the Chicago area due to its proximity. The primary program was wilderness canoe trips, through the lakes and rivers of northern Wisconsin and the southern edge of the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. The base provided training, outfitting, and guiding for these trips as well as sleeping and meal facilities for groups of 6-12 crew members, including an adult leader, as they prepared to start or end canoe trips. They also provided transportation to and from starting and ending points. Training included an intensive
Voyageur The voyageurs (; ) were 18th and 19th century French Canadians who engaged in the transporting of furs via canoe during the peak of the North American fur trade. The emblematic meaning of the term applies to places (New France, including the ' ...
course for the youth leader of a group during the week prior to the group's trip. Additional programs for Scouts included whitewater trips on the lower Flambeau Flowage, swimming at the White Sand Lake beach, informal
sandlot football Street football, also known as backyard football or sandlot football, is an amateur variant of American football primarily played informal ...
and softball games between staff members and Scouts at the base, and winter camping in the cabins left by the CCC. Canoe trips launched from the base utilized hundreds of different lakes and rivers and about 300 campsites. About half of these sites were on public lands; the others were on private lands under special arrangements, which typically included maintenance work by the Scouts. Examples of closer frequently used waterways include White Sand, Lost Canoe, Pallette, Escanaba, Presque Isle, Crab, Trout, Boulder, and Wild Rice lakes and the Manitowish and Trout Rivers. In the 1960s, staff tried to open up new routes using creeks, with occasionally hilarious results. While the canoe trip area covered millions of acres, most trips were concentrated in the area going about north, east, west, and south of the base. The base celebrated its 40th anniversary in 1980 and enjoyed its most popular years in 1980-81, but usage declined rapidly and the permanent base was closed in 1983. Numerous interrelated factors contributed to its demise, including Scout leaders and executives lobbying for closure in favor of other bases, declining usage, increased residential development in the area used for its canoe trips, and a heavy snowfall during the 1982-83 winter that collapsed the roof of the dining hall, which was never rebuilt. While the permanent base was closed, expeditions continued to be led using guides from Charles Sommers base until the summer of 1986. The penultimate canoe trip was with Troop 912 from Manitowoc, Wisconsin from 8/10/1986 to 8/16/1986.


Maine National High Adventure Area

The Maine National High Adventure Area was established in 1970 due to the efforts of BSA Scout Executive Bud Jeffrey, Seven Island Lands Company President John Sinclair, and Bill Wadsworth and John Donnell of the BSA National Office. The first of three Maine National High Adventure bases was established at the site of the former Foster’s Matagamon
Sporting Camp A sporting camp is an establishment that provides lodging, meals and guide service for hunting, fishing, and outdoor recreation and usually consists of a set of “camps” or cabins accompanied by a main lodge (which may or may not have gu ...
on the north side of Matagamon Lake, and was called Maine Matagamon National High Adventure Base. This base operated as a single unit in 1971 and 1972. An additional base was established at Pittston Farm on Seboomook Lake in 1973, and a third on Sysladobsis Lake, was operated in 1971 and 1979. Matagamon and Seboomook bases were the core of the program for many years. It was a highly successful program that exposed thousands of Scouts to the lakes, rivers, and mountains of the North Maine woods, providing them with a lifetime appreciation of wild lands, no trace camping, and self-sufficiency and safety in the wilderness. Maine National High Adventure was operated as a national base until 1991, when the National BSA Office shut down the program. In 1993, the Matagamon base reopened as Maine High Adventure, an outdoor program run today by the Katahdin Area Council. There is an active staff association called Maine High Adventure Staff Association that is dedicated to the history of the Maine National High Adventure Area, and to the support of the current Maine High Adventure Area.


Land Between the Lakes National Outdoor Adventure Center

The Land Between the Lakes National Outdoor Adventure Center was a regional high adventure base in Kentucky on the shores of Kentucky Lake near Aurora. It opened in 1973 as a cooperative effort between the BSA and the Tennessee Valley Authority and was based on the former Camp Roy C. Manchester, which had opened in 1954. The base offered sailing trips on the Kentucky Lake. Land Between the Lakes ceased operation as national base in 1983 and the property reverted to Lincoln Heritage Council, which now operates the base at a local level, continuing to offer high adventure related facilities for sailing, canoeing, kayaking and U.S. Coast Guard approved sailing training.


Awards

The Triple Crown of National High Adventure award was created in 1995 and later the Grand Slam of National High Adventure award was created in 2014 by the Charles L. Sommers Alumni Association, Inc. to both promote the Boy Scouts of America’s National High Adventure programs and help identify those Scouts with a thirst for high adventure who may be interested in serving on the staff of Northern Tier High Adventure Bases and other National High Adventure Bases. The Triple Crown of National High Adventure award honors those who have participated in a high adventure program at three of the Boy Scouts of America's four National High Adventure Bases. The Grand Slam of National High Adventure award honors those who have participated a high adventure program at all four of the Boy Scouts of America's National High Adventure Bases.


Alumni Associations


Charles L. Sommers Alumni Association, Inc.

The Charles L. Sommers Alumni Association, Inc. (SAA) is a non-profit Minnesota charity with the purpose to provide a continuing interest in and support for the mission and programs of the Northern Tier National High Adventure program, the Boy Scouts of America’s oldest National High Adventure program. Objectives include preserving and promoting wilderness camping, high adventure, and training opportunities; spreading the spirit of "The Far Northland" throughout Scouting, and offering the time, talent, and treasure of its membership to the Northern Tier National High Adventure program. Through its members, it has been instrumental as the first alumni association to launch capital campaigns in conjunction with the Boy Scouts of America to enhance high adventure base facilities and establish an endowed seasonal staff scholarship program. Active membership is open to all persons who have served on the seasonal or permanent staff of any Northern Tier National High Adventure program, including the Charles L. Sommers National High Adventure Base, Donald Rogert Canoe Base (Atikokan, Ontario), Northern Expeditions (Bissett, Manitoba), Northern Wisconsin National Canoe Base, and Maine National High Adventure Base. Affiliate membership is open to all former adult crew advisors from any Northern Tier National High Adventure program and any adult who wishes to maintain a significant interest in the mission and success of the Northern Tier National High Adventure program.


Philmont Staff Association, Inc.

The Philmont Staff Association, Inc. (PSA) is a non-profit New Mexico charity with the purpose to provide a continued support of Philmont Scout Ranch. Membership is open to all those who have served on staff at Philmont. In addition to traditional staff positions, membership is also open to those who have served on staff of Autumn Adventure, Kanik, Philmont Training Center, National Junior Leader Instructor Camp (NJLIC), and National Advanced Youth Leadership Experience (NAYLE). The PSA is the only National High Adventure base alumni association that does not offer membership to those who have not served on staff.


Sea Base Alumni and Friends Association, Inc.

The Sea Base Alumni and Friends Association, Inc. (SBAFA) is a non-profit Florida charity with the purpose to provide continued support of Florida National High Adventure Sea Base. Objectives include supporting the staff, programs and interest of Florida Sea Base. Membership is open to all those with an affiliation to Florida Sea Base, including current staff, former staff, members of the community, volunteers, and past participants.


References


External links


BSA high adventure bases official website

James W. Loewen book, ''Up a Creek, With a Paddle''; the first third treats Region 7 Canoe Base
{{DEFAULTSORT:High-Adventure Bases Of The Boy Scouts Of America National camps of the Boy Scouts of America