Troop Day Hike: will be Saturday, March 19th at the Holyoke Range in the vicinity of South Hadley MA. We will meet at the parish center at 8AM so that we have sufficient day light for the hike. We will return for pick up at the parish center by approximately 5:30 PM that evening. Scouts need to bring: a bag lunch, poncho or rain coat if it looks like rain that day, boots, a hat and gloves/mittens. A spare pair of socks is a must to bring. If the weather is cold, bring a warm coat as well. Scouts should bring two quarts/liters of water (no soda, juice, punch, etc.). Do not bring water in disposable water bottles – get a canteen or hiking water bottle at Wal-Mart, Target, etc. for about $10. Scouts need to bring a day pack (school pack will work fine) to carry their personal and troop gear for the day.
The Holyoke Range is a great place to hike and explore. The range is home to the “Seven Sisters”, a continuous series of small peaks topping out at 1000 foot elevation, and overlooking the scenic Connecticut River Valley. We will be traversing the Metacomet-Monadnock Trail, which travels along the Metacomet ridge. This ridge is a unique and ancient traprock formation that extends from Long Island Sound in Connecticut all the way to the MA/NH/VT border area.
We will divide the scouts into age/ability groups and cover distances that are comfortable for each group. Younger scouts will tackle a 5mile route, and older scouts working on the hiking merit badge will tackle a 10 mile route.
At the end of the hike we will have some of Troop 4’s famous fried dough!
If you son will be attending the hike, please complete the permission slip and return no later than the March 10th troop meeting. If you son would like to attend but won’t be at this troop meeting, please call or email Phil Bedard at 508-561-7058 or pbedard1@gmail.com We will need a few parents to drive to/from and/or stay for the event. If you can help out please indicate on the permission slip.