Photos courtesy Kurt McNett

Troop 598 held a Court of Honor Oct. 19 at Karshner Elementary in Puyallup.

Photos courtesy Steve Heeb

Troop 598 Scouts hiked to the Fremont Lookout at the foot of Mount Rainier. Though the skies were blue when we embarked from the trail head, the view was soon limited most of the time by lingering low clouds and fog. Even so, a number of wildlife was seen during our trek, including deer, pika, bear scat, chipmunks and to our surprise, rather close encounters with herds of mountain goats. We also enjoyed a rare sighting of Cascade Red Fox during the return trip. The gang stopped in Buckley for milkshakes and explored a former fire watch tower exhibit very similar to the tower they had just hiked to.

Photos courtesy Steve Heeb

Troop 598 charged up Mt St Helens this August.

Photos courtesy Walt Ward

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Photos courtesy Walt Ward and Carl Youngquist

Troop 598 held a Court of Honor June 15 at Karshner Elementary in Puyallup.

Photos courtesy Steve Heeb

Some of the Troop 598 Scouts were up for a hike in the Foothills to beautiful  Hyas Lake. It also was a chance to put the Troop’s new tents to the test. The spectacular scenery included views of Cathedral Tower, Hyas Lake and other vistas during the hike back to the trailhead.

Photos courtesy Dr. Howie Davidson

Some of the Troop 598 Scouts joined the Cub Scout Pack 505 group for a two-night campout May 15-17 at BSA Camp Hahobas on the Hoods Canal. The sites used were at the edge of the woods along the high ridge that overlooks the Hoods Canal, with good views of the towns of Hoodsport and Lilliwap almost directly across.

After breakfast Saturday morning, he Color Guard of Troop 598 Scouts raised the flag on a functioning flagpole lashed together by Mr. Heeb and Mr. Youngquist the night before.

The plant life was abundant and varied, and there were plenty of (harmless) bumble bees buzzing about making busy pollination work to ensure a bumper crop of blueberries in the near future.

When the Cub Scouts broke into training stations for first aid, weather and lashing, the Troop 598 Scouts practiced for their evening ceremony in the picturesque Sunset Bowl amphitheater.

Afterward, the 598 Scouts joined the Cub Scouts on their scavenger hunt before embarking on a 3-mile hike down to the waterfront and back. They observed several animals along the way including millipedes, snail, a chipmunk and a fairly perplexed shrew. On the beach they also discovered the vertebrae of a large animal of some sort, possibly a deer or even a sea lion. We never did see the mountain lion that had been spotted on the grounds — probably for the best.

The scouts cooked their basic burgers for dinner Saturday, while Mr. Heeb and Mr. Youngquist dined on some hearty shiskabob skewers and rice pilaf. Yum!

After the Cub Scouts’ fire building competition, the entire group assembled in the Sunset Bowl for several fun skits and singing entertainment. The night’s program concluded with the respectful retirement of two flags and a long pause for reflection.

After breakfast Sunday, Troop 598 relaxed a bit before breaking camp and making a final policing of the entire area to make sure we left the camp nicer than we found it. They also took the opportunity to explore more of Camp Hahobas from the lake at the dining area, the main amphitheater and the expansive COPE activity area and its new zip line.

Photos courtesy Steve Heeb

Troop 598 held a Court of Honor April 20 at Karshner Elementary in Puyallup. The program included installation of the new troop leadership positions and the presentation of merit badges and rank advancements. As intermission entertainment, several of the scouts performed a skit.

Photos courtesy Steve Heeb

Once again, rain greeted the scouts in Troop 598 as they arrived and set up the tents in the early stages of their campout at Ft. Worden March 21-22, 2015. However, the clouds soon gave way, just in time to provide some nice afternoon heat during the 2-hour service project clearing Scotch Broom. Just moving the heavy pulling devices proved to be almost as much a challenge as wresting the massive roots from the hillside, but the boys did great.

Before the service project the group split up with some hiking the hills and exploring the gun emplacements, and others walking on the bech and skipping rocks. A pair of sea otters on the dock made for a fun distraction.

Back at the site, just about every foot of rope and line was used erecting a tarp structure over the picnic benches and a tent, to the point that we had quite the spider web going. Several boys worked on completing rank advancement requirements while we were there, so expect some Scoutmaster conferences and Boards of Review in the near future.

Food duties for the Troop were broken down into two Patrols and a third group for the adults. The Wolf Patrol made a chicken pasta meal that looked hearty and delicious. Other boys dined on tin foil dinners that also were fun to make. The adults feasted on Walt’s great chicken stirfry. In the morning, the Wolf Patrol boiled up some omellettes-in-a-bag while some of the scouts opted for a light Pop Tarts breakfast. The adults had plenty of cheesy eggs and hamcooked over the campfire.

After the clean-up and departure Sunday morning, some of the boys returned to the battery and beach area. What must have been an extreme low tide provided access to a tidal pool area well below the level of normal tide range, and some of the rocks exposed clearly had not seen the surface in quite some time.

Photos courtesy Steve Heeb