Trip Status Troop 100 2013 Summer Trip to Bowron Lakes (Updated 5/1)

The plan – August 1 travel most of the way to the put in, stopping near Lak la Hache. The next morning (August 2) drive  from our camp to Barkerville, a recreated gold rush town, and then to Barker’s Lodge and Camp headquarters. Group 1 starts the circuit on August 3.

The Bowron Lake Circuit consists of 11 lakes in northeast British Columbia that roughly form a parallelogram when connected with a few portages. The circuit is 100 km long, 86 km on canoes and 14 km of portages. The land in the middle of the circuit is a game preserve and kept primitive, there are bears (mostly black bears, but you never know) and moose all through it. We will be using bear proof food storage on the circuit and observing wildlife at a distance.

We will be traveling across an international border, EVERONE on the trip will need passports (or Washington State issued enhanced driver’s licenses or identity cards). In my experience, the customs people have little latitude on this and no sense of humor.

Plan to carry US and Canadian cash, probable $30 of each for incidentals.

There will be a mandatory gathering of all participants on May 28 at TUMC. At this meeting we will be checking for passports (or equivalent) and will be signing and notarizing parental consent forms. We will need a parental consent form unless BOTH parents are going on the trip. Most of us just paid the deposit, this would be a good time to pay the remaining $150.

We are going to arrange a canoe familiarization on June 8. This is only an introduction, if a scout is going on this trip, we would like him to take the canoeing merit badge at Camp Easton. If they already have the merit badge, then please have them devote some free time in a canoe.

The majority of the scouts will be taking the bus, we have two bus drivers signed up already and would not mind if more adults  would get licensed to drive the bus. Usually we would use a truck to help haul gear and if your truck is available please let me know.

That’s all the news that fits. – Bowron Lake Trip Committee.