Welcome to Troop 61

On the weekend of September 17-18, 2011, members of Troop 61 Sudbury canoed off the shore of Cape Cod to Washburn Island, an uninhabited strip of land no more than two miles long. Before becoming a popular camping spot, the island had been used as a World War II landing site for the Army Amphibious Command. As a service project, scouts were encouraged to pick up trash left by previous campers.

After pushing off from the landing in Falmouth, scouts paddled about forty minutes through a serene channel with motorboats anchored on both sides and picturesque homes clinging to green hills overlooking the water. Arriving on the shore of Washburn Island, scouts hiked along a cracked concrete trail that had been used for military purposes. Off to the side of the trail the carcass of a rusted JEEP littered with bullet-holes lay half buried in the soil. After returning to the beach, the scouts pushed off and paddled to another landing, where the gear was unloaded and heaved up a slope and off the beach. Then it was carried along a well-worn path covered with pine needles to the campsite, a large open space with a few trees and two fire rings, which scouts were exuberant about because fire is now being permitted on the island. Once all gear had been organized, all tents set up, and lunches eaten, scouts canoed farther down the shore to a strip of sand. The clamming rake and fishing rods were put to use, catching four fish and a multitude of clams. Scouts also caught minnows to use as bait. Another Army trail was discovered perched atop a hill.

Upon return to the campsite, Mrs. Fogarty instructed scouts on how to clean a fish. Then the catch was wrapped in tinfoil and placed on the fire along with the clams. The steaming, juicy meat was devoured quickly along with a pasta stew. After being terrorized around the campfire with stories of Chunky the Raccoon, a massive beast the size of a patrol box that roamed the island in search of free meals, the scouts lay down for the night.

Upon waking and eating breakfast, all gear was packed up and loaded into the canoes. Then the campsite was swept. Landing the canoes on a close beach, scouts spent their remaining time beach-combing. Among the list of objects discovered were a jellyfish and Chunky tracks. Then the scouts were forced to paddle against the wind back to the landing on the mainland and their awaiting cars which brought them home.

by J. Caltabiano