Report by Scout, Bryce P. (thanks Bryce!)
Bullet point summary
- We finally made it to our canoe set in spot, a little late, but in one piece and good to canoe together.
- After canoeing for an hour or so, we had an enjoyable lunch on the island in the middle of Lake Sonoma. Please ask our new Emily, what she called the island ; ). Then back into the canoe, and towards our overnight sight.
- We made land, unloaded, where another Troop from Marin were also camping for the night. It was great to connect with another Troop.
- Then we had a very muddy swim in the lake, where Isabella made a mud grave and I made a floating raft out of PFD type IVs
- There was a night canoe in which some adults and scouts went out on the lake right before sunset, watched the stars and fetched cleaner water to go through the water cleaning pumps.
- The adults had a delicious, well planned, Vietnamese food while the scouts had mac and cheese.
- Everyone grouped up for Isabella’s signature “coloured fire” along with drawing fun shapes, words, and even scenes using our flashlights and an app called Spectre.
- Woke up, packed our canoes and headed back. We failed to go through the mass of house boat’s this time.
- Had lunch up in the parking lot
- Tried a new method of washing the canoes using manual car washes. It was much faster though it did use something like $13 dollars (e.x. Rainbow carwash)
- Overall, Great trip! Everyone ended up a bit tired and some a bit damp, but smiles all around.
Trip Report: Lake Sonoma
For some of our scout’s first overnight canoeing trip we decided to spend a beautiful 2 days on Lake Sonoma. Throughout the 3 mile journey we got to practice our strokes and jokes before stopping at an island, 100ft from our campsite, for lunch. We managed to reach our campsite early and so had plenty of time to swim! Though the ground was a bit muddy we had plenty of fun with Isabella managing to create a grave, or a shrine (we couldn’t tell the difference) and everyone trying to find the depth of one specific spot dubbed “The Abyss” which we eventually found out was over 12 ft deep.
After drying off and having dinner, some scouts and adults left on a short dusk canoe in search of stars and less muddy water for our water pumps. The Old Goats had on offer some nutritious and delicious Vietnamese wraps & soup with a wide arrange of vegetables, protein, and rice noodles. (Thanks Thuy and Son) The scouts, on the other hand, had Mac and Cheese along with a bit of the adult’s dinner (in exchange for a tomato). Right before bed we had a beautiful coloured fire (Isabella’s specialty). Also, we used an app called Spectre, which allowed the scouts to make drawings that showed both our scout spirit (Troop 260 drawing) and our creativity (see photos).
The following morning we had our traditional packets of oats, packed our canoes and set off for home. Although the paddle back was quick, it was also serene and the landscape was beautiful. On our car drive journey back to the church we decided to try a new method of washing our canoes, using a carwash! Though our scouts did end up a little soapy, we managed to quickly clean the canoes (15 mins). We even managed to clean the canoes without taking the canoes off the rack. Our canoes are all extra clean, for next month. A great first overnight canoe trip for 2023!
