The Scout Campout - by Hunter

What started as an innocent trip ended up as a once in a life time experience. Everybody but Mom and Miller went on a scout camp out. It began with missing one of the few activities sponsored by Dad’s department, a barbeque with everything you could want to eat. To stymie any mutinous feelings this information was released only after arriving at our destination, the top of an isolated hill somewhere in West Virginia.
Of the 10 or so boys expected to come only two showed up. This exciting adventure took place at a boy scout’s house. They owned a sizable amount of property. Dad checked in with the family and borrowed a 12 gauge shotgun and four shells because of occasional panther sightings and fairly common bear activity. We took a hill that was extremely steep and felt like miles high.

After around 15 minutes of strenuous walking going straight up we made it to the top of the hill, looked around and saw a cemetery. Or in this case a family burial spot of four family members. Only one marker had dates and these were from 1877- 1944. All of the people were Adkins, which is probably the most common Appalachian name by far. This cut down our sleeping room by a third.

Around this time the rain started (forecast was thunderstorms), and the light got increasingly darker. As our dinner depended on light and fire and the tents had not been set up yet this was not the best news. Everyone then started scurrying, or at least the adults, to make sure their tents did not get wet. In the ensuing moments it was discovered that one of the 4-man tents that had been brought had no poles. We had an 8-man tent, a 2-man tent, and two 4-man tents. One of the 4-man tents was the one with no poles. By the time we went to sleep, the final sleeping arrangements included one of the adults sleeping outside under a tarp.

Dinner was foil dinners that included potatoes, carrots, and either ham or deer meat depending on what one you got. There were also marshmallows to eat in the rain. If you thought that the night could not get much scarier, you are wrong. Everyone fell asleep fine as far as I know.

In the middle of the night Tanner woke up to go the bathroom. As he finally got enough nerve to risk going outside with a loose bear, a scary bell rang out twelve times. He had no idea what it was, and climbed terrified back into the tent.

However, he switched positions and laid on me. Because of a mistake earlier in the day there were not enough sleeping bags. Tanner and I had a constant half unconscious struggle for warmth throughout the entire nights. It was during these few moments that I heard the bells later. Dad also heard the bells and something heavy walking around in the middle of the night, as did Tanner.

When we woke up there was no rain. But there had been many spiders in the night and most everyone woke up eaten alive. One leader who had slept in the two man tent had accidentally slept on a little knoll of grass right by the headstones, over a body. We asked the owners what the sounds of the bells were in the night. He told us they were monks who lived nearby.