Friday, June 26, 1998 Arrival at Philmont.

Andrew got the crew organized and into breakfast at 6:00 a.m. as scheduled. We checked out of our rooms and met the Adventure Trails van without any problems and were on the road to Philmont a little after 7:00 a.m.

The van was air-conditioned and the drive was quite pleasant. The boys slept a good bit of the trip. We made one stop enroute at a rest area and arrived at Philmont Base Camp a little after 10:00 a.m. The temperature was hot when we got out of the van--probably in the 90's and still climbing. It was also very dusty due to the lack of any rain during the last month. With every gust of wind, minature dust storms would erupt.

Andrew checked us in at the Welcome Center where we were assigned six tents for the evening. We learned that Philmont Campers were divided into two basic groups at the headquarters site: those heading onto the trail and those returning. Each such group was assigned a separate tent area and a different meal time. We also learned that more than 200 campers arrived to start their treks each day and another 200 or so completed their treks. Before the summer is over, approximately 25,000 people will have come through Philmont. Interestingly, of that number, only 350 or so will have the opportunity to participate in a Cavalcade!
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We unloaded our gear and carried it to our tents, which were about a hundred yards or so away--in the midst of a tent city numbering well into the hundreds. The tents were very comparable to those at most summer camps--canvas wall tents on wooden platforms with metal cots and foam mattresses. Quite comfortable. Bathrooms with all of the amenities--showers, hot water, flush toilets--were situated close by; separate and nicer facilities for the adults.

As noted above, meals at Philmont HQ are served in two shifts. For lunch, crews headed on the trail eat first. That was us. The dining facility was large, clean and efficient. Several staff members led us in the Philmont Grace--"For food, for raiment, for opportunity, for friendship and for fellowship, we thank thee Oh Lord, Amen"--and we entered the line. Things moved quickly and within 10 minutes we were seated and eating--hot dogs, I believe. The scouts liked the selection of drinks. Unfortunately, no seconds were permitted, however, the snack bar behind the trading post more than compensated for this deficiency.

We were scheduled to meet our Horseman and Wrangler at 1:00 p.m. to commence our check-in procedures. That gave us about an hour to look around, visit the Trading Post, unpack, etc. Most of the boys used this time to buy candy or snacks. Some called home while others played cards--an activity which became ever more popular as time passed. The adults purchased exciting items such as laundry soap, post cards and chap stick. The hour passed quickly.
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At 1:00 we met our Horseman, Jeremy Spivey, and our Wrangler, Dale King in front of the Philmont Welcome Center. Only Cavalcades are assigned Horsemen and Wranglers--all other Philmont treks are assigned Rangers and Assistant Rangers.

Jeremy is a rising senior at the University of Colorado in Boulder where he is majoring in marketing. He has interned with several lobbying groups from the Cattlemen's association and is contemplating going to law school. He is an Eagle Scout and has been coming to Philmont ever since he was a young boy. He grew up in Texas. This is his sixth year on staff at Philmont. He is the senior Horseman and supervises all of Cavalcade staff members. Jeremy indicated that this would be his last year at Philmont, at least for the near future.

Dale is also from Texas and is an Eagle Scout. This is his fourth year on staff. He is an assistant Scoutmaster and indicated that his Troop would be coming to Philmont for a Cavalcade later this summer. Dale works with horses during the winter months and also works at various jobs--asst. mgr of a pizza parlor among other things.

Jeremy stands about 5foot 9inches, is stocky in build, direct in manner and leaves no question in anyone's mind regarding who is in charge. He plays the guitar, loves western music--even writes his own songs, wears a big old cowboy hat, chews tobacco and, in every since of the word, epitomizes the modern cowboy in word and deed. Dale, in contrast, is tall, thin and rather quiet. Where Jeremy gets right in your face, Dale is more laid back. Jeremy dictates the pace of things; Dale goes with the flow. They complemented each other quite well. Jeremy confided to me that he would recommend that Dale take over as his replacement next season.

Jeremy Is introduction was brief and delivered in a ma=er not unlike a sledgehammer. His purpose was to eradicate any doubt in our minds that the Cavalcade program was the best which Philmont had to offer and also was the most dangerous; he knew we did not know much about horses and that we would have to depend on Dale and him for everything we had to learn. Consequently, it was imperative that we listen carefully or, as Jeremy put it, "hingell upon his every word. We got the message right away. Some of the boys, got the message several more times over the next few hours as Jeremy simply would not tolerate inattention. Jeremy reminded me of certain drill sergeants I have known; I don It think any of the boys had ever encountered anyone quite like him.
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Jeremy explained that the remainder of the day would be devoted to completing our check-in: processing through medical, registration, getting our picture taken, checking out crew gear and repacking for the Cavalcade. He also reviewed our itinerary with us, noting that we would climb aboard a bus after breakfast the next day and travel to Ponil, where we would obtain our horses and commence our horsemanship experience.

At Ponil we would collect our food for the Cavalcade, our tents and other gear needed for the trip. We would take a "shakedown" ride that afternoon and spend the evening there. On Sunday morning, we would commence our itinerary, which called for a 7.5 mile ride to Head of Dean. On Monday, it would be a 5 mile ride to Miranda. Tuesday's ride would be a short one--about 3 miles to Baldy Camp, where we would spend two nights. Wednesday was designated for a hike up Baldy Mtn and down into French Henry. Thursday we would ride to Pueblano--about 5 miles--and on Friday we would return to Ponil for a Gymkhana--a mini-rodeo and opportunity to demonstrate the horsemanship skills that we had acquired during the week.
Jeremy emphasized over and over again the importance of working together and how every member of the crew was depending upon everyone else to do his job correctly. He stressed safety while alerting everyone to the fact that more injuries occurred around the horses than any other activity at Philmont. He urged all of us to be mindful of the great size and strength of the horses and their ability to cause great bodily injury without intending do to so. In almost all cases where injuries have occurred, Jeremy observed, the horse was not at fault; rather, it was his rider who did something stupid or wrong.

Jeremy also emphasized the importance of drinking enough water--at least 2 gallons a day and protecting ourselves from the sun and wind. Philmont HQ was at an altitude of over 6000 feet. Ponil was more than a 1000 higher and we would be working our way up to Baldy Camp which was over 10,000 feet. The climb to Baldy Peak would take us above 12,400 ft. Consequently, we needed to be prepared for the effects of high altitude.
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Andrew and I handled the administrative side of the Check-in procedures. Andrew was issued a form which would be used at each stop along our itinerary and entitled us to camping, activity and food privileges. Jeremy instructed Andrew to print "Don't lose or it is Andrew's Ass" at the top of the form in large, bold letters, which Andrew did.

We had a group picture taken and proceeded on to medical where everyone had to be rechecked. Jeremy is an EMT and thus was able to handle this himself. The adults had to have their blood pressure taken again--blood pressure increases with altitude. Chris Bosch had to get a tetanus shot, which required about 45 minutes. otherwise, everything went smoothly.

Next, we were issued saddlebags and stuff sacks. These would hold all of our personal gear for the next week or so. Jeremy and Dale then followed us back to our tents where each participant laid out what he intended to take with him on the trip. In almost every case, Dale or Jeremy eliminated a number of items from the stack. We set aside all gear that we would not be taking on the Cavalcade in the bags we had carried on the airplane. We were given two large storage lockers to hold these bags during the Cavalcade and would accomplish the transfer the following morning.

These preparations took us up to dinner time. This would be our first meal with Jeremy leading us in. As we gathered in front of the dining hall, he very matter of factly informed us that Cavalcades always ate first and he moved us to the front of the line. No one argued the point. Whether in fact it was true that Cavalcades ate ahead of the backpacking treks or the other Philmont Staff members simply were intimidated by Jeremy's brash nature, we never resolved. I suspect the latter, however, we were all happy enough to avoid the long line, whatever the justification.
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We enjoyed a meal of spaghetti and meat sauce and I learned that what appeared to be a fancy form of salad dressing was, in fact, some very spicy salsa--brought tears to my eyes. Afterward,we had a little over an hour to make phone calls, relax, go to the snack bar or take care of other matters before we headed off to the Welcome Campfire.

Andrew attended a brief Crew Leaders' meeting and the Advisors also met for a briefing which lasted about 30 minutes. These meetings were oriented primarily to the backpacking treks, however, some of the general information was helpful. In essence, the adults were reminded that every effort should be made to allow the scouts to make the experience their own--without the adults taking over. A crew leader had been elected to run the event and we should do our best to support him.

We gathered for the Campfire at around 8:15 p.m. and hiked in a group of about 250 to an area about 1/4 mile away. Enroute, we observed Jeremy accompanying an attractive young lady. Jeremy, it should be noted, was quite alert to the cha=s of the many young women on staff at Philmont and he was able to brief us concerning the background and interests of every such staff member that we encountered earlier in the day. As it turned out, this young woman was the person in charge of the Campfire and Jeremy made a dinner date with her for the following evening.

The primary focus of the Campfire was to welcome the new arrivals and to portray the history of Philmont. This was done through a number of actors who described how the land was first inhabitated by native americans whose ancestors had traveled across the Siberian land bridge from Asia to North America and had gradually migrated south. The native americans lived on the land for thousands of years, hunting and fishing. A great drought occurred approximately 600 years ago, however and the native americans traveled further south to what is now Texas. When the drought ended, some of them returned, but not in the numbers they had been previously.

The drought occurred before the explorers from Spain and England commenced their journeys to the New World. A Spanish adventurer--Trinidad--is credited with being the first European to see the land which is now Philmont. He was in search of riches, but did not find any. Several churches were built in the area--the ruins of one we observed from the highway as we left Philmont.

During the next 200 years or so, the area was used mostly by trappers and mountain men. Soon after the Civil War, however, gold was discovered and a rush of people ensued. Cimarron became a bustling town and business for local merchants was booming. A couple of mining towns sprung up over night on the Philmont property--Baldy Town, French Henry and Coppertown to name but three.
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The mines played out af ter a time and the towns which they supported were largely abandoned by the turn of the 20th Century. Some lumber was taken, but, for the most part, the land returned to what it had been before gold was discovered. This is where Waite Phillips enters the picture.

Phillips was a typical American success story. Born in Iowa, he worked hard and ultimately made a fortune in the oil business-I'm not certain if he is the Phillips of Phillips petroleum, but it would seem logical. After making his fortune, he began acquiring real estate, including the 127,000 or so acres which comprise the present day Philmont. He built a mansion on the property and used it to raised cattle and horses as well as for hunting and fishing.

He also allowed boy scout troops to camp on the property and was impressed by the great respect these young men demonstrated for the land. As he grew older, he decided that he would like to leave his land to an organization that would carry on the traditions that he had so treasured during his life. The Country was in the midst of the Great Depression during the mid-1930's when Phillips determined that he would donate his property to the Boy Scouts of America.

The Boy Scouts, then less than 30 years old and suffering from the effects of the Depression just like many other organizations, refused to accept Phillips, gift. The leaders of the organization concluded that they simply could not afford the expense associated with operating such a vast amount of property. Phillips would not be dissuaded, however, and he agreed to "sweeten" the deal by including a sizeable amount of cash--over $60,000--with the land.
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The Boy Scouts accepted the gift--actually, Phillips "sold" the Boy Scouts the land and cash for $1--and Philmont commenced operation as a National Boy Scout Camp in 1938. Among the few conditions which Phillips imposed was that the property continue to be utilized as a working cattle and horse ranch. That condition has been satisfied. During our Cavalcade, we saw the ranch where the cattle are raised. The leather used for the Philmont belts comes from some of those cattle.

Philmont has been in continuous operation ever since. In the mid-1960s the Boy Scouts acquired an additional 2000 acres bringing the property to its present size. That land acquisition included the area in and around Baldy Mountain. It is estimated that 25,000 scouts and scouters visit Philmont every year. Phillips' vision lives on through us!

The Campfire ended around 9:00 p.m. We all headed over to the Snack bar to enjoy some ice cream and candy before we hit the trail the next day and were deprived of such niceties for the next week or so. The boys played cards. The adults talked and hoped that their backs would survive sleeping on the ground and that their butts would hold up after extended service in a saddle.

Because the Cavalcade consisted of 12 people--9 scouts and 3 adults; one of the scouts had to tent with an advisor. Under national rules, this can only involve a father and a son. My son, David, volunteered to tent with me for the trip, which was an unexpected and pleasant bonus for me. in all likelihood, that time together will exceed what we're likely to have over the next 5-10 years combined The other tent mates were: Alex Ciak/Tom Phelps; Tony Ciak/Jim Fisher; Andrew Roger/Steve Ybarra; Scott Coleman/Justin Lindemayer; and David Fisher/Chris Bosch. These pairings would last throughout the duration of the Cavalcade.

We returned to our tents and retired for the night at around 11:00 P.M.