Thunder Ridge 2009

Every other year our troop goes to the scout camp at Thunder Ridge. If the boys are motivated they can pick up a lot of merit badges in a week of camp. Of course, one of the basic laws of Scouting nowadays is two-deep leadership: there must be two adult leaders present on every activity. Our scoutmaster, Bob Gurr, was good for the week, but the assistant scoutmaster was unable to go, so he turned to parents and ward members to fill in the gap. I went up Tuesday after work, stayed the night and came home Wednesday evening after my replacement arrived.


I zoomed in from across the canyon to get this picture. Thunder Ridge is 9200 feet above sea level and just below Brian Head (both the town and the peak). You can't tell it from this picture but there are close to 400 scouts, leaders, and staff there. The camps are all located in the fir trees on the opposite side of the meadow from the lodge. That's the building with the green roof.

The Honor Trail runs along an exposed ridge that probably gives the camp its name: Thunder Ridge. There are many trees along this rim that show evidence of lightning strikes. There are also several bristlecone pines here. Capable of living for thousands of years, bristlecones are incredibly resilient, living for centuries in cold, rocky, and arid conditions. The above tree looks basically dead, but if you look closely on the left there is a branch with green needles. How long has this tree been clinging to life on this ridge?

Another thought occured to me as I looked for other bristlecones: The only place bristlecones were growing was along the exposed, sparsely vegetated ridge. As I went further down the backside of the ridge, the firs, spruces, and occasional pondersas increased in number and density but the bristlecones disappeared not too far from the crest of the ridge. So why would such a hardy tree in a harsh environment fail to do well in richer, more protected soils? For some reason I am reminded of the Joseph Smith quote: "Deep water is what I am wont to swim in...to glory in tribulation..." Maybe the bristlecone pine is the more majestic and impressive because of its perserverance in the face of greater odds.

That's Brian Head (11,307 ft) poking over the top of the ridgeline. Troop 363 had six boys at camp this year.

Another view of the camp.