The Cape Fear Contingent to Philmont for 2009, a high adventure Boy Scout camp in New Mexico, included eight Scouts and two leaders from Troop 447 sponsored by the First United Methodist Church in Laurinburg.

Philmont is one of three high adventure camps in the United States of America that the Boy Scouts of America offers to Scouts across the globe.

Planning for this adventure started in July 2008.

Thirteen scouts and four adults from the Cape Fear Council comprised the contingent. Four Scouts were from the Wilmington area and one was from Loris, SC. The other leaders were from Wilmington and Loris, SC. There were eight Scouts from Troop 447 that are part of this contingent.

Troop 447 representatives were Scouts,William Adams, Joshua Altman, Scott Bruner, Stafford Dunbar, Matthew Kang, Stephen Lanuti, Mark Pracht and Logan Weagraff along with Scout leaders Dr. Steve Lanuti, and Robert C. Weagraff

To prepare, the Scouts needed to be in excellent physical condition. The contingent was encouraged to start a training routine early so they would be well prepared and could enjoy the programs that Philmont had to offer. Training for the Philmont trek included four separate shakedown hikes where crews could practice their backpacking skills and to allow each member to refine their gear they would carry on the trek.

Each member of the crew worked to minimize weight since on average the backpack with food and water would weigh around 50 pounds. Everything needed for 11 days on the trail had to be carried on he crew's back.

The first shakedown hike occurred in January at the Cape Fear Council reservation scout camp, Camp Bowers in Bladen County.

This was followed with a hike of the Dutchman Creek trail in the Uwharrie National Forest in late February. The third hike in April covered the upper section of the Uwharrie trail in the national forest. The final shakedown hike occurred in June where the Scouts hiked 16 miles on the Appalachian Trail from Roan Mountain to Carvers Gap.

"The crew really enjoyed this hike since the trail took you to places that are only seen by the hikers of the Appalachian Trail," said Robert C. Weagraff, a Scout leader. "The azaleas and rhododendrons were in bloom and were quite spectacular as we crossed the balds near Carvers Gap."

Philmont Scout ranch consists of 128,000 acres and has a variety of camps and programs along each of the 32 treks Philmont had mapped for this past summer. Our contingent left on July 10th and returned on July 24th. The trek chosen by the contingent was 80-miles and transcended 11-days starting in the southern section of the reservation and ended in the northern section. Actual mileage based upon our GPS was over 100 miles during these 11 days.

"This trek took us across terrain that varied in altitude from 6,000 feet to 12,500 feet," Weagraff said. "There were numerous highlights along our way but the pinnacle of our adventure was the summit of Mt. Baldy which is 12,441 feet high. We climbed Baldy on our 9th day which started at 5 am. By 9:30 that morning we had climbed to the top of Baldy. However, our day was not done. This day we hiked 14 miles and ended with a hike back to our camp through constant rain arriving around 7 pm that evening.

At staffed camps along the trek, programs were available for the boys to enjoy once the hiking was completed for the day. The Scouts experienced rock climbing, rappelling, black powder rifle, mountain ball, gold panning and mining, and various logging events at the Continental Tie and Lumber Company in addition to other activities.