This page is a summary of the main points in planning a
Klondike Derby and snow camping in general. It is based on the
author's experience in three Klondikes in the Sierra Nevada, and
input from others.
- Competition
- Do this just like a Camporee - have every troop sponsor
an event. Get your SCORING rules sorted out ahead of time
- I suggest that all events be scored out of 10, an easy
way is to use any system then rank them backwards
descending from 10 to 0. Note that snow=wet and that
ballpoint pens and paper may not do well. Ideally, give
each troop an scoring pack of heavy card and wet-ink pen
or pencil) in a small ziplock bag. Ideally, finish with a
head-to-head sled race.
- Awards
- Do try and do the Awad Ceremony before you leave the snow
- its much better for the Scouts. Get your ribbons ahead
of time so that you can at least write the event name on
them. Note that the ribbons may not be conducive to this
simple task- in 2001 the 3rd place ribbons were black -
we could not write on them and have it legible (there was
no other place to indicate the nature of the event other
than write on the ribbon material). If you want a custom
event patch allow plenty of time when ordering from the
Scout Shop. Better method - print event and places on
laserjet labels and stick to ribbons.
- Calendar
- Get it on the COUNCIL CALENDAR before it goes to press.
the three day weekend (Presidents Day) gives flexibility
in planning. For Peninsula District, the ever worsening
traffic problems make going up to the Sierras Friday
night less desirable day by day. February is still cold
enough that the snow should be dry and not wet.
- Timing
- If you drive up Saturday a.m. and intend to do events in
the afternoon, make it clear ahead of time that the all
troops must NOT do breakfast on the road and MUST bring a
bag lunch to eat AFTER they have moved their gear to the
campsite. In this manner, its a 3-1/2 hour trip from San
Mateo to Eagle Mountain. Else you will be too late to do
much in the way of events. It is possible to get up there
early enough to build some snow sheltrs in the afternoon
if you have a god snow year. Then day-two is fully
available for events and the scouts will have had the
chance to sleep in a snow shelter.
Driving up Friday p.m. is possible but the traffic is so
bad you need to leave VERY early or be prepared to arrive
LATE and set up in the dark. If the snow is soft you will
not want to do this. The only advantage is that Day one
is a full day.
- Location Selection
- This is a trade-off. Eagle Mountain and TTN Snowflower
have practical advantages for a Klondike Derby, but
higher locations may have more snow and be colder (i.e.,
drier). Also, the age of the Scouts comes into play.
Eagle Mountain and Snowflower are good for a Klondike
because of the access and safe-house. High-adventure
campsites may be found elsewhere.
- Clothing
- Be very careful with this item in equipment check. The
Scouts need enough to survive and to be safe. If clothing
type-quantity is not ideal, then let them bring
additional changes of less-than-ideal clothing - we
cannot harbor unreal expectations! Let the scouts and
parents know the quantity aspect as well as the type of
clothing. Ditto for insulating pads, sleeping bags etc.
Watch out for down bags and summer (thin) bags. Note that
a Scout may try and save a dry set (e.g., socks) for the
next/last day, and in doing so get cold because he does
not have enough dry clothing on during the current day.
- Shelters
- Tents work just fine, though snow caves are warmer and
much quieter and a NEW experience for the Scout. Tents
should have a fly that essentially goes all the way to
ground level and ideally should have vents (which may be
the upper part of the door system). Three poles are a
minimum for the tent support frame. Use suitable snow
anchors (plywood plate with rope thru' centre works
fine). Snow anchors could be a construction project, so
could snowshoes. Try doubling up the poles if your tent
style allows this - its easy if the troop has excess
tents of the same type.
- Lost Scout
- Lost a Scout at night, eh? First, see if he is playing
cards in another shelter before you spend a lot of time
looking!
- Label Your Gear
- Label everything that you value – a Klondike Derby
has an amazing ability to send your troop’s gear
home with one or more other troops, and vice-versa! Also
- pre-label gear bags, packs etc..
- Coordination
- Consider having each Troop leader (preferably one Adult
and the functional SPL) on the same channel of a Family
Radio System (everyone bring spare battereis) - its a
real chore hiking around in the snow trying to pass on
information. Also consider establishing an HQ on the snow
- where you can do check in/out and compute event scores,
hold a cracker barrel etc. A large old-style tent with
walking around room and an iron camp stove look neat and
provide a lot of functionality (stove chimney requires
careful treatment with a collar) or a three sided and
roofed shelter instead of a tent.
- Cooking
- Try not to bring excess food, if you have to cancel the
2nd night its a chore to "dispose" of this left
over food. Don't bring nachos and other chips - fragile
and too bulky. There is enough gear to pack without
increasing the volume unecessarily. If you want to do a
cold pudding, do it in 1 gallon ziplock bags, it avoids
making a big mess in a pot. Also, use boil-in-bag as much
as possible to minimize cleanup. Don't bring salads, the
Scouts don't eat a lot of salads, and cold greens in a
cold environment make no sense. Frozen veges are much
easier in the snow.
Consider pre-cooking some items to simplify cleanup and
waste handling.
- Leave No Trace: other Scouts use the meadow site, don't
trash it. Strain off solids from cooking/cleanup waste,
liquid/greasy waste can be packed out in empty plastic
juice bottles (bring a strainer and funnel) – its
easy!.
- Eagle Mountain (closed indefintely)
- Clarify the rules and pricing before you go. The Lodge
is ONLY a last-resort Safe House. - your Troop is
responsible to make all possible best efforts to keep
Scouts warm and dry. They can be warmed up in the heated
shower room, the less warm toilets, or in your
car/van/SUV. Better yet, don't let them get cold in the
first place.
- Pricing is reasonable, but the low price means they
do NOT want the lodge cluttered with Scouts and dads
during the day (though the good coffee can be a
Dad-magnet). Don't forget to confirm your reservations
ahead of time so they can order porta-potties for your
group. Else you have a modest walk to the (heated)
toilets. Both the toilets and showers have wash basins
with hot water. For water bring your own, or melt snow.
Don't bet on rental snowshoes being available if its a
busy weekend.
- Please make sure all participants understand that
this is a cross-country ski resort and that we need to NOT
mess up the ski-tracks that have been set in place.
Also, stay out of the groomed trail if a skating-skier is
approaching (some skiers stay in the tracks, others skate
in between).
- Parking - expect to be asked to park your cars in
the MIDDLE of the lot so the snowplow can grade and shave
the perimeter. I strongly suggest that all drivers put a
card on their dash with their name and Troop number. You
may be asked to move vehicles after close of the day's
business.
- Gear transfer – the easiest way is to unload
it (onto a large tarp) at the corner of the parking lot
nearest to the trail, then sled/carry it from there. See
location "B" Map at end. Location "A"
may be OK if good weather, but has many functional
limitations (such as breaking a trail) and I do not
recommend it (I thinks its unsafe with icy/snowy road
conditions, and it only handles one vehicle at a time).
- Thousand Trails Network (TTN) Snowflower (adjacent
to Eagle Mountain)
- A private RV Park in summer, a SnoPark in winter. Used by
Peninsula District for Klondike of Feb 2002 with great
success. Nice people to work with. NACO Snowflower Campground, Yuba Gap exit off
I-80, go south to "Y", turn left at
"Y". Road and parking lot are plowed, see map
at bottom of page. We will camp in the Upper Fawn areas.
The road past the Lower, Middle and Upper Fawn areas is
ideal for a long sled run, one could even loop back
along the beach. The beach adjacent to the lake has a
huge area for events and assembly. Water is available
from the filling shack near the lodge. Coin-op washer and
dryer is in the Laundry Room near the Country Store.
Parking is available, please carpool. The other lot is
for Snow Park day use.
- Cisco Grove Campground (revised 11/03)
- A private RV Park in summer, partially open for camping
in winter. Will be used by Peninsula District for
Klondike of Feb 2004. Reportedly would have more snow
than Snowflower.
- Weather
- Stick to the National Weather Service (for NWS web
forecast, use the Blue Canyon location), and bring your
own weather radio! Track it ahead of time, and get a feel
for what the weather is doing and when the forecasts are
updated. The forecast winds are at ridgetops - its less
in the meadow, at least by 15 mph. Ideal weather is cold
(below freezing during the day) with little or no wind.
Get the curent Caltrans Road Status phone # and any other
phone # that will give you peace of mind.
- Signs of Distress
- Consider making up cheat sheets of possible warning signs
and get scouts to practice observing these. Dehydration,
fatigue and hypothermia are potential problems.
- Safety Videos (revised 11/03)
- The video "Land of One Season" by the Portland
Chapter of International Television Association in
cooperation with Portland Mountain Rescue is availabe
from Mill Creek/Silver Fox/USITC, 5585 S.W. Artcic Drive,
Beaverton, Oregon 97005, Ph 503-646-7828 Fax
503-644-8515. Its around $20 + shipping, M/C is accepted.
If your video has poor sound and no video - you got a
European (PAL) tape by mistake, send it back and get an
NTSC (USA) version. the tape is 20 minutes long.
you can also try the video "Stay Alive" "A
Guide to Survival in Mountainous Areas" hosted by
Preston Westmoreland, Westmoreland Productions Inc, P.O.
box 5610, Carefree AZ 85377 1-800-582-5802 (available
on-line I think)
the best solution is to use relevant parts of each
video
- Money
- You do need to prepare a budget, there is a standard form
for this. As long as each troop takes care of itself, and
you use Eagle Mountain, the entry fee only needs to cover
award ribbons, event patch, and Eagle mountain's fee,
publicity handouts (save a tree - try using web and
email), with a small contingency to allow for
cancellations.
- Projects
- Get the scouts to make their own snowshoes and sleds,
don’t forget to decorate the sleds if they have
solid sides. Plans are available for metal frame and PVC
frame snowshoes. Perhaps build model snow shelters out of
shave-ice at a Troop meeting.
Event List - here are some ideas: Event List
- Keys to selecting a location for a Klondike
- Enough parking (can be a real problem in winter)
Good highway - capacity and cleared of snow
Good local road from highway to site - cleared
promptly/not too far.
Restrooms and/or portapotties - enough and close enough
Safe house, preferably a lodge, close to camping area
Snow depth adequate for digging-in to make shelters
Enough area for all campers - preferably reasonably level
Flat area for group events - open-class sled race
etc.Prior successful use by other youth groups
Cost (min 2 days and one night)
- Return to Index Page