National Jamboree Day 5 - Opening Show & Exploring

Our first day of full activities started around 5:30 AM as 4 of our scouts pulled a wagon to our sub-base camp headquarters where they were issued breakfast and lunch for the day.

Breakfast was cereal and milk, blueberry muffins and oranges. Lunch was a typical trail type meal which included trail mix, crackers, and cookies. It also included a really disgusting apple cinnamon unknown item. It looked like a gogurt but tasted like baby food. It might have been better if it was cold but not much here is cold.

After breakfast the scouts headed out to the opening show. We filled an ampitheater with close to 35,000 scouts. We heard from multiple dignitaries, including the Governor of West Virginia and a member of the Bechtel family for which the Summit is named after.

Patch Trading

The scouts seemed to be more into the bands. At the beginning of the opening show, as we were arriving at the stadium, we were entertained by a West Virginia National Guard rock band. One of the more favorite songs they performed was a cover of Teen Spirit by Nirvana.

At the close of the show we were entertained by a West Virginia Country and Western Band called Taylor Made. I don't think the scouts knew the songs but everyone seemed to enjoy the band.

Upon dismissal the scouts departed and visited across the summit. I think most of the boys used the opportunity  to explore. I heard several proclaim they walked the entire camp. I'm not so sure about this claim but if they did they really did some hoofing.

There was plenty to explore. I visited the Tree House, a 4 story structure with solar power, compost toilets, and a rain water system. I made 3 stories and departed due to my lack of comfort in high places. I later learned at the top you can leave a piece of tin with your name and unit number on it and all the tins will be left as a marker at camp. The entire treehouse is about sustainability, recycling, and using energy from renewable sources. I also visited several merit badge areas.

Unfortunately, a good portion of my day was spent trying to get my Kindle to work with AT&T. No one was able to help. The end result is I found a place provided by AT&T where I can blog, text, check email, and surf the web. Not as good as a working Kindle but it works.