Just west of Trout, in LaSalle Parish, Louisiana is located the Attakapas Boy Scout District Campsite, situated on over a 100 acres leased in the 1960's from International Paper Company. If one canvassed the six-parish area made up of Rapides, Grant, Allen, Jackson and LaSalle, no better location could be found which could furnish a better staging area on which to practice the scouting skills used by the Boy Scouts of America.

Today, some 40 years later, the woodland is a text book, made-to-order, outdoor facility encompassing every component necessary to instruct Cub and Boy Scouts in the outdoor skills needed to enable them to acquire the 34 merit badges required prior to becoming an Eagle Scout. Some of the subjects available, which upon completion will result with the acquisition of a Merit Badge, are Chemistry, Computers, Shotgun, Rifle and Archery safety, Citizenship, Cooking, Scout Crafts, Orienteering, and Pioneering.

The first building one observes upon entering the camp grounds is the Caretaker's Lodge, with the current in-house Custodians being Mark Windham and his lovely wife Sue. The Lodge reflects a 24/7 presence to prevent vandalism or other senseless acts committed to the Scouting properties. All of the other buildings are situated in a centralized site, upon a well-drained ridge covered in second-growth long leaf pines, which gently slope off towards the waters edge of the lake. The rest of the facilities in this rustic setting with outdoor pavilions and camping facilities round out the nerve center of the complex.

Saturday, November 18th, was when Piney Woods Journal was invited to tour the grounds and see Scouting in action on the first day of what was scheduled to be a 5-day session, appropriately named the BSA Winter Camp, and concluding Wednesday, just before Thanksgiving. We stopped by what was obviously the Caretaker's Lodge and had coffee with Mark Windham before beginning what turned out to be a very educational tour.

The smell of wood smoke titillated the nostrils as we drove the camping areas, where SUVs, pickups and tents were occupying many of the various pine-clad ridges. Contingents of Scouts, both Cub and Boy Scouts, in orderly groups were everywhere, obviously on missions assigned to them by their leaders, who were much in evidence.

We drove along a recently well-constructed graveled road for just over a half-mile, replete with culverts at all the appropriate sites, and recently bladed wing ditches to take floodwaters away from the roadway. Windham informed me that the road had been constructed by companies volunteering their equipment, and operator services, at no charge to the Scouting Council.

In a bit, we drove up on what Windham informed me was a newly-constructed shooting range where Scouts can be properly instructed in firing shotguns, rifles and archery, He then introduced me to Brenda Simmons, Shooting Sports Director, who hails from Jonesboro, LA. She, along with a number of her charges were using a chalk dispenser to mark off the boundaries of the target range, and then installing targets at measured distances, so as to check the accuracy of the Scouts firing in the Shooting Sports program.

As we left the firing range we encountered a golf cart occupied by Camp Director Scott Branch and Program Director Albert Hamlin. They halted, crawled out and began to bring us up to date on the latest in renovations on Camp Attakapas grounds.

Branch stated, "We have really upgraded our facilities this fall, plus weÆve just finished construction on our firing range, of which we're very proud." He went on to say, "For our Winter Camp that's just getting underway today, we have literally installed the infrastructure of a small city, complete with medical facilities, and medical personal, and we will be serving three complex meals per day to over 150 Boy Scouts and WEBELOS Cub Scouts, and to over 50 Scouting leaders and supervisory personnel. That translates out to over 3000 meals being served in the five-day interim.

Many of the Scouts involved have parents present who take their vacations at this time of year to enable them to spend quality time in the outdoors with their children. Director Branch went on, "We are also the only Scouting complex in the State offering a LA State Certified Hunter's Safety Course."

Another novel feature of the Winter Camp will be the opportunity to indulge in the Annual Polar Bear Plunge. This is a group activity, where the scouts wearing only swimming trunks can take a very quick, supervised dip in Searcy Lake, swim about 50 feet, then hop out and quickly don warm, dry clothing. This activity is conducted from  a well-constructed boat dock here on their  own personal lake, with the dock normally used by Scouts and their Leaders to teach boating safety and other Scouting aquatic skills in season,during camping sessions sanctioned by the Scout District.

How the Searcy Gravel Pit Lake came into being has never been fully revealed because thereÆs no one left living that fully knows when or how it was created.  In the 1960's this 12-acre lake was sounded in a SCS survey team and found to be 53 feet deep. This marvelous body of water is the perfect compliment to a very impressive facility, and is used mostly to promote water safety.

As we were concluding our tour, Branch and Hamlin were quick to point out that none of the recent improvements to the camp could have been accomplished without the aid of several firms and businesses in the area.

Branch said, "We would like to especially thank A.C.A. Corporation, Rexell, Sesco A/C, Elliot's Electrical, Rinker Industries, IRG, CLECO and ENTERGY, Doug Girod, ThaxtonÆs Stump Grinding Services, Justiss Oil Company, Town & Country General Store, McCartney Oil Co, Ricky Thompson and Pineland Construction."

Hamblin quickly added, "Because of their dedicated efforts, these pine ridges are alive with the laughter and yells of young men having a great time in the great outdoors, while being properly supervised and cared for in the Scouting tradition."

As we departed, we felt we were in complete agreement with these two dedicated young men, as well as their co-workers.

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