Ben Corner: Scouts on Ice

What is the best calling in the church? Simple: Young Men Leader. Why? You get to act like a teenager all over again. Take this last weekend's snow camp. When else do grown men get to go out, build igloos, get two hours of sleep, and go sledding off irresponsibly large jumps? Not often.

The trip was really a two part saga. Part one was the first day and night, which proved to be one big object lesson on Alma 34:33.

"...therefore, I beseech of you that ye do not procrastinate the day of your repentance until the end; for after this day of life, which is given us to prepare for eternity, behold, if we do not improve our time while in this life, then cometh the night of darkness wherein there can be no labor performed."

Basically we had six hours of day light to make a shelter out of snow to get us through the night which proved to be VERY cold. Some chose to build igloos, some chose snow caves, some went sledding, some managed to soak themselves to the bone within the first half hour; but I think most people were wishing they had put just a little more time into their shelter when the sun went down and they shimmied into there coffin-sized ice shelter to stay for the next ten hours, sleep or not (and it was mostly not). Here's me next to my coffin-sized niche in our igloo. Doesn't that look toasty?

Speaking of our igloo, we did an awesome job thanks to our muscle, Kent; our structural engineer, Danny; and our Canadian, Eldon. Despite being made of jerry-rigged blocks of snow, our well-chinked dome easily held all four of us the next morning. (The little pink flag is to make sure people didn't accidentally walk over my afore mentioned ice coffin coming off the main dome).

Everyone managed to survive the night with all their fingers and toes. Some people just did it in a little more style than others (we had a few boys abandon their shelters, but we're not naming names).

In the morning we entered part two of the saga, that vital key to every successful outdoor endeavor: doing something stupid. It started with a steep slope, some sleds, some intertubes, and a lot of bored teenagers. It didn't take long for a jump to be built. I arrived on the scene from an errand just in time to see Danny add the finishing touches to what proved to be one of the most brutally effective jumps I've ever seen. We were LAUNCHING people. Sol Garcia, Dallas Pinkham, and Drew Smith get the most air awards for the youth. But the adults weren't about to be shown up. Just about everyone took the chance to partake of the big air, including yours truly.

All in all the trip was great. For more pictures see the website Danny set up. Here are some parting shots. Our igloo in the shadow of Rainier and the boys strapping on their snowshoes.