Photo Above: The crew of 623-H-6 just south of Cimarroncito Camp, en route to Clark's Fork.
What is it about Philmont that never quite lets go of us? Why do we get a far-away look
when we recall the words of the Philmont Hymn?
The reasons may be as unique as all the Scouts and Scouters who have ever hiked those "magic mountains,"
the term applied to Philmont's glorious backcountry by Minor S. Huffman, first manager of the combined Philmont properties.
But even if there are many individual reasons, I think there is also something
universal about Philmont's appeal.
Here is the way I described it in the original typewritten introduction to this journal,
which records the experiences of Scouts and Scouters from Atlanta's
Troop 455 on Trek 4 (now re-designated Trek 1) in 1987.
"Silver on the sage..."Do the words talk to you? Do they touch something deep inside? They should. You've been there. You've experienced the star-lit skies and aspen-covered hills, seen the wind blow softly through whisp'ring pines and gazed into the distance to see majestic mountains rising purple against an azure sky.
"But don't think of Philmont as just a place, beautiful though it is. Think of it, too, as a time when you and your buddies hiked the fields together, challenged the mountains together, endured the hardships together and tested yourselves - together - against the trails that were uncertain, the stream crossings that were not marked and the bears you always thought were nearby but could not see."
Maybe after all these years, that's why Philmont remains a part
of me and I suppose that's why, after a dozen years, I decided to convert
the journal to HTML and post it on the Internet with photos.
At the bottom of this page you will also find a link to my journal from our
follow-up trip in 1988 on Trek 10 (now re-numbered as Trek 18).
A precautionary note to those bound for Philmont for the first time.
Undoubtedly, some of the procedures, programs and even trails described
in this account may have changed during the intervening years. So this
should be read less as a guidebook and more as an account of
what it's like to hike those "magic mountains."
|
Intro Page |
Day 1 Base Camp |
Day 2 Vaca |
Day 3 Deer Lake |
Day 4 'Cito |
Day 5 'Cito |
|
Day 6 Clarks Fork |
Day 7 N.Fork Urraca |
Day 8 Black Mtn. |
Day 9 Buck Cr. |
Day 10 Agua Fria |
Day 11 New Abreu |
|
Day 12 Tent City |
Day 13 Departure |
Follow This Link To The 1988 Journal
Some Philmont-related sites I recommend
Philmont Historical Trivia: Lucien Maxwell
and Billy the Kid
