Pitch –

I had the best scoutmaster growing up. As I recall, he was a real cowboy who grew up on the Mogollon Rim herding cattle and working on a ranch. To me, he knew everything about camping and the outdoors. Me, and my friends would have done just about anything for him. We regarded him as an expert mountain man.

When I became a scout leader I knew that if I could be half the type of leader he was to me I could make a difference in lives of young men.

One of his many skills was his uncanny ability to find ‘pitch’ on outings. Pitch is what he called downed pine wood that was filled with tree wax, or sap. It’s nature’s best fire-starter. As it burns, burning sap drips off it like liquid fire. To pyro-maniac boy scouts finding pitch is as exciting as finding gold.

As a scout leader I’ve always kept my eye out for pitch. In the three years that I’ve been a scout leader (or is it four) I have always wanted to impress my scouts like I was impressed by my scoutmaster who found pitch. Finally, last week at scout camp, I found some.

I showed the boys the pitch and we lit a small piece, but because we didn’t have campfires this week at camp they weren’t able to truly understand the fire starting powers of pitch.

Finding pitch last week made me feel a strong connection to my own scoutmaster, and reminded me of the type of scout leader I want to be. I probably will never be as good a leader as he was, but it’s what I’m striving for.

Scott

Me and my scoutmaster at scout camp 1993:

Scout Camp 2008: