December Service Project

From Keith :

Just finalized arrangements with Pastor Pele for the December service project as follows:


December 19th 9am-12pm at the same location as last year: 1822 Frink Street, Cayce, SC

Service will be the same type activities as last year.  There is tremendous need for food so please bring canned goods.  Pastor Pele also mentioned that he helps kids with Christmas presents that are in troubled situations by trying to get Boy/Girl Christmas gifts.

I know we have been talking about sponsoring families in need for Christmas and this would give us the opportunity to do both. I did not committ to getting presents but said I would ask the group.

Any individual family that wants to supply a boy/girl gift can do so by getting a gift, wrapping it, and labeling by gender and age appropriateness.

Please let me know if you will be attending and how many so I can give Pastor Pele an idea of how many to expect.

Happy Trails,

Keith

James Island County Park

It's that time again - one of our favorite campouts of the year!  Victor and Normand are hosting.  Please contact them ASAP if you are attending.

Info on :

the park : http://www.ccprc.com/index.aspx?nid=68
the climbing wall : http://www.ccprc.com/index.aspx?NID=161
the lights : http://www.ccprc.com/index.aspx?nid=140

Note :
Remembe to bring chairs, plates, cups, silverware, snacks, family flag, shoes and a broom (regulation size dust broom)  - We will playing a game Saturday morning involving running and brooms.

The menu is:

• Dinner: Hot Dogs, hamburgers, baked beans, and dessert  
• Breakfast: French toast, bacon, and fruit  
• Lunch: Sandwiches and chips  
• Dinner: Mini pizzas, garlic bread, and dessert  
• Breakfast: Pancakes, little smokies, and fruit

Daddy Daughter Dance October 17th!

The YMCA Trailblazers will be hosting"An Enchanted Evening"Daddy / Daughter dance on Saturday, October 17thatSaxe Gotha Presbyterian Church More information coming soon!!!

Scottish Games in Charleston 9/19

http://charlestonscots.org/

We are meeting at the Orangeburg Cracker Barrel at 8:00 on Saturday! That's at exit 145A on I-26.

Take EXIT 145A US-601 S RAMP 0.45 miles

Stay STRAIGHT to go onto SAINT MATTHEWS RD/ST MATTHEWS RD/US-601 (Going Southwest) 0.20 miles

Turn LEFT onto CITADEL RD (Going East) 0.08 miles

Turn RIGHT onto REGIONAL PKY (Going East) 0.48 miles

Turn RIGHT onto CITADEL RD (Going Southeast) 1.26 miles

The Games are at Boone Hall Plantation :

Directions :

From I-26: Take I-526 East towards Mt. Pleasant. Take the Long Point Road exit.
At bottom of exit turn Left. The entrace to Boone Hall will be 2 miles up on the
left.

Address :

1235 Long Point RoadMt. Pleasant, SC 29464

Location :

http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&source=s_q&hl=en&geocode=&q=1235+Long+Point+Road,+Mt.+Pleasant,+SC+29464&sll=33.773665,-81.019795&sspn=0.832171,0.961304&ie=UTF8&z=17&iwloc=A

side trip : North Fork Edisto

This isn't an official Trailblazer trip, just a (growing!) number of folks going paddling.

Orangeburg is about an hour away from the Columbia area. The shuttle is about 20 minutes, the river about 10 miles or about 3 hours.

Trail description : http://www.sctrails.net/Trails/ALLTRAILS/WaterTrails/EdistoNoFork.html

Takeout, meeting place : http://maps.google.com/maps?q=33.48582+-80.87075
Put in : http://maps.google.com/maps?q=33.525487,-80.947402
My "google map" : http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?ie=UTF&msa=0&msid=113743287332160291459.000472becb5544b5dc88a

Gauge : http://waterdata.usgs.gov/nwis/uv?cb_00060=on&cb_00065=on&format=gif_default&period=7&site_no=02173500

Info about the gardens : http://www.orangeburg.sc.us/gardens/

Dreher Outing Sunday August 16

We have a family outing scheduled for this Sunday afternoon that we hope you can attend. We considered Saluda Shoals, but the shelters are booked. Dreher Island has 15 shelters available (1st come 1st serve) at no charge.

This is a family event and we are planning to grill hotdogs and have a "pot-luck" meal. So please plan to bring a dish or 2 to share

Time: Sunday August 16th from 2:00 to 6:30PM +/-

Place: Dreher Island State Recreation Area

3677 State Park RD
Prosperity,SC 29127

Phone: (803) 364-4152

website - http://www.southcarolinaparks.com/park-finder/state-park/1371.aspx

Driving Directions:
From I-26: Take exit 91 (Chapin exit- Hwy. 48) to Chapin. Turn rt on Hwy 76 for 1/8 mile, then turn left onto St. Peter's Church Rd (Hwy. 29) for 4 mi. Turn left onto Dreher Island Rd (Hwy 231) for approximately 3 mi. Then turn onto State Park Rd for 2 mi. to the park entrance.

• Admissions: $2 adults; $1.25 SC seniors; age 15 & younger free
• Days and Hours of Operation: M-Su Dawn to Dusk

Whitewater Rafting on the Nantahala

Per Chris :
This is scheduled for July 31-August2. We will camp on the 31st and the 1st and raft on the 1st. Camping at Ela camp ground, prices is $5/person/tent/night. Cabins are available at $8/person/night. 5 person requirement for cabin. Have not discussed down payment with camp ground people yet. Rafting sat. 10am which should put us back in time for lunch. Cost $22/person for guide assisted. We will be rafting with the paddle inn rafting co. payment due when we get there as a whole.

We need a head count for the august outing ASAP - please contact Chris Himes.

The campground :

• http://www.elacampground.com/index.html
• 5100 Ela road(US 19 North) Bryson City, NC, 28713
• 828-488-2440

The rafting company :

• http://www.paddleinnrafting.com/
• 14611 US 19 West Bryson City, NC 28713
• 828-488-9651

Directions :

http://maps.yahoo.com/#mvt=h&lat=35.390785&lon=-83.489445&zoom=13&q1=5100%2520Ela%2520road%2520Bryson%2520city%252C%2520NC%252028713&q2=14611%2520US%252019%2520West%2520Bryson%2520City%252C%2520Nc%252028713

Menu
Fri - Dinner - on your own
Sat - Breakfast - French Toast and Little Smokies
Sat- Lunch - Sandwiches (*)
Sat - Dinner - Chicken (BYO), salads, sides, cobblers
Sun - Breakfast - Breakfast Burritos and Grits

(*) I would strongly encourage you to bring a snack for after rafting - lunch will likely be a bit late - Scott

Saluda Whitewater Canoeing

This outing is planned to be a canoe trip on the Saluda that will include some instruction and a chance to run some whitewater. Tentatively we are planning to go from Riverbanks Zoo down to the Gervais Street bridge. This stretch includes several class I and II rapids.

These are the topics we will cover before going down the river :

• Boat control - some tips on what to do to make the boat go where you want it to
• "Reading the water" - some tips on how to know where to go when running a rapid
• Rescue - what to do when your boat tips over -

• how to swim in moving water

  how to use a throw rope

  how to perform a "boat over boat" rescue

We'll be practicing these in the water so be ready to get wet!

Schedule :

• 09:00 hrs we will meet at the Riverbanks Zoo Parking lot (Right side of the parking lot facing the zoo entrance)
• 09:30 hrs be in the water and start instruction
• 10:30 - 11:00 hrs head down river
• 12:00 - lunch
• 14:00-15:00 get out of the river!

Between the Broam "fleet" and the YMCA's canoes, we can provide 6-8 canoes and equipment. We know that a number of you have canoes, too. We ought to be able to come up with boats for all, but if not, we can rent additional canoes and share the cost (which should be minimal).

NOTE : While this trip will be suitable for even our smallest and youngest Trailblazers, note that having more than one child in your canoe will be more challenging (but not impossible). If you would like to bring more than one youngster with you, consider recruiting an adventurous uncle, grandpa, or mom to come along. Please contact Scott if you have any questions or concerns.

Watch this space for a checklist of things to bring!

Virginia Creeper Trail Trip

Some handy links

A map of various points of interest and a route from Lexington to the campground :
http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?ie=UTF&msa=0&msid=113743287332160291459.00046befe6f2e31c1fa6e

The campground - Grindstone Campground near Troutdale, VA :
http://www.recreation.gov/camping/Grindstone_Va/r/campgroundDetails.do?page=details&contractCode=NRSO&parkId=70449&topTabIndex=CampingSpot

The bike outfitter : http://www.jcsoutdoors.com/
Trail information :
http://www.vacreepertrail.org/
http://www.vacreepertrail.com/trailMaps/trailMaps.htm

Backpacking trip to Ellicott Rock

What a great trip!

Ft. Discovery

It was a dark and rainy afternoon. We drove from SC all the way to Georgia and...WE HAD A LOT OF FUN! Fort Discovery was awesome! We spun in the Gyro, were weightless for a minute, and got a big workout on the bike simulator. The astronomy showing was great. Who has seen Orion, Taurus, Sirius or any other constellations? The chemistry show gets 3 thumbs up! Who knew there were so many uses for liquid nitrogen?!? My favorite part was the "Dinosaur egg." This outing was awesome! I hope we get to go again!!!!

Go to this link to view some photos:
http://picasaweb.google.com/JoeMadge/SCYMCATrailblazersAdventures?authkey=UvLsXD7sKzA#

Your Historian,
Jolie F-M

Outing to Ft. Discovery

We spent the day at Ft. Discovery, a hands on science museum, in Augusta, GA.

The Dad's Outing

The Dad's had an overnight outing at the Lexington Y. We bowled, ate BBQ at Porky D's, sat around a campfire, and ate breakfast at the IHOP Sunday. We decided that might be how we hold the Dad's Planning Meetings in the future...