Spy Rock – April 2017 – Buxx/Dragons
by Albert Zhang
Early in the morning on April Fool’s a small group of roughly twenty to thirty scouts left on a three hour drive to the Crabtree Falls/Spy Rock in the Appalachian Mountains. As participation in certain patrols were low during this outing, our patrols merged into four large patrols. Once everybody arrived at the bottom of Crabtree Falls, we separated into our patrols and then departed at different time periods. I was in the patrol containing the Buxx, the Dragons, and the Vikings, who left last.
A long and tiring trek up countless switchbacks and staircases led us to the top of Crabtree Falls, where we met another two other patrols sitting on large rocks and eating lunch. After resting for about half an hour, all of the other patrols left, so we could finally have a moment for ourselves before leaving, too. Compared to the hike up Crabtree Falls, the walk afterwards was easy, but it soon got cold.
Once we found a campsite, which just happened to be housing another patrol, we set up our tents and ate dinner, which was freeze-dried, shepard’s pie, and had a campfire. After the sun set and it got dark, we got our bear bag up and hit the hay, ready for tomorrow.
The next day was cold and bright, but thankfully it didn’t rain, as opposed to the stories told about last year’s outing the Crabtree Falls. For breakfast, we quickly ate bagels and sausages and packed up our things and left for Spy Rock. After an hour or so, we finally arrived at Spy Rock, which was just a huge boulder that provided wonderful and breathtaking views of the Appalachian Mountains. 
Once we made our way down from Spy Rock, we walked down to a parking lot, where our cars would be driven to us and we would be taken back home. Despite the cold, it was a fun outing and we did some exciting things.
