Fall Hike

Disclaimer: This is not a kind post.

One of Matthew's cub scout assignments was to write a proposal for a fall hike. No date was given for this hike, but we knew it would be in October or November. So he wrote a little proposal and suggested the Wind Cave Trail in Usery, which is a 3-mile round trip out-and-back hike up to a neat cave with a cool view. There's also a 1-mile flat loop that goes around a short hill for smaller siblings and parents who don't want to climb. If that's not enough, the park has a nature center so kids and adults could learn something about the area. Matthew suggested meeting at 7:30 am with the hike starting at 8 am. (One of my biggest pet peeves about the cub scout camping/hiking leader is that nothing starts at reasonable times or ON time, so we are all for an early morning hike for ambitious--as they should be--scouts).

Yesterday I received an email from that leader announcing the plan for the fall hike. It's this Saturday. Oh, well thanks for the notice! It's not at Wind Cave. It's at South Mountain's Fat Man's Pass. That's a nice destination, but it's four miles long and there's not a lot to see on the way. Also, they're meeting at the younger kids' hiking area (some 2-mile trek that's likely really boring because there aren't too many destination hikes at South Mountain) and carpooling up to Dobbins Lookout with the older kids. The most shocking part? They are meeting at 3 pm. 

First of all, the forecast is sunny and 94 degrees on Saturday. So starting a hike at the hottest part of the day is just about the worst idea that guy ever had. And he's had many. Second, not everyone is going to arrive at 3:00 and he herds people at a snail's pace, so they'll be lucky to leave with the carpool by 3:30. Once they get to the lookout, the boys will want to look out. This hike may start at 4:00. Mark my words, they are going to run out of daylight.

I have a hunch he didn't read any of the boys' proposals and that he knew all along what the hike was going to be. Because this plan sounds like something that would come from his brain.

I have little faith this will be fun, and I'm so glad we're not going to be around for this disaster.