Who was BP

The Scout movement has 104 years old, and is the largest young association known.

But the people outside the movement doesn't know who, where, when it was founded.

Talking about the scout's history, we need to talk about one emblematic person, Sir Robert Sephenson Smyth, Lord Baden Powell of Gilwell, father and founder of the Boy Scouts. He was a Lt Gen from the Royal Army, in Great Britain. He was born in February of 1857. In his childhood along side with his brothers, they liked to make trips inside the forest, or sailing a little boat in the Thames.

This experiences were useful when he enlisted in the Army. He was assigned in the 13th Reg. of Husars, which was located in India. He possessed an outstanding brightness and common sense, and a high developed sense of sight and observation. He was a natural-born hunter, and in many times won the best prices in hunting competitions.

This skills were aplyed many times against hostile tribes in Africa, earning the name of "Impeesa" Wolf who never sleeps.

In 1899 the Boer war draged BP (frendly name for all scouts) to the front, wich took place in South Africa, in the Transvaal region. The boers are dutch descendents who now are known as Africaneers.

BP held a little town named Mafeking wich was a crucial post, having 3 roads crossing and gain access to the entire region. Durin 219 days he could managed the way to content the enemy strikes. He used everything aviable, church bells to make cannons, horses to provide food, empty cans of cookies to make light reflector, and all kind of gadgets to deceive the enemy.

He used the boys to deliver messages, spy enemy lines, supply the lines, activities wich the kids were helpful. And they accomplished their task bravery and with out fear or lack of responsabilty. Here is the base of the idea for create something useful for the youth.

Returning to England as a war Hero, he descovered that his military handbook Aids to Scouting, wich was written for his soldiers, was a mayor hit between the young boys, attracting them to the wilderness life and the art of the exploring.

In 1907 took place the first Scout camping in the Brownsea Island, which is located in the south of England, gathering 20 boys and conforming 4 patrols, leading by the Gide patrol, and running the Patrol System, base of the Scouting system.

In 1908 wrote Scouting for Boys, key stone book of the entire Scouting. In this book BP write all about his experience, and the way of the Scout should be.

In 1920 the first "Jamboree" took place in Olympia, Eng. Jamboree, in ancient language means Tribes gathering. The Jamboree is an international camping where Scouts from all over the world get together and share experiences. The next Jamboree will take place at Kristianstad, Sweden in July.

BP died on January 8th, 1941. He's buried along side his wife Lady BP, in Kenya Africa.

The legacy of him is to give youth and humanity a better world, providing men and woman committed with the people, caring the world, being unselfish and in the BP words:

"Try to leave this world a little better than you found it and, when your turn comes to die, you can die happy in feeling that at any rate you have not wasted your time but have done your best"

Here is the link to the international and mexican Scouts web page

http://scout.org/es

http://www.scouts.org.mx/

My First Camping

When I look back and try to remember when was my first camping with the Scouts, I can't believe that took place 22 years ago, and I can still remember so many details of it.

The camping took place in May of 1989 and it was a 3 days camping, in the place named "San Rafael", in the lower border of the Iztacihuatl's head. And my troop wasn't the only one, the girls troop was invited too. There were about 60 boys and girls heading to a new and unespected great adventure.

We arrived at the town of San Rafael, arround 10 am and started to walk into the mountain. This was my very first expierence in a camping like this, carring my bagpack with my clothes, food, water, lamp, sleeping bag and some other things. For an 11 years old kid, it was a lot and the load was heavy.

Our destination was a place called "Cascada de los Diamantes" wich is a waterfall created by the melting snow of the mountain.

Being so many scouts on the road, and a lot of new guys, just like me, who were not used to walk and carring heavy stuffs, the people line was delayed. On the road to this place there are certain key points, to wait for the delayed ones and choose the right way. So with this situation, the people who reach first this points had to wait about 2 hours until the last one arrived; this situation deleyed our walk a lot.

The night fall down, and we were stuck in gully, the only way out was climbing along side the mountain wall to reach higher ground and continue the walk. Finally we could got out. Along the wall, the raod had only 1 meter wide; on one side, the climbing wall and in the other side a 20 mts fall. You don't need to be a genius to figure out what could happend if you fall down, in fact, there was some crosses of people who had died in that place.

I can't describe the feeling when I was walking that wall, between fear and sharpness. Finally we all passed through; no one fallen down.

Whe spend the first night into a kind of cave, the ground had no place to set our camp tents, and we were in a kind of corredor. That was my first time sleeping in the outside and having a stone as my pillow, besides hearing the voice of a night-owl kid who was asking to be lighted in every step he made. It was so funny.

The morning showed up, with a cold sugar cornflakes breakfast with grape juice, giving the new day strenghts.

Our trip was almost complete. To our surprise, we spend the night in a few meters of our destination, and having a disappointed view of the waterfall, just a fine string of water falling down.

The joke time of the day: one of my friends carried his goggles, snorkel and flippers, hoping to take a nice swim in the waterfall. This never happened.

We had to move to an other place, and set the camping site. We climbed up to the mountain to find some flat terrain and so we did, making a large chain and passing the luggage.

Finally we were able to set our camp tents, having time to make a hot meal, have some fun and rest in a flat comfortable tent with out any strange noise.

Next day, was the returning day. We set all our gear and prepared to walk down the mountain. There are two ways to climb down that mountain, one is on the car road, and the other is across the "el tubo" a pipe which is used to collect the melting water and carries down to the town. I chose the car road, it was wider and safer and less rocky.

As well in the beginning, the returning was slow, reaching the key points late. We reached the bus to México at 8 o'clock pm, arriving at the Tapo terminal around 10 pm, and from there to my home almost an other hour. My home is Azcapotzalco, near by the "Casco de Santo Tomás", which is the IPN oldest campus.

Many of my friends lived in the same neighborhood as I, so we returned together once we got in the subway. The nearest subway station to my home is "Normal", and from there you get a "microbus".

That night an electrical storm came down, and leaving the area without electrical power. When we got out the station, the bus wanted to charge an extra cost for each one, and making an special trip for us. We decided it was better to walk home and save the extra money.

At this point I don't want to talk about our parents. In those days there wasn't cell phones, so we couldn't inform every 5 min about our location. Obviously our parents were waiting in the park where we use to gather each saturday. In those days it was a little bit difficult to inform at the exact time. I thought they were a "little" concerned about us.

Finally I got home, in the middle of the dark, almost at midnight, tired and little bit wet. Having the best experience of my life, challenge me in all senses and loving this activity like no one. It was so intense that I can still remember many details, smells, tastes, faces and situations even after 22 years. So far my first and very best camping in my life.

Part Of My Life

This history begins when I was 11 years old. One saturday afternoon I was sitting watching TV, when suddenly my mother told to my sister and me "Well kids, I can't stand watching you wasting the weekends afternoons watching TV and doing nothing, so come on, lets go..." Mariana, who is my sister and two years younger than me, looked at me waiting the worst.

Mariana and I grew up always as the only kids in the buildings where we were lived. We didn't had "home friends", only the school friends and obviously we spend many afternoons playing only each other.

My older cousin named Alejandro had the experience to be a Boy Scout, and to be more specific a Cub Scout, wich is the name of the kids who have between 7 and 11 years old. So from my cousin and aunt expirience, my mother decided took my sister and I to the nearest Boy Scout group.

So, that afternoon, the first weekend of december of 1988, we were introduced to the Scouting world. I remember when we arrived, I was so angry because I didn't want to be in the Scouts, I've heard aboout it, but I wasn't intrested.

My mother talked to the Group Chief and he introduced her to the particular branch chiefs, better known as Scouters. My sister entered with the girls named "Gacelas" girls from 7 to 11 years old, and I joined to the "Tropa" boys from 11 to 18.

In those days, the grup was one of the biggest arround my comunity, perhaps 200 members, only the Troop was about 40. So you can imagine the impression when you see 40 "nasty" guys dressed up, and watching at you.

The Troop is conform by patrols who adopt the name of animals, trying to emulate the virtues of such animals; so I entered to the "Bufalos" patrol. It didn't took to many time to realize that I was wrong about the Scouts; they were fun, playing like a bunch a good friends, teasing and joking, but always with respect and order, beside learning the ways of the wild life. It was to good to be real.

By the end of the activity time, my sister and I ran to mom and asked to buy the scout uniform for the next week.

It only took two hours to make our minds change, amazing!

Since that day, I thank to my mother to had the vision for my sister and I to put us in the right place, with the right people.

Today I run the Troop as the Chief, watching in every new kid my own face and feelings, and being transformed as well as me after the end of the day.

So, if you asked me if the Scouts worth the effort, I will answer you: "Yes, and a thousand times yes"