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Ice Fishing

Boy Scout Troop 21, left to right: Scout Damien-Michael Jacques, Senior Patrol Leader Richard L. LaBonte Jr. and Scout Nathan Olson try their hands at ice fishing. Photo: John D. Ryan

 

 

STAFFORD — Yes, you can comfortably camp in the wintertime. Just ask the Scouts from Troop 21, in Putnam. They just spent a successful weekend camping and fishing in Stafford Springs.

“It’s fun to get the kids out and show them they can camp and fish and have fun in the winter,” said Scoutmaster Peter A. Lombardo of Putnam. “We make sure the boys had the right equipment for winter, and the tents go up just like in the summer. It was a really good time.”

With permission from the landowner, last weekend Troop 21 pitched their tents and set up their gear along the pond and woods at Quatrano Farm, on private property in Stafford Springs, so Lombardo and other volunteer Scout leaders could teach the boys how to camp in the snow, including, among a number of activities, fire building, camp cooking, ice fishing, animal tracking in the snow and using a map and compass.

Chartered to St. Mary Church of the Visitation in Putnam, Troop 21 is open to any boy aged 11 to 17. Scouts do not have to be Catholic or be members of the church. Lombardo noted that a Boy Scout troop’s operations are run by the boys, with the adults overseeing transportation and making sure everyone is healthy and safe.

“Scouting helps to build character and leadership in young men,” Lombardo said. “We show boys they can have self confidence and do things they wouldn’t otherwise challenge themselves to do. We’d love to have more Scouts in our troop and show them the fun we have.”