Karl Winegar was our scoutmaster. He took us waterskiing, boating, camping, fishing and led us through merit badges as well. He realized at our first boating trip that none of us knew how to swim, so he quickly arranged for some training at the Bountiful indoor swimming pool. We paddled through our swimming and lifesaving merit badges only to disappoint Karl by being just as scared to waterski the next time around. When we finished [our swimming classes] we could retrieve weights, dive from the boards, and do every conceivable stroke. For our final graduation, we swam one mile [nonstop] and jumped into the deep, fully dressed, and proceeded to undress in the water, then using our clothes we bound [the] sleeves and legs to hold air and keep us afloat.
I also become an avid fisherman. Our favorite pass time would be to go down to the Jordon River Pumping Plan to see how many catfish we could catch. We even tried to get mom to fix them for us when we returned, only to find out that they [the fish] were still alive [after having been] hours out of the water. Fishing trips to Strawberry Reservoir also spurred us on to purchase more and better equipment, because we knew that best fisherman had a thousand different things in his [or her] box. [This we did] even though there were many [lures, weights, and things that] we didn't know how to use or what they were for.
After a few years, I became [the scout] patrol leader and was [expected] to lead our group to camp. Again, we were much smaller than most [troops] but [we were] eager to compete [with the other teams]. We elected to go to East Fork of the Bear in the Uintah [mountains] and try our luck. I remember three experiences that help to illustrate what abilities I developed to lead at that young age. We were always expected by Karl to get up at his call and start the fire, so he could leave his tent [after the fire was started] and not face the cold. So every morning we would gather and stack our little twigs while he watched, but when his head was [back] inside his tent we would use Noel's lighter fluid to create a warming blaze. Another time we were out on a wildcat hike at night. It was our job to follow a pair of glowing eyes from tree to tree until we arrived at our destination [the eyes were reflectors that had been tacked to trees to look like the eyes of a wildcat]. We set out with flashlights in hand only to become lost, cold, and scared. As a last resort, we built a fire, had a prayer, and were [eventually] rescued.
At the same camp, they had a large freshwater lake that was planted with fish. Because of our past fishing success, we were excited to try and win the prize for [catching] the largest fish. They should have awarded a prize for any fish since no one was lucky [enough to catch a fish] but we didn't know any better. So we got up at 4:30 AM on a night with a full moon, with the intention of making a clean sweep of the fishing seen. When we were dressed and ready, I led my troop proudly down the path [down to the lake] but decided to find a shortcut to the lake. Just like before, we soon found [that] we were lost and discouraged. Yet we were lucky enough to run across the head camp director's cabin. His dog barked until he came out half dressed and gave us new directions. From there we fought [the] foliage and steep slopes to [finally arrive at] the lake shore ... our 15-minute walk had taken an hour or more, and much of our desire to ... Next Page
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