For all you scouters out there.
Why am I not surprised that surveying was one of the harder badges earned.
What exactly do they do to get the surveying badge?
Until I heard about it here several years ago, I didn't even know they offered one.
Unfortunately I got moved around too much as a kid to stay with a troop. In fact two towns we lived in didn't have any scout troops at all. No way I could begin to remember what badges I ever had. The only thing I know I still have is my ancient yellow and blue cub-scout scarf from about 1968.
I do know Taso's oldest son made Eagle Scout in the last year or two. The younger may very well be now as well. I haven't seen his boys in several years. I bet they're about as big as me or bigger. Imagine they both have higher belts, if not black, in karate by now.
The requirements for Surveying Merit Badge can be found here:
http://www.scouting.org/scoutsource/boyscouts/advancementandawards/meritbadges/mb-surv.aspx
I earned 24 (the minimum required in 1976 for Eagle), My son has 29. All 135 is very impressive, especially for a teenage boy.
My son works for me part time in the summers and even he doesn't have the Surveying Merit Badge, and I'm a Surveying Merit Badge Counselor. But I can't say much I didn't earn the Surveying Merit Badge either.
Thanks Dan.
Wow! No wonder that kid said the surveying badge was the hardest.
I don't think I could write a metes and bounds description. I could a draw map from one but probably not write a good one from scratch.
Without some help and coaching I don't know I could do the level loop either.
I've only helped a couple times and didn't really know what I was doing. We were in a hurry so there wasn't really much opportunity to teach.
Interesting they put all that first aid stuff in #1. First aid was pretty much the first badge any of us ever got in the cub scouts. The stuff about poison plants makes sense though.
What a good kid !
The requirements have been upgraded a bit since I taught several scouts about 1980-83. The five sided figure was described, bearings and distances, closure to be measured in the field. No calculations required. I think there was also a requirement to complete a miniature range line, base line layout. The manual described the PLSS system as similar and covering much of the United States.
