Merry Christmas and Happy New Year

To everyone out there from my family to yours Merry Christmas and Happy New Year. May Santa bring you some cool and new outdoor gear. Heres hoping your 2010 is a fun and successful year, as for me I got a lot to look forward too. Not only is 2010 the 100th Anniversary of the Boy Scouts of America it is also the 40th anniversary of Troop 187. This troop has been running continuously for since 1970 I hope our 40th year is the best one of them all. Its shaping up to be a good one and I hope it is. God Bless everyone and have a Happy and safe Holiday and New Year.



PA Pathfinder and Scoutmaster of Troop 187,
Mike Hines

Well Mother Nature Stepped in and messed up the weekend...

The best laid plans of mice and men and so on, with the weekend about to become a wash out with rain all night tonight and bout 2 inches of rain Saturday looks like ill have a weekend to relax at home i suppose. Oh well, it happens, but seriously it couldnt wait till next weekend to rain LOL. Take care everyone

Camping and hunting

Well hitting the woods this weekend to camp with my scout troop for a weekend hope its fun weekend and a relaxing one at that. If thats possible being the scoutmaster LOL, hope the weather don't repeat this weekend with cold rains, snow flurries, and the like. Will make another post in the coming weeks. Things have been busy in the last few weeks.

Also hunting draws nearer as Small Game opens up in a few days cant wait to go and hope I have some good luck as Im returning to hunting after a 5 year hiatus. Im sure its like a bike once you know you never forget.

Take care

Pausing to reflect on 9/11 the 8th anniversy

Its been said numerous times by numerous people September 11, 2001 started off as plain as any day. It was beautiful early fall day, everyone was of to work or school just like any other day but nobody knew or could even fathom that after this day America would never be the same. I myself was a freshman in High School, was in just getting into my second block class when someone says "Hey man you hear one of the WTC towers was hit by a plane." I was like no no i didn't, you know at first you think well lots of plane traffic around NYC could be an accident. But when the second plane hit the tower 2........then the Pentagon..........we all knew it then things were going to be different very different. We all knew all these events meant war and that someone was going to pay for this, but that was the farthest thing from our minds this day. We all sat and hoped and prayed that everyone would come out safely and naively think that no one was gonna die. Then the first tower after withstanding such a mighty blow finally had to succumb to its wounds and as soon as we say that building give you knew in a flash faster then you can think or blink someones husband, wife, daughter, son, just had there lives snuffed out. The saddest part the fireman who laid their lives on the line running in while others were running out. My heart goes out to the 343 NYFD who never came home and made there final call that day, it also goes out the the NYPD, PAPD, and the innocent men and women who were tragically lost that day.

The biggest thing Ill remember is 9/12/2001, finally this country woke up and realized hey we are all the same there was no more hyphenated Americans, no Republicans no Democrats, Liberals, Conservatives... WE WERE ALL AMERICANS!!!! United and loving everyone and doing things to help your fellow man. But, sadly that feeling has faded and we quickly lapsed back to the bigotry and narrow mindedness that this country always seems to slip into these days. Its sad if ever there was a positive to such a massive negative it was that we learned how to care, how to love, how to show compassion for the fellow citizens in this great land, but that too has faded.

The saddest of all tragedies is I honestly think that 8 years later most people just choose to forget and not care what happened on 9/11. Instead they want to crawl back into the hole where they were on 9/10/2001 thinking nothing could happen. I like most people wish 9/11 never happened, I wish we didn't have to go through such turbulent times, but it happened. We should never forget, always keep the a prayer out for the fallen and the brave men who tried to save them and save the towers. Don't sit there and argue with some irrational idiot on you tube who spouts his BS conspiracy theories. Our country may not be perfect, but I can not think of a place I would rather call home then this great land. So as i sit here with a few tears welling in my eyes watching a couple tribute videos I will bring this special edition of the PA Pathfinder Blog to a close by saying take a moment and say a prayer for the fallen and show you still care and love America and wear something patriotic.

Welcome to the blog i meant to do

Most of you who come to this blog and remeber the political banter that filled this space thats no more Im offically sick of the topic and tired of beating the same dead horse as everyone else is. This is the blog I meant to do a fun relaxing look at the outdoors and being in the outdoors. I chose the new title the Pennsylvania Pathfinder and the final tag line in the descriton to pay homage to Dave Cantebury of the Wilderness Outfitters home of the Pathfinder School. He runs an Wilderness Self-Suffiecntcy school in Ohio but his website www.wildernessoutfitters.com and his you tube channel feature loads of great and very useful information. I hope I meet Mr. Cantebury face to face one day he seems like a hell of guy to be around and fun to hang out with. I look forward to bringing some very informative stuff to this page and hope everyone learns something and takes away from it what they want. Im no expert but and am always learning. So as I have in the description; Follow me, Lets learn together.

Remembering D-Day

You will bring about the destruction of the German war machine, the elimination of Nazi tyranny over the oppressed peoples of Europe, and security for ourselves in a free world.
Your task will not be an easy one. Your enemy is well trained, well equipped, and battle-hardened. He will fight savagely.
But this is the year 1944. Much has happened since the Nazi triumphs of 1940-41.
The United Nations have inflicted upon the Germans great defeat in open battle man to man. Our air offensive has seriously reduced their strength in the air and their capacity to wage war on the ground.
Our home fronts have given us an overwhelming superiority in weapons and munitions of war and placed at our disposal great reserves of trained fighting men.
The tide has turned.
The free men of the world are marching together to victory. I have full confidence in your courage, devotion to duty, and skill in battle.
We will accept nothing less than full victory.
Good luck, and let us all beseech the blessings of Almighty God upon this great and noble undertaking.

~Dwight Eisenhower

At 0630 on June 6, 1944 one of the greatest attacks was launched, D-Day witch was part of Operation Overlord. The plan to take Europe back from the Nazis over 100,000 Ally troops landed on five beaches; Gold, Sword, Juno, Omaha, and Utah. Men from all different creeds nationalities banded together to fight and take back Europe from the evil Axis powers. Normandy was the start, the foot hold to get that job done. If they failed Hitler would of possibly used that as a huge piece of propaganda and possibly used that as a launching pad to take England. From there who knows what things could of become of it. Through it all none of the men asked why they were there or what the politics were behind being there. They were there cause they wanted to be there. Then common men came together to do some uncommon things none lesser then practically save the world from tyranny and the evil of the Axis powers. At the end of the day the allies had completed their goal at the cost of over 8,443 killed or wounded. But, the allies had the foot hold they needed from there the went on to eventually take back Europe and in 1945 the the second World War was finally over.

Now 65 years removed from that day the number of veterans from that day is shrinking every year. They sacrificed so much to protect the world from that evil. If someone you know or love is a World War 2 veteran take a moment ask them what they went through. Talk to them and take time to lean how hard it was for them to fight through Europe. Sometime today in you busy day take a moment and reflect on waht these men did for this great country and the world. As always God Speed and God Bless America.

EDC Intro

This video comes courtesy of You Tube a guy from New Jersey by the name of O5MagnumSXT. Great guy great vids always informational just a bit of an intro to what they are. Ill post a few pics of mine eventually.

Memorial Day 2009

Well its Memorial Day again, time for us to pause and reflect on what makes this country as great as it is. No matter how bad it gets she is still the greatest nations on earth, nothing can and will change that. During your family BBQ or what every you plan on having please take a moment and pause and think about the men and women who laid down there lives for this country and those who have yet to come home. Lets not forget our current veterans in Iraq and Afghanistan, who are doing their part to keep this nation free for the future generations. Remember Memorial Day was not just meant to have BBQs or get drunk at someones cookout. Its sole reason for being is to MEMORIALIZE and remember just how and why we are the country we are. Never forget that and always keep that in you hearts and minds. In closing God Speed and God Bless America.

Ideas on Gear

Every backpacker, camper, prepper, survivalist, hiker and what not all love gear. Its like our toys and when there is something better we run out and get it. Now i was thinking recently granted running out and buying that expensive new piece of gear why not do yourself a favor step back and look at what your buying. Now buying it if buying it makes you happy and you have that money to buy then by all means do. Someone like myself who is not made of money learn one thing and thats be creative. Figure out well how can I piece together some good products into the same thing and perhaps save a few bucks. Like those slick light weight nylon tarp shelters all the outdoor companies sell. They look great hell if i could i would buy one myself, but really when you look at the only thing that makes it expensive is usually the name on it and im sure the few ouces you save in a nylon tarp as oppesed to an everyday tarp probabaly are minimal and if you know what you are doing you can fold a standard tarp rather small. Besides its not like you need a super huge tarp 10'x10' I honestly think is big enough for most shelter needs. Find some sturdy lightweight stakes and some paracord and presto you have a tarp shelter. Oh and add a stuff sack to stow it all in too, other then that your set. Theres lots of ways you can save some money, there are countless videos on you tube or articles on the internet with ways to make stoves and other gear. Just look around and use your mind and think of how you can do it. Not only do you save a few bucks but you can proudly proclaim you made it yourself. As always godspeed and god bless.