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Yosemite Training Camp
yow seh muh tee
Native American Southern band of Miwoks
Oakland-Piedmont Council #21, (1916-1921)
n/a
Provided by the Shaffer Brothers concessioners
Yosemite, CA (Along the Merced River near Camp Curry)
37.742554, -119.571719 (click on coordinates for Camp Location)
Mariposa
1918, June 12
1918, June 26
2 Weeks
Only used once
unknown
4003 feet
Boy Scout Camp, Yosemite, California
none
Scouts met at Scout Headquarters – 24th and Harrison for the trip to Yosemite. Each Fageol truck was a 2 1/2 ton.
OAKLAND’S SECOND SUMMER CAMP:
In June of 1918, the second Training Camp of the Oakland-Piedmont Council was held in Yosemite. 100 Scouts met at the Scout Headquarters at 24th and Harrison at 6AM for the trip to Yosemite. It took two days to drive the 220 miles from Oakland to Yosemite Valley by way of Merced and the Wawona road using three heavy duty Fageol Trucks which used Firestone solid tires. The trucks were furnished by the Oakland Tribune and the Butler-Veitch company. Each truck carried 35 Scouts.
Prior to leaving, the three trucks made a stop at 14th and Franklin in Oakland to receive enough fuel and lubricant for the entire trip. Three hundred gallons of Red Crown gasoline was donated along with 25 gallons of Zerolene lubricant. It took three hours just to go from Oakland to Livermore where they made their first stop to let the Scouts get out and stretch.
As the trip to Yosemite would take two days (in order to negotiate the “heavy mountains grades”), the first night was spent near Merced along the Bear Creek, 122 miles from Oakland. The Signal Corps of the Scouts arranged a system of sending messages from truck to truck along the road.
The scouts camped in Yosemite along the Merced river and arrangements were made for swimming at the Camp Curry pool. Over four tons of supplies had been hauled up to Yosemite prior to the Scouts arriving. The Scouts were given instruction in first-aid, signaling, cooking, tracking, knot tying, practical patriotism and knife and hatchet work.
Every three days, the scouts took a long hike that got gradually harder and harder. During their stay they hiked to Mirror Lake, Yosemite falls, Nevada and Vernal Falls and the big hike, to Glacier Point from the valley floor.
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