Scouts get close look at Umatilla depot's wildlife

This story was published Sat, Apr 7, 2001

By Karen Zacharias
Herald Oregon bureau

HERMISTON - They huffed and groaned, but Hermiston's Troop 679 held fast to their walking sticks Friday after completing a 2 mile hike through the sagebrush at the Umatilla Chemical Depot.

The troop is one of five participating in a weekend training experience at the Army depot site. Joining the group is Troop 126 of Kennewick, Troop 777 of Pendleton and troops 144 and 128, also of the Tri-Cities.

The depot is more widely regarded for harboring chemical nerve agents than for recreational attractions, but there are a few.

"Where else are you going to be able to bike 50 miles without having to worry about any traffic?" asked Lt. Cmdr. Tom Woloszyn.

He's got a point. Antelope and a couple of rabbits are likely the only things that will cross the path of Shawn Moore or Chris Large this weekend.

Moore and Large are members of Troop 679. Chris' dad, Ed Large, packed his own bag for the excursion. The instructor told members of his group to bring along their own emergency day pack. But he didn't tell them why.

The boys, ranging in age from 10 to 17, thought they were all camping together, just around the bend, near the empty ammunition bunkers, past gate E-28. What they didn't know was that Large intended to break out a group of 10 from the 28-member troop and put them into a situation where they could earn wilderness survival badges.

"They are not going to appreciate me come Sunday," Large said with a wicked grin.

Breaking open his own son's day pack, Large displayed its survival tools - a thermal blanket made of foil, two packs of water, a tarp, a whistle, fish hooks and water purifier. There is also a pack of those ever-so yummy potted meat rations. Large swore there were enough supplies in the backpack to last a fellow a good month, if he knows how to use them.

Troop leader Larry Ross gave implicit instructions to each of the members of Troop 679 on proper toilet etiquette. "Pretend this is your mother's bathroom," he said. "In other words, if you can't aim straight, sit down!"

There would be no portable toilets for Large's group of Life Scouts. They would be digging their own cat holes by sunrise.

Fortunately for Zach Lane, there were plenty of toilets in his neck of the woods. Lane, 12, accompanied Troop 126 of Kennewick. Instead of traipsing about in the sagebrush, Lane will learn emergency preparedness from the depot's medicical staff. The Highlands Middle School student said he's been a scout since October.

This is his first outdoor camping experience with his troop.

Lane thought the depot's missiles looked "cool," but he said he knew very little about the depot itself.

"All I know is there are deadly gasses here," he said.

That's one of the reason for bringing the troops to the Army base, explained Ron Smith, 46, one of Lane's troop leaders.

"We came here so the boys could learn about the federal installation. Some of these kids didn't even know we had a base down here," Smith said.

 

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