Bertha Brock Outing, January 14-16, 2005

Bertha Brock County Park is located in Ionia. The park is part of the Ionia parks and recreation and is located west of Ionia on M-21 (just past the prison).

For our permission slips, the phone number for the Bertha Brock ranger is 616-527-0478; the phone number for the park is 616-527-0703.

We will be joining Troop 33 of Lansing, Troop 316 of Lansing, Troop 520, and Troop 585 of Elsie/Ovid on this outing. Troop 33 is hosting the outing.

Troop 33 has reserved Palmer Lodge at Bertha Brock for Friday and Saturday nights January 14th and 15th. We will be leaving by noon on Sunday the 16th.

Palmer Lodge is a CCC era log cabin. It is a large open-interior cabin able to house about 100 people sleeping on the floor. It is unheated with two large fireplaces on the ends of a 100 foot long building. It has two lofts overlooking the floor below.

The cost for the weekend for the cabin and the wood for the fireplace is $270.

There will be a separate cost for food.

Each troop is responsible for one of the four meals (i.e. Saturday breakfast, lunch and dinner; Sunday breakfast). Troop 272 is responsible for Sunday morning breakfast.

The main activity for the weekend will be sledding. The park has a very large sledding hill (which used to be a bobsled run). The sledding hill is awesome with a north slope. It used to be a bobsled run in the 30's. If any snow has fallen, it usually remains due to the north exposure even if there is melting. Sledding, crosscountry skiing, boarding, even ice skating are available.

There is a warming house also where they sell hot items during the day.

No specific merit badge topics will be advanced. This is just a fun weekend.

Last revised 1/12/05

John D. McCarthy