Directions to Philmont Scout Ranch in Cimarron, New Mexico. Take Interstate 70 at Breezewood for approximately 1,650 miles to Colorado Springs, Colorado. Make a left onto Interstate 25, heading south for approximately 80 miles. Turn right on Route 64 for 10 miles.
Although the directions to this “Scout Heaven” known as Philmont are rather simple from Tyrone, unless you are a Boy Scout or one of their leaders, chances are good that you will never get to enjoy this beautiful property, owned by the Boy Scouts of America.
Forty-eight fortunate Scouts from Penns Wood Council here in Central Pennsylvania spent 12 days this summer hiking in the beautiful country of northern New Mexico.
The story of Philmont Scout Ranch and its growth and development is as interesting as the 12 day treks spent there. This land was originally inhabited by the Utes and the La Jicarilla Apache Indians, when this land was part of Mexico. The land was then signed over to Charles Beaubien and Guadeloupe Miranda in 1841. This tract was then sold to Lucien Maxwell in 1868 for less than $3000. The ranches on this vast land changed hands many times until they were bought by a successful Oklahoma oilman named Waite Phillips.
In 1914 Waite Phillips left the family oil business that he started with his brothers and set out on his own. He incorporated all of his businesses in 1922 and the Waite Phillips Corporation was born. Just three short years later he sold his company to a New York investment house for $25 million on June 25, 1925. He bought ranches and land in northern New Mexico. On his ranch named Philmont-derived from his surname and “Monte,” the Spanish word for mountain, he pursued his interests of hunting, fishing and ranching. During this time he hosted guests such as Will Rodgers, Wiley Post and US Vice President Charles Dawes.
Waite Phillips had always allowed the Boy Scouts to use his property. In the early 1930s he began corresponding with the head of the Boy Scouts of America to do something for them in the Cimarron area. In 1938 he donated the Philturn Rocky Mountain Scout Camp, which totaled almost 36,000 acres. This was used for three summers as a Scout Camp until 1941. On December 31, 1941, Waite Phillips completed his donation by donating over 100,000 more acres to his original gift. Initially the Boy Scouts would not accept his generous donation because they knew they would never be able to fund the ranch. Waite Phillips then sweetened the deal by donating his Philtower Office Building in Tulsa, Oklahoma, whose revenue would fund the Scout Ranch. Ever since then, Scouts from across the United States have looked to Philmont as the ultimate Scout adventure.
The Boy Scouts have ever since been excellent stewards of the wonderful gift that Mr. Phillips bestowed upon them. There were four conditions that Phillips insisted that the Scouts keep up forever. First, this property must be an operating cattle ranch. Second, his horse, Gus, must have free reign of the property (Gus died and is buried on Philmont property). Third, with notice, his family must always have access to the land. And fourth, there must always be an Adult Training Center on the property. After all, if the adults are not properly trained, how could they teach their Scouts the ideals of Scouting?
The Scouts have always practiced “no trace camping” while at Philmont. While the Scouts were there this summer, New Mexico was under a fire ban, due to the droughts in the southern part of the state. No campfires were permitted. All meals were prepared on propane/butane fired stoves. All hiking is done on very well defined trails. All camping is done on very defined campsites. To best deal with the wild animals (especially bears) all food and smellables are hung off a “bear cable” which is suspended at 20 feet from the ground. At night, all food and smellables (toothpaste, gum, film, medicines, etc.) are loaded into feed sacks and hung off the ground.
Scouts are instructed to pack lightly. Three T-shirts and two pair of shorts and one pair of long pants would be sufficient for the 12 day hike.
It was 10 days before most crews got their first shower on the trail. Most of the back country showers were not working because the five days of rain caused the solar powered pumps to be inoperable. Most Scouts on the treks never took a back country shower for the 12 days. Scouts did take an occasional sponge bath with their handkerchief and a liter of water.
Bathroom facilities are also part of the Philmont experience. There are no flush toilets on the trail.
There are three types of toilets, the two seater “pilot to co-pilot” where the seats face the same direction; the “pilot to bombardier” where the seats are back-to-back; and the “Red Roof Inn” where there are actually walls around the toilets, to give some degree of privacy.
Most sites had the pilot-to-bombardier as the toilet of first choice. When the scouts had to urinate, they are not permitted to use the toilets.
The salts in urine slow the process of waste breakdown and the salts also encourage animals to chew on the wooden structures. The Scouts are not to use trees either because the animals will chew on the bark to get the salts left behind. The Scouts are told to “water a rock” away from the toilet area. The same bathroom rules are also true for any women Venture Scouts or Rangers that are on the trail.
Most staffed camps had treated water available. Each Scout is to consume a minimum of four quarts of water a day.
In the heat and low humidity, dehydration is a real concern. For non-staffed camps, the Scouts purified their water with either iodine or ceramic pumps. Most Scouts never acquire the taste for the iodine water and used copious amounts of Gatorade to mask the bitter taste.
All of the Scouts followed their procedures exactly, which made for a most memorable, fun and safe trip.
The Scouts from the Penn Woods Council Philmont Contingent 2004 have indeed shown they were also excellent stewards of the gift bestowed upon them by one very generous oilman.
Waite Phillips said, “The only things we keep permanently are those we give away.”
The Boy Scouts of Tyrone indeed have a great appreciation for Mr. Phillips, as well as the many local benefactors who keep our local Scouting program one of the most active anywhere.
The Daily Herald will publish more about the individual treks in future editions.
