Some of the best things about Cub Scouting are the activities you get to do: camping, hiking, racing model cars, going on field trips, or doing projects that help your hometown and the people who live there. Cub Scouting means "doing."

 

 

Cub Scouts Camping
Learn to live in the outdoors. Camping takes you on exciting adventures into the natural world.

Camping takes you on exciting adventures into the natural world. You'll learn to live with others in the out-of-doors. You'll learn to be a good citizen of the outdoors.  

Camping is fun, and it's good for your mind, body, and spirit. It helps you learn to rely on yourself—on your own skills and knowledge. When you go camping as a Cub Scout, you get skills you will learn and use more, later, as a Boy Scout.

Cub Scout camping has day camps, resident camps, Webelos den overnight campouts, family camps, and pack overnighters.

Day Camps
Day camp lasts for one day to five days. It's for Tiger Cubs, Cub Scouts, and Webelos Scouts. Day camps are held during the day or early evening. Campers do not stay overnight.

Resident Camps

At resident camps, Cub Scouts and Webelos Scouts camp overnight. Every year, the resident camp has a different theme and different adventures. Examples of themes are Sea Adventure, Space Adventure, Athletes, Knights, Circus Big Top, American Indian Heritage, Folklore, and the World Around Us.

Webelos Den Overnight Campouts

Webelos dens go on overnight campouts. Each Webelos Scout camps with his parent or guardian. The campers learn the basics of Boy Scout camping, under the direction of the Webelos den leader. Sometimes, leaders from a Boy Scout troop may join you.

Webelos dens also have joint overnight campouts with a Boy Scout troop. Each Webelos Scout has a parent or guardian with him on these joint campouts, too.

Council-Organized Family Camps

Family camps are overnight camps for more than one Cub Scout pack. You may hear these events called "parent-pal weekends" or "adventure weekends." Each Cub Scout and Webelos Scout camps with a parent or guardian.

Pack Overnighters

Packs on their own can hold overnight campouts for the families in the pack. Cub Scouts' brothers and sisters can go on these pack overnighters. In most cases, each Scout will camp with a parent or guardian. Every young camper is responsible to a specific adult.

 

 
Outings and Field Trips
Cub Scouts have many kinds of outdoor fun, such as field trips, hikes, nature and conservation activities, and outdoor games.

"Outing" is a big part of Scouting. Cub Scouts get out and about with many kinds of outdoor fun, such as field trips, hikes, nature and conservation activities, and outdoor games. 

Field Trips

 

 Do you like to visit museums, businesses, parks, and other fun and interesting places? Here are some field trips you might go on.

• How Things Are Made—Visit manufacturing plants such as aircraft, automotive, appliance, or electronic firms; chemical, paper, plastic, paint, furniture, or toy plants; and handicrafts or other small-craft industries.
• How Your City Runs—Visit power, water, and sewage plants; a gas company; police and fire stations; city hall; municipal buildings; the county jail; a telephone company; the post office; the Red Cross; hospitals; newspaper plants; and radio, television, and weather stations.
• How Your City Is Fed—Visit farms, flour mills, and bakeries; food canning or bottling plants; stockyards and meat or poultry packing houses; a fish hatchery; beverage, candy, and ice-cream companies; markets; and food distributors.
• Learn About Your Heritage—Visit art galleries, museums, and memorials; famous old homes, monuments, and other historic sites; places of worship; civic centers; important local buildings; summer theaters and band concerts; and local historical celebrations.

Field trips often tie in with the monthly theme or activity badge, to show you firsthand the things you've been learning about.

"Go See It"

The Tiger Cub program is based on "Search, Discover, Share." Tiger Cubs and their adult partners go on a Go See It outing every month. The Go See It may meet part of a Tiger Cub advancement requirement.

By going on these outings, Tiger Cubs learn about their community, places where adults work, community services (fire, police, hospital, etc.), nature centers, animal care centers, and other interesting places. A Go See It is a great way to learn new things, learn to understand and respect other people, become better citizens, and have fun.

Hikes

A hike is a journey on foot, usually with a purpose, a route, and a destination. Tiger Cub and Cub Scout dens take short hikes, and Webelos dens work on activity badges during their hikes.

Here are some different types of hikes your den may take.

• Homes Hike—Look for spider webs, nests, holes, and other homes in nature. Make a list.
• Stop, Look, and Listen Hike—Hike for a certain length of time or for a certain number of steps. Then stop and write down all that you see and hear. Make several stops.
• Puddle Hike—Hike in a gentle rain or just after a rain, wearing your rain gear. See how animals and insects take cover from the weather.
• Penny Hike—Flip a coin to see which direction you will go. Flip the coin at each intersection or fork in the road or trail.
• Color Hike—Look for objects of a certain color. Make a list.
• Historical Hike—Hike to an historical spot. Know the history before you go.
• City Hike—Look for little bits of nature between cracks in the sidewalk. Look at the buildings for architectural details (carvings, cornices, etc.). Your den leader will help you spot these. Look for nature in a vacant lot. Even one overturned rock can uncover surprises.

Games and Sports

Outdoor games and sports teach you the skills of good sportsmanship—following the rules, taking turns and sharing, getting along with others, and fair play. Every Cub Scout can have the chance to learn the basic skills of a sport or game. Playing and doing your best and having fun are more important than winning.

 

 
Blue and Gold Banquets
In February, when Scouting celebrates its "birthday," packs across the country hold blue and gold banquets. In nearly all packs, the banquet is a very special event.

Most Cub Scouts celebrate Scouting Anniversary Week in February with a "birthday party" called the blue and gold banquet. In nearly all packs, the blue and gold banquet is the highlight of the year. It brings families together for an evening of fun and cheer. It's often the pack meeting for February.  

The purpose of the blue and gold banquet is to celebrate the pack's anniversary, thank pack leaders and other adults who have helped the pack, and inspire the leaders, Scouts, and parents. Packs often like to invite former members and other Scouting or community leaders to take part in their blue and gold banquet. 

 

 

 

Cub Scout Derbies
Race a model car, sailboat, or miniature rocket in a Cub Scout derby—the pinewood derby, raingutter regatta, or space derby.

Racing in a Cub Scout derby is great fun. You'll get to design your racing vehicle, work with a parent to build it, and see it perform on race day. Win or lose, you'll take pride in having done your best. When you race in a Cub Scout derby, you learn craft skills, the rules of fair play, and good sportsmanship—things you will remember all your life. 

Types of Derbies:
The main types of derbies are the pinewood derby, raingutter regatta, space derby, and Cubmobile derby.

Pinewood Derby

The pinewood derby is one of the most popular and successful family activities in Cub Scouting. Pinewood derby cars are small wooden models that Cub Scouts make with help from their families. Then they race the cars in competition. The cars are powered by gravity and run down a track. Most packs have a pinewood derby every year. It can be run indoors or outdoors. Every boy can design and build his own "grand prix" car to enter in the race.

Raingutter Regatta

In the raingutter regatta, boats race down a narrow channel. There are two versions. The wind-powered version uses sailboat designs, and the boats are blown down the channel. The propeller-powered version uses motorboats driven by propeller.

Space Derby

Another popular family-son project is the space derby. It's like the pinewood derby except the models are miniature rockets. The rockets "fly" along a heavy line that hangs in the air. They're driven by propellers powered by rubber bands.

Cubmobile Derby

Each den works together to build a "Cubmobile," a pint-sized racing vehicle. Each den has one racer, and each Cub Scout in the den races in the car once. Usually, a ramp helps start the cars, and they roll downhill to the finish line. The race is held on a smooth street that slopes downhill.

Kits and supplies for the pinewood derby, raingutter regatta, and space derby are available from the national Supply Division.

Competition and Prizes

Each family that competes in a Cub Scout derby follows a set of simple, easy rules. The winners get prizes, and every boy is recognized for taking part. Always remember that in Cub Scouting, it's more important to "Do Your Best" than to come in first. The big thing about a derby isn't the competition or the prizes. It's the fun you and your family will have.

 

 
Service Projects

Doing service projects is one way for Cub Scouts to keep their promise "to help other people."

Doing service projects together is one way that Cub Scouts keep their promise "to help other people." While a Scout should do his best to help other people every day, a group service project is a bigger way to help people. While you're giving service, you're learning to work together with others to do something that's good for your community. 

Helping the natural world

 

• Plant seedlings or flowers
• Pick up litter around your neighborhood
• Clean up trash by a stream
• Recycle glass, paper, aluminum, or plastic
• Make bird feeders

Helping the community

• Give a flag ceremony for a school
• Collect food for food banks
• Make cards for a care center
• Clean up a church parking lot
• Shovel snow or rake leaves for seniors
• Hand out voting reminders
• Hand out emergency procedure brochures
• Recycle family newspapers

 Helping the chartered organization 

• Plant and care for trees
• Do a clean up project
• Conduct a flag ceremony
• Help set up for a special event
• Hand out programs or bulletins at a meeting of the organization

These are only a few ideas for service projects. Can you think of others? Share your ideas with the members and leaders of your den.