Thursday was the sixth day of Scout Camp at Camp Olmstead, which abuts the Allegheny Reservoir in Elk Township and rises high up the hillside. Almost 100 Scouts — most from the Chief Cornplanter Council BSA — spent the week at camp.

They learned survival techniques including how to set up a tent and how to build fire a number of ways.

They worked on marksmanship with rifles, shotguns, and bows.

They climbed a tower, communicated with others far away practicing amateur radio, learned about nature and how to respond in emergencies, created art in several media, spent time in the water, looked to the night skies, learned about Native American culture, and many other things.

Most of all, they had fun.

“Scout Camp is about having fun,” Jack McCabe of Troop 8 of Warren said.

McCabe was at the waterfront – the very high waterfront after a week of heavy rains – Thursday morning, working on his watersports merit badge.

“You get to go on a boat, spend time in the water,” he said. “It’s super fun.”

Scouts can sign up to earn as many as four badges during camp.

McCabe set his sights on watersports, rifle, nature, and Indian lore and was on target to earn all four by the end of the week, he said.

“I’m having fun with all my merit badges,” he said.

McCabe said he wished he had joined Scouting earlier and would encourage young people who were not in Scouting to give it a shot.

Asked about his best memories from four years at Scout Camp, the answer came quickly. “Having your friends around and completing your merit badges,” McCabe said.