Allamuchy Climbing Day Trip

When and Where

When: May 30, 2026
Timeline: 7:00 am — 8:00 pm

Location: Mount Allamuchy Scout Reservation — Camp Somers

Troop 23 is heading back to Mount Allamuchy Scout Reservation in the New Jersey highlands — and this time we're going vertical. The day is built around the Climbing Merit Badge, earned the way it should be: on a real rock face, not an indoor wall. Mount Allamuchy is one of the few BSA camps on the East Coast where scouts can complete the badge entirely outdoors, with certified instructors running top-roped climbs and rappels on the camp's natural cliff. The 50-foot climbing tower and COPE course round out the program for anyone not chasing the badge.

We camped at Allamuchy earlier this year for the Jockey Hollow historic trip and liked the place enough to come back. This time the focus shifts from hiking to climbing — one full day built around ropes, harnesses, and pushing past your comfort zone.

Cost & Logistics

Trip cost: $50 per scout. This covers the Climbing Merit Badge program fee at Camp Somers. Because the trip has been compressed to a single day, no camping fees apply.

Mandatory Zoom call Friday, May 29 at 6:00 pm for parents and scouts. We lock in the final trip plan, meal plan, and answer any last questions. Link goes out to the troop distribution list.

Cooking requirements: Scouts working on cooking-related rank or merit badge requirements plan menus and coordinate shopping immediately after the Friday-evening Zoom call. There is no time to shop Saturday morning before the 7:30 am departure.

Climbing at Allamuchy

Mount Allamuchy is one of the few BSA camps on the East Coast that offers natural rock climbing alongside a built tower on the same property. That distinction matters: most troops earn the Climbing Merit Badge at indoor gyms or on artificial structures, which the BSA permits but is not what the badge was originally built around. Allamuchy lets scouts do it the original way — on real cliff. The camp provides all equipment (ropes, harnesses, helmets), and instructors hold at minimum a Level II Climbing Instructor certification, qualified to run top-roped rock climbing and rappelling programs.

The climbing area sits right off the camp entrance road, easily accessible from the campsites. Whether you've never touched a climbing wall or you've been scaling boulders for years, the setup offers routes at every difficulty level.

Here's what scouts can expect:

• Natural rock face — real outdoor rock climbing on the camp's own cliff, with routes graded from beginner to genuinely demanding. This is the centerpiece of the weekend
• Rappelling — learn to descend safely on rope from a real rock edge, a skill that builds confidence fast and counts directly toward the merit badge
• 50-foot climbing tower — multiple routes for warm-ups or for scouts who want extra wall time after the rock work
• COPE course — Challenging Outdoor Personal Experience: a series of high and low elements that build teamwork, trust, communication, and problem-solving. Think ropes courses, traverses, and team challenges that get progressively harder

Saturday Schedule

One day, one focus — climbing.

• 7:00 am — Arrive at OLA, pack vehicles, load gear
• 7:30 am — Depart OLA (sharp). Drive to Stanhope, NJ is about 2 hours
• Mid-morning to late afternoon — Climbing program at Camp Somers: natural rock face, rappelling, belay practice, and the climbs needed to complete the Climbing Merit Badge. Tower and COPE elements available afterwards for anyone with extra energy. Patrol lunch on site, prepared by scouts working on cooking requirements
• Saturday evening — Return to OLA. Exact ETA depends on program end-time and traffic

This is a "main activity is the point" day — the program runs most of the day, with travel built around it.

Mount Allamuchy Scout Reservation

Mount Allamuchy Scout Reservation covers nearly 1,000 acres in the highlands of northwestern New Jersey, about 2 hours from Brooklyn. The reservation is operated by Patriots' Path Council and encompasses two main camp areas — Camp Somers and Camp Wheeler — with over 30 designated campsites ranging from developed sites with lean-tos to remote wilderness locations.

Facilities include a dining hall that seats 400, shooting sports ranges (archery, rifle, shotgun), canoe rentals on the lake, and — the reason we're going this time — the climbing tower and COPE course. It's a full-service scout camp with year-round programming.

Our troop stayed at Site 02 during the Jockey Hollow trip — four connected lean-to shelters with wheelchair-accessible ramps, on-site latrine, and access to hot showers at the camp office.

What to Bring

The camp provides all climbing equipment (harnesses, helmets, ropes). Day-trip packing is light — no overnight gear needed.

• ⧠ Ten Essentials as always
• ⧠ Class B uniform
• ⧠ Closed-toe shoes with good grip — required for climbing (no sandals, no Crocs)
• ⧠ Comfortable clothes you can move in — nothing too loose or baggy near the ropes
• ⧠ Rain jacket — May weather in the NJ highlands can turn quickly
• ⧠ Warm layer for cool morning / shaded climbing areas
• ⧠ Water bottle (refillable, at least 1 liter)
• ⧠ Lunch — coordinated via the Friday-evening Zoom call (May 29). Scouts working on cooking requirements will prepare a patrol meal on site; others should plan their own packed lunch unless told otherwise
• ⧠ Snacks for the drive and between climbs
• ⧠ Sunscreen
• ⧠ Executed Troop permission from ScoutBook

Advancement Opportunities

The headline goal of the day is the Climbing Merit Badge, taught and signed off by certified instructors on real rock. The BSA allows the badge to be earned on artificial structures, but the original requirements were written around natural rock climbing and rappelling — Allamuchy is one of the few East Coast camps where scouts can finish all the climbing and rappelling requirements outdoors in a single day. That includes belay practice, tying climbing knots, two natural rock climbs, and a real rappel.

Beyond the merit badge, the trip supports:

• Cooking requirements — scouts working on Tenderfoot, Second Class, First Class cooking, or the Cooking Merit Badge can plan a menu, shop Friday evening, and prepare a patrol meal on site Saturday. This is a real cooking exercise; sign-offs require advance coordination with the scout's adult leader
• Physical Fitness Merit Badge — climbing is a full-body effort that fits naturally into a fitness program
• Personal challenges — COPE elements build leadership, trust, and teamwork skills that map to Tenderfoot through First Class requirements

Specific requirements and sign-offs will be coordinated with the climbing instructors on site and with troop leadership.