Cook-O-Ree

When and Where

When: March 27-29, 2026 , 2:00 pm — 8:00 am
Nights: 2

Location: Alpine Scout Camp

We will camp in Alpine Scout Camp, the closest Scout camp to New York City. It has multiple patrol camping fields, water access, restrooms, and fire rings.

We last visited Alpine for other council activities, and it remains one of the best places for patrol based cooking competitions due to its layout and facilities.

Plan

Friday
Arrival and campsite setup
Patrol gear and food organization
Quiet hours start at 10 PM

Saturday
Morning flags
Patrol cooking events throughout the day
Judging and scoring of dishes by Cook O Ree organizers
Camp wide evening program
Nighttime cracker barrel and reflection

Sunday
Breakfast by patrols
Closing ceremony
Clean up and return to OLA

The detailed schedule will be shared by the Cook-O-Ree staff closer to the event date.

About Cook-O-Ree

The Cook-O-Ree is a Scouting event focused on outdoor cooking, teamwork, leadership and competition. Patrols from different troops gather for a weekend campout where they plan menus, cook meals, and present their dishes for judging. Scouts are fully in charge from meal planning to preparation to presentation. Adult leaders observe for safety only.

The Cook-O-Ree format is perfect for putting the Patrol Method into action. Each patrol functions as an independent cooking team, assigning roles such as Grubmaster, fire or stove lead, prep cook, and presentation lead. The event encourages leadership, time management, creativity, safe food handling and of course delicious food.

This is also a great opportunity for scouts who need cooking activities for rank advancement or for the Cooking Merit Badge. Many of the skills used during this weekend can be signed off by approved counselors and adult leaders.

What to Bring

• Class A uniform for travel
• Class B for the event
• Ten essentials
• Water bottle
• Weather appropriate clothing
• Personal gear, sleeping bag, sleeping pad
• Patrol box and cooking gear (organized through Quartermasters)
• Ingredients and menu plan prepared by the Grubmaster and patrol

Patrols will coordinate ahead of time during troop meetings. Food purchases will be handled the week of the event after menu approval.

Goals and Advancement

Scouts will practice and demonstrate:

• Patrol Method in real conditions
• Meal planning and budgeting
• Safe food handling
• Cooking on camp stoves and open fire
• Time management while cooking under pressure

This event provides opportunities to satisfy parts of:

• Second Class cooking requirements
• First Class cooking requirements
• Cooking Merit Badge requirements such as planning and preparing camp meals