(Cassie Dickenson)

The days have grown longer and warmer, and while Jonesboro’s Scout Pack 523 ended the official year of scouting with Rank Night, the fun is not even close to being over, as many scouts participated in five weeks of exciting activities, known as Spring Scouts.

Pack 523 kicked off these adventures with a nature hike at Briarwood Nature Preserve in Saline, where scouts and families trekked through mud to explore local vegetation and hand-built structures. Boys and girls also spent time riding bikes at Jimmie Davis State Park, where Cubmaster Brian Hurt used this opportunity to give scouts a valuable lesson in basic maintenance and repairs of their bikes.

Other activities included a rain gutter regatta, where scouts created and raced boats from recycled materials, a fishing derby at the Advance Country Club, and an evening of launching water rockets made from 2-liter bottles.

After a short break for Summer Camp, scouts will be back together for another round of summer activities in late June, beginning with Wednesday, June 11th, when Pack 523 will visit the Jackson Parish Library at 10 AM in Jonesboro or at 2 PM in Chatham.

There, the local Cub Scouts will be sharing the fun of pinewood derby racing with the summer reading program participants. Children in attendance will be given the opportunity to build their own wooden race car, just like the ones that scouts race every year.

Two weeks later, on June 25th, participants will return to the library to have their very own Pinewood Derby race with the cars they built. This is a great opportunity to experience a small taste of scouting!

No matter what season, Cub Scouts are always active. If you know a youth who would enjoy the wide range of activities that Scouting America has to offer, contact Cubmaster Brian Hurt at (318)734-5371 or visit beascout.org for more information.