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World Pathfinder Day, Induction, Bats, and a Lake Cleanup

9/21/2025

The SAILs had a full weekend, celebrating World Pathfinder Day, holding our Induction Service, learning about and watching bats, and taking part in cleaning up Lake Travis.

We began the weekend by hosting the church service in recognition of the 75th anniversary of the Pathfinder Program. The Pathfinders ran the full service, from song service to sermon, children's story to scripture, and everything in between. After teh service, we shared a lunch with pathfinders and their families, with a special treat of Pathfinder patch-shaped cookies (special thanks to one of the parents for making these treats!). After lunch, it was time for our Induction Service, where we welcomed two new members and two new staff to the SAIL Club, with a little help from our Central Texas Area staff.

Then it was time to study bats, including making a life-size cut out of one of the largest flying foxes to truly get a taste of the scale of these flying creatures. After dinner (cooked on the new club stoves), we headed to the Congress Avenue bridge to see the bats fly, and had a chance to see some up close as part of a display about rescued bats. In the evening we set up the (new) tents for our annual lock-in.

After an early start the next morning, it was breakfast burritos and then off to Lake Travis to take part in the annual lake cleanup, something the SAILs have been joining since their founding. There was not a lot of garbage at the park this time, which was nice to see, even though it meant we didn't need to pick up too much (though the Pathfinders did pick up several bags full of rubbish). It is always rewarding starting off the year with a service project, and it is even better when there is a real reward- another trip to Sandy's for ice cream!

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This Week's Knots and Other Updates

9/8/2025

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The SAIL Pathfinders are learning knots, bends, and hitches once again this year, and will be making a new club knot board (the old ones were destroyed in the fire). Before each meeting, we will review past knots, and practice new ones, to keep our skills honed and our memories sharp. At our first meeting, we reviewed basic knot and rope terminology, at our second meeting we begin with a few simple hitches to build everyone's confidence. Below are three videos to get us started - one on terminology, one showcasing the Clove Hitch, and one showing the Lark's Head and Cat's Paw. These aren't the strongest of hitches, but they are pretty useful and common.

Coming up in just over a week, we have our SAIL Pathfinder induction service, welcoming new members. We also will be celebrating World Pathfinder Day, marking the 75th anniversary of the international Pathfinder program. The SAIL's are also looking forward to our first service project of the year, the Lake Travis Cleanup. Last year we joined hundreds of other volunteers, helping remove 5000 pounds of trash and recyclables from in and around Lake Travis (and a SAIL staff member was recognized for some of the garbage they recovered)! This year will be the 31st annual lake cleanup, an event the SAILs have joined since our founding in 2009.

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Welcome Back SAILs!

9/4/2025

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The SAILs held their first meeting of the new Pathfinder Year, welcoming new members and staff, reviewing plans for the year, and getting in some hands-on skills and team building. This year, just before the meeting starts, we have knot time - a chance to practice and learn new knots, hitches, bends, and the like. For the first meeting, we reviewed knot and rope terminology (the fundamentals), and threw in a handy little stopper knot - the figure eight.

Our opening exercises were a bit modified, as our new flags have not yet arrived, but we did have a brief devotional from our new club chaplain. We then discussed some of the plans for the year, including our five planned camping trips, our community service projects, and our theme work for the year focused on bats, birds, and butterflies. We held an around the room to allow new and returning pathfinders and staff to introduce one another, with Pathfinders recounting their favorite experiences from previous years.

As a way to engage in problem solving and working together in ad hoc teams, the SAILs held a paper tower competition, with points awarded for both height and the ability to hold weight. Some focused mostly on height, some mostly on stability for weight, and a few tried to split the difference. It is always interesting to see the different approaches to the project, the way designs evolve, and how team members learn to interact, take leadership, and find compromise. After the tower challenge, we separated into our IA classes to plan our approach for the year.

We concluded the meeting by making arrangements for our upcoming World Pathfinder Day program and activities, checking uniforms, and reviewing the basics of standing drill. Our club drill master has great plans for the club this year, building on the perfect score in competition at Camporee last year. Overall, it was an active and fun meeting, there is a lot of excitement for the new year, and the SAILs are ready to venture forth to face new challenges, engage the community, and strengthen mind, body, and spirit.

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World Pathfinder Day, Induction, Bats, and a Lake Cleanup

This Week's Knots and Other Updates

Welcome Back SAILs!

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