Here are 49 photos of Venturers making and trying to paddle cardboard boats

Ever get that sinking feeling? Like you’re coming apart at the seams? Like the walls around you are caving in?

I’ve got just the thing.

Here are 49 photos sure to brighten your day. They come from a cardboard boat race I covered in 2014 at Winterfest, the massive annual event for Explorers and Venturers in Gatlinburg, Tenn. The weekend blends competition, camaraderie and fun.

One of the events — building and racing cardboard boats — is serious work. But it can get seriously silly, seriously fast.

Exhibit A: The Venturing crew that, instead of building a boat, turned one of their Venturers into the boat. Whoa.

The photos are the work of the BSA’s W. Garth Dowling and Michael Roytek.

Enjoy!

Read the stories

For the Scouting magazine story about Winterfest, click here or read the November-December 2014 issue.

For the Boys’ Life story, check out the December 2014 issue.

You can read both stories in our apps — just search “Scouting magazine” or “Boys’ Life” in your device’s app store.


About Bryan Wendell 3282 Articles
Bryan Wendell, an Eagle Scout, is the founder of Bryan on Scouting and a contributing writer.