Scouts gather for annual Whispering Pines Klondike Derby

February 24, 2018 at 3:29p.m.

CANFIELD

One of Bryson Harris’ main duties Saturday was to position a tarpaulin over pieces of wood to keep them dry, so his fellow Boy Scouts could start a fire. But suffice it to say that the lessons he’s learning will endure long after the flames are extinguished.

“It’s definitely leadership and hard work until the very end,” the 15-year-old member of Boardman-based Boy Scout Troop 46 said about what he sees as a top virtue of his five years in scouting. “I learned to always stay pleasant and happy with the people I’m working with, and to take on challenges that might seem too hard.”

Klondike Gold Rush at Camp Stambaugh

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Local Boy Scout groups participated in the Klondike Gold Rush at Camp Stambaugh on Saturday February 24, 2018. Photos by Dustin Livesay.

Bryson was among more than 150 Scouts and dozens of leaders from Mahoning County and Hubbard who took part in the two-day rescheduled Whispering Pines Klondike Derby 2018 event, which got underway Friday at Camp Stambaugh, 3712 Leffingwell Road.

The festivities had been set for early January but were canceled because of extreme cold.

The annual gathering is based largely on the adventures and struggles of the men who crossed the frozen Klondike in the 1890s near Alaska in search of wealth and gold, organizers have said.