Los Gatos Campout

Finding campsites in state parks can be the most challenging part of organizing a Scout outing because most book out months in advance, and often within minutes of opening online signups. So for our May 2024 campout, we tried something new: We booked a private site through Hip Camp and found a beautiful private spot in the Los Gatos Hills, less than an hour from home.  What followed was an unusually “chill” campout with a little bit of skills practice and a whole lot of just hanging out. Life is so rushed and time to just commune with friends and nature is so rare, that we kind of just went with the flow. Besides, it’s the end of the school year and everyone was tired, so it made sense to slow life down a bit and just enjoy the redwoods. There are times when you arrive someplace peaceful and all intentions of being productive melt away. And that’s exactly how it should be. Aside from that, the weather was mild, the food was good, the company was awesome and … we got ice cream.