[RKDinOKC]

Yep in Scouts we also had the Totin' Chip Card. You learned the proper way to handle and sharpen knives, saws, and axes. It also included the use of only dead and pre-fallen wood. You couldn't even have a pocket knife if you didn't earn a Totin' Chip Card to show you knew the proper way to handle it. And if you were caught using it wrong or breaking the rules, you lost your card and sharp object privileges.

There were also badges for plants, both poisonous and edible.

If it was helpful there was a badge for it. AND there was typically someone in your group that had the badge you didn't so all the bases were covered.

If you saw the gear we had back in the mid 70's you wouldn't believe the hiking we did with it. My backpack was canvas with a huge aluminum ladder frame that wasn't even part of the pack! We carried rolls of plastic garbage bags to keep things dry. Even the stuff in the pack. Yep and wore just tennis shoes. Didn't have packable tents either. Just carried a canvas tarp and some rope to make a shelter with. There was also no such thing as those pads you put under your sleeping bag. You made a pad moving rocks and using leaves and grass. And the sleeping bags, they were terrible. Hot in the summer and cold in the winter. Sure had fun though.

We were actually very lucky. Only had one incident. One of the kids had an epileptic fit as we were crossing the top of a small waterfall. He went over the falls. We immediately sent our fastest runner to go get a vehicle 7 miles from our location. Four of us jump off the falls to help the kid. We got a stick in his mouth before he bit his tongue and kept him from drowning or hurting himself until the fit subsided. Then we treated the gash in he head and carried him about 2 miles before the truck met us and took him to the nearest hospital. Luckily he was just bruised up except for the 10 stitches in his head. The doctor complimented us on the bandage and stopping the bleeding.