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BSA FAMILY CAMPING

Family camping: an outdoor camping experience, other than resident camping, that involves Cub Scouting, Boy Scouting, or Venturing program elements  in overnight settings with two or more family members, including at least one BSA member of that family. Parents are responsible for the supervision of their  children, and Youth Protection guidelines apply.

Recreational family camping
Recreational family camping: when Scouting families camp as a family unit  outside of an organized program. It is a nonstructured camping experience, but is conducted within a Scouting framework on local council-owned or -managed  property.

Additional Cub Scout Overnight Opportunities

Cub Scouts can experience overnight activities in venues other than  accredited resident camping. There are two categories of Cub Scout  overnighters:

Council-Organized Family Camp
Council-organized family camps are overnight events involving more than  one pack. The local council provides all of the elements of the outdoor  experience, such as staffing, food service, housing, and program. These are  often referred to as Parent/Pal or Adventure weekends. Council-organized family camps should be conducted by trained leaders at sites approved by the local  council. In most cases, the youth member will be under the supervision of a parent or guardian. In all cases, each youth participant is responsible to a specific adult.
Overnight activities involving more than one pack must be approved by the  council. Council-organized family camps must be conducted in accordance with  established standards as given in National Standards for Council Family Camping, No. 13-408.

Pack Overnighters
These are pack-organized overnight events involving more than one family from a single pack, focused on page-appropriate Cub Scout activities and  conducted at council-approved locations (councils use Park Approval Form, No.  13-508).  If nonmembers (siblings) participate, the event must be structured  accordingly to accommodate them.  BSA health and safety and youth protection  guidelines apply. In most cases, each youth participant is responsible to a specific adult.
Adults giving leadership to a pack overnighter must complete Basic Adult Leader Outdoor Orientation (BALOO, No. 34162) training to properly understand  the importance of program intent, youth protection guidelines, health and  safety, site selection, age-appropriate activities, and sufficient adult participation. Permits for campouts shall be issued locally.  Packs use Local Tour Permit Application, No. 34426.

Note on Shooting Sports:
Archery and BB guns are restricted to day camps, Cub Scout/Webelos Scout resident camps, and council-organized family camps.  Archery and BB gun shooting sports are  not to be used at the pack level.

Tiger Cubs are limited to boy-parent excursions, day camps, or council-managed family camping.

  • All Scouts registered in Boy Scout troops are eligible to participate in troop or patrol overnight campouts, camporees, and resident camps.
  • Boy Scouts and Varsity Scouts 12 through 17 are eligible to participate in national jamborees. Boy Scouts and Varsity Scouts 13 through 17 are also eligible to participate in world jamborees and high-adventure programs.
  • All youth registered in Venturing are eligible to participate in crew, district, council, and national Venturing activities. Venturers are eligible to  participate in national high-adventure programs, and on a limited basis, world  jamborees. Venturers are eligible to participate in Boy Scout resident camp if registered and attending with a troop.

If a well-meaning leader brings along a child who does not meet these age  guidelines, disservice is done to the unit because of distractions often caused  by younger children. A disservice is also done to the child, who is not trained  to participate in such an activity and who, as a nonmember of the group, may be ignored by the older campers.