The Flaming Arrow Scout Reservation is a Boy Scout camp located just outside of Lake Wales, Florida. It serves as the largest camping and training facility owned and operated by Gulf Ridge Council. The camp’s 1,200 acres are used by Boy Scouts, Boy Scout Troops, the Order of the Arrow, and many other organizations to facilitate their activities and programs. But in 2004, three hurricanes reduced the once lush camp grounds to a miserable shell of what it once was.
In 2004, Hurricane Charley, Hurricane Frances, and Hurricane Jeanne all passed over Flaming Arrow causing massive vegetation loss and damage to all of the structures there. Flooding became a major issue with some areas of the camp flooded for over a month. Flooding issues persisted and destroyed much of the original landscape.
Flaming Arrow staff and volunteers spent months clearing fallen trees from the paths, campsites, and program areas. Almost all of the trees and plants that existed in the flood waters died.
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The camp closed after the hurricanes, straining the camp’s already tight budget. Without the Summer Camp and other programs active in Flaming Arrow, there were no incoming funds to help offset the damage caused by the hurricanes.
Flaming Arrow has since recovered; the flooding has passed, buildings have been rebuilt, and many trees have been planted in order to repopulate the area. But the camp still remains in a dire state. The skyline is still ragged in areas once thick with pine trees. This is precisely why ClassB joined with the Arbor Day Foundation.
For every tree purchased for the BSA Centennial Forest in Flathead National Forest, ClassB will match the contribution and plant a tree in the Flaming Arrow Scout Reservation. We want nothing more than to see the rebirth of both of the storm-damaged sites. It’s our goal to plant at least 100 trees at each location, bringing Flathead back to life, and restoring the Scouts campsite to it’s original state of beauty.
