Pack 673
Scotts Valley, CA
Who we are
Pack 673 is the only all-girls Cub Scout pack in Santa Cruz County! Girls, grades K-5, are welcome to join our pack and share the fun of building life-long female friendships, going on awesome adventures, and learning how to contribute to their community in a positive way.
Throughout the year we learn about nature through group hikes and camping trips, engage in STEM activities, like the Pinewood Derby, contribute to the community with beach clean-ups and collecting food for local food banks, and so much more!
The girls meet regularly with the other girls in their age groups (called Dens), and as a larger group (all age groups - called the Pack) once a month.
Want to learn more about our pack?
We welcome visitors at any of our activities.
We welcome visitors at any of our activities.
October Optional Den Meetings
Going for a hike
Our bears went on a hike for their Fur Ferns and Feathers adventure where they observed signs of wildlife and discussed endangered and extinct animals.
Learning about advancement when we move to Scouts BSA
We played a game of "The Floor Is Lava" Where the cubs had to work together to advance through the Scout BSA rank "islands" by using 4 movable islands representing the steps to advancement in BSA. You: learn, are tested, are reviewed, and are recognized.
Learning about leadership
The Ghostolotl den wrote down all the jobs of a patrol leader on baloons and then gave them to next months patrol leader to try and hold. As you can see it's almost impossible for one person to be responsible for it all. We discussed how instead of doing it all leaders need to deligatge.
Our Wolf den met and completed their Protect Yourself adventure which discusses personal safety. Webelos 1s did their 4th and last round of exercises (timed 20 yard sprint, high jump, as many as they could do in jump roping, 5lb weight curls, sit ups, and push-ups) and played a game of sharks and minnows which completes their stronger higher faster adventure.
We went to a Halloween Party!
How many marshmallows can you get on a plate balanced on your head while blindfolded?
Marshmallow relay race
The Eyeballs were delicious!
Thank you Troops 614/2614 for inviting us to your amazing Halloween party! We made TP mummies, balances plates of Marshmallows on our heads, had relay races, and ate delicious treats! We love getting to hang out with the older scouts and meet cubs from other local packs!
October Pack Camping Trip
Fun at Fremont Peak
We had another great pack camping trip! We made hiking safety booklets with information on how much water we should bring hiking, what to do if we get lost, the Leave No Trace and Outdoor Code, what 6 essentials to bring hiking, and how to identify some dangerous plants. We made paracord bracelets with a whistle and compass on them. We had a campfire with songs and funny skits and we hiked to the top of Fremont Peak with it's incredible views. We even got to see a presentation at the observatory, sadly the weather didn't cooperate for telescope viewing. We had our first pack campout with rain!
Working together to pack up in the rain. Note all cubs had coats with them, some are just choosing to stand in the rain :-)
Having a variety of games to play around camp helps keep the cubs having fun!
The group on the way up to Fremont Peak!
This cool green bug kept joining us at night. He seemed to like heat as he hung out on lanterns and humans.
The view from the top!
October Scouting for Food Drop off
Scouting for Food Bag Drop
Every year we are proud to help collect food for the Valley Churches United food pantry. Last year we collected 667 pounds of food and our goal is to top that this year! We will be back after 9:00 am on Saturday Nov 4th to pick up bags in all the neighborhoods we dropped off in. We distributed almost 350 bags! Thank you to the community for your support! Thank you Trader Joe's for donating the bags and the SV Postal Annex for giving us a discount on copying the fliers!
October Pack Meeting First Aid
One of our young lions learns to make a sling from a neckerchief.
Learning to safely carry an injured friend
Learning how to bandage an injury
We made small lightweight first aid kits for our hiking packs. Remember a first aid kit is one of the 6 essentials!
Meet the pack at any of our new member activities!
Stomp Rockets
When: Mon Sept 11 2023 6:30 pm
Where: Sky Park Scotts Valley
What: Meet the pack and make and launch stomp rockets!
Fishing
When: Sat Sept 23 2023 11:00 am
Where: Loch Lomond Recreation area
What: Meet the pack and learn about fishing. No poles or experience needed. We will have adults to help the cubs learn to safely and sucessfully fish!
Meet the Dens / Parent info
When: Mon Sept 25 6:30 pm
Where: St Philip's Church Scotts Valley
What: Meet our single grade dens for age appropriate fun activities. While the cubs to an activity there will be an information meeting for the parents.
September Den Meetings
We had so much fun at our first den meetings of the year! Each single-grade den worked on their own age-appropriate rank activities. We were having so much fun we forgot to get pictures 😕
Our Lions (K) played some games to get to know each other better and made a cool poster with names photos of each of the members of the den.
Our Tigers (1st) worked on their Games Tigers Play Adventure by playing cooperative games and inventing their own game! This adventure can help them develop appropriate sportsmanship, teamwork, listening, and following rules.
The Wolves (2nd) Worked on the bobcat adventure, which teaches the cubs about cub scouts and the scout oath and law and their howling at the moon adventure, for which they did an obstacle course and created a skit.
The bears (3rd) started preparing for the upcoming October pack camping trip by working on their Bear Necessities adventure, which is all about being prepared in the outdoors. As part of learning about the weather, they made barometers.
The Webelos (4th) worked on keeping themselves physically strong by working on their Stronger Faster Higher adventure, which focuses on fitness and health.
The AOL den (5th) finished their Bobcat adventure and started their scouting adventure by comparing what elements of scouting are the same between cubs and scouts BSA and what elements are different. They also picked a Patrol name (Gostolotls), a Patrol call, and a Patrol yell or cheer. The patrol patch is from Class B.
September Pack Outing: Fishing
Caught One!!
Fishing
Our fishing day went swimmingly! Thank you Cub Master Josh for making the poles and teaching the cubs to fish. Congratulations to all the cubs and guests who caught fish, many for the first time.
Stomp Rockets!
Making our rockets
Getting ready to launch
Getting the rocket on the launcher
Popcorn Season Is Coming!
Popcorn is here!!!!
Look for us around Scotts Valley selling popcorn the next few weekends!!! Popcorn funds over half of our pack's budget. Thank you for your support!
What goes perfectly with popcorn? A movie of course!
Last year we were the number one selling popcorn unit in the district! We raised about $3,400 from popcorn! These sales help us keep our pack dues low and keep the cost of scouting affordable for our families. This year to kick off popcorn season we rented a movie theatre. After a quick presentation about popcorn to get all of our cubs excited and set up for another successful year we got our own movie screening! We're super excited to try the new S'mores flavor!
August Recycled Rain Gutter Regatta
We love recycled rain gutter regatta because they are as much about creativity as they are about winning races. The cubs love finding creative materials to build their boats out of and showing off their creations racing them against other cubs. We had boats made of giant plastic eggs, water bottles, old pool noodles, take out container, and more!
Webelos Woods
Learning about Scouts BSA
Every year our 4th and 5th grade Webelos are invited to Webelos Woods where they get to experience what it is like to camp with a scouts BSA troop. This amazing weekend is hosted by local troops and is youth lead with adult supervision. The cubs set up their own tents, cook their own food and build this amazing tower and then climb it! Last year one of our cubs wasn't ready to climb to the top of the tower. This year she set the goal for herself to make it to the top. She was so excited to try it again. Then a week before the trip she broke her hand. She was extremely frustrated that she was going to miss her last chance to climb to the top. Luckily our amazing scout leaders stepped up to ensure that all scouts have an opportunity to succeed. The adult belaying the climbers told her to tuck her injured hand against her body and not use it and as long as she wanted to keep climbing he would help her get to the top. This is what scouting is all about giving our scouts the tools they need and empowering them to succeed. Not only did several of our cubs climb the tower they also won the campfire cooking competition with a fantastic homemade campfire chili. Way to go cubs!
4th of July Parade
Cubscout Resident Camp
Overnight Camp!
Our Bears and Webelos (going into 3rd - 5th) can attend cub scout resident camp where they camp for 4 nights and do fun activities and games. We climbed the rock wall, did BBs and Archery, used tools and learned knots to make a walking stick, practiced outdoor cooking, played silly games, and more
June Hike East Glenwood
June Hike Elkhorn Slough
Memorial Day Flag Placement
Honoring our Veterans
Scouts and Cubs from multiple units around Satna Cruz came together to place flags on veteran's graves at two cemeteries on Santa Cruz County. Thank you to Troop 2614 for organizing this amazing opportunity for local scouts!
May Optional Den Meeting
Fun with Yo-Yos
Our Webelos (4th grade) den finished off the year with a bit of silly fun We completed the Yo-yo adventure. There are options for completing this adventure for every age. Cubs learn about Yo-yo safety, how to knot a Yo-yo string, and some basic tricks, and of course we have a lot of fun!
May Pack Outing - Kayaking
Safety Brief
Before heading out on the water we got a review on how to paddle and safety advice. Scouts always need a buddy, when tandem kayaking your buddy is the other person in your kayak and you also have a buddy boat so that no boat gets left behind
Heading out
We paddled out in two groups with our guides. Many of the cubs were doing a great job paddling themselves like the cub at the front of this kayak.
Wildlife watching
The group stops to rest and watch the numerous sea otters on the move in the Slough. The 6th leave no trace principle reminds us to respect wildlife, which we followed by leaving a safe distance between us and the otters to avoid disturbing them.
SCOUT O RAMA!!!!!
Learning to walk on the slack line!
We were lucky enough to have a spot next to this slack line so our cubs would run over whenever the line was short. We were so impressed with the patience and kindness of these older scouts as they guided the cubs across the slack lines.
Marching in the parade!
Our cubs traded off carrying the American Flag and the Pack Flag in the opening parade. We snagged a spot near the front right behind the Starwars characters! The cubs did a great job handling the heavy flags!
We met Sharky!
Walking around between all the booths we met Sharky! The SJ Sharks mascot was nice enough to pose for a photo with one of our cubs. We also me the SJ Giants mascot who invited us to their upcoming scout night at their stadium where cubs can camp on the field!
Leave no trace race
We brought our award winning leave no trace race booth again this year and had a blast teaching people about the 7 leave no trace principles in this silly obstacle course
May Pack Meeting - Scrapbooking
Reflecting on our year
We held our last pack meeting of the year. Cubs brought their favorite photos from the year and we created a scoutbook for the pack to comemorate our scouting year. Each cub made their own Srapbook page
Optional May Den Meetings
Tigers and Bears go for a hike
This group of cubs is leading the way navigating with their trail maps. They saw over 15 different types of animals and insects, including a group of deer, ducks, beetles, a wild turkey in a tree, gophers, gulls, pelicans and multiple bunnies! The cub scouts took care to stay on the trail as there were poison oak bushes along the route. The Bears earned their Fur, Feathers and Ferns adventure on this hike and the Tigers were working on their Leave No Trace principles.
Webelos finished up their Castaway adventure
The webelos finished up their Castaway adventure. We discussed what made a good leader in an emergency. We were all in a very silly mood so we did a skit about what NOT to do as a leader in an emergency and then discussed how they could have been a better leader. We practiced making a fire with flint and steel and we discussed the STOP acronym for being lost and what Stop, Think, Observe, & Plan mean. I forgot to take a photo so we borrowed this one form the camping trip.
April Camping Trip
Foil packet dinners
Bone from an owl pellet
Taking down their own tent
Banana chocolate chip pancakes
April Camping Trip Prep
The big box of fun
We always want to have lots of options for keeping the cubs entertained on trips. To that end we had some board games, rainbow popsicle sticks, a outdoor skills craft, supplies for knots (having extra paracord is always useful), and paracord braclet making.
The important supplies
Our awesome camping coordinator makes sure we have all the gear we need plus some back ups. That the food is purchased and prepped and that we are prepared to make sure everyone has a safe trip with all thesupplies we need.
April Den Meetings
Lion den enjoys a hike
Our lion den enjoyed a hike while working on their Mountain Lion adventure by preparing and packing for a hike, using the buddy system, and learning what to do if they ever get lost. They counted TEN banana slugs on their hike!
Webelos prepare to survive on a deserted Island
Our Webelos prepared to survive on a deserted island by learning 3 ways to purify water (chemical, heat, filter) and putting together survival kits including this etra long craft stick with 2 brightly colored rolls of duct tape. what else is in out kits? Rain poncho. For rain or shelter, brightly colored duct tape, large craft stick, plastic bag with tissues, first aid kit, large trash bag. (doubles as poncho or shelter), single mirror, fire tinder.
April Pack Meeting Scout Crafts
Making belt loop award holders
Scouts painted, glued, and practiced basic lashings and knots to make these holders for their belt loop awards.
Making Scout law Key Chains
While the pain and glue dried they worked on this bead craft to make a key chain to help them remember the Scout Law. A Scout is trustworthy, loyal, helpful, friendly, courteous, kind, obedient, cheerful, thrifty, brave, clean, and reverent.
Always have popsicle sticks as a back up.
If they finished their bead craft and things were still drying they built popsicle towers.
March Den Meetings
3rd grade Bears painted their birdhouses
We forgot to take a lot of photos again :-/ Our 1st graders played games and learned about being good sports. Our third graders finished their Baloo the builder adventure about safe tool use and woodworking and finished painting their bird houses and then made leather stamped bracelets
Webelos worked on First Aid
Our 2nd graders made kites and learned about flying them safely and our 4th graders continued their first aid adventures by learning about hurry cases and how to handle them. We practiced what to say if we had to call 911 and followed up with a troop visit to Troop 673 where they learned about CPR.
Thank you T673 for having us!
March Pack Meeting Leave no trace
Walk on durable surfaces
The second leave to trace principle is walk and camp on durable surfaces. Which means we always stay on the trail. We used stepping stones for our trail and the cubs enjoyed hpooing between them.
Be careful with fire
The fifth leave no trace principle is be careful with fire. We talked fire safety around the inflatable campfire and made pretend s'mores (we'll have the real thing on our upcoming camping trip)
Don't forget your buddy
The first leave no trace principle is no before you go. Planning ahead prevents problems. To remind us to never hike without a buddy we had three legged races. To practice planning ahead we discussed the cub scout 6 essentials (Food, water, flashlight, sun protection, whistle, first aid kit) and what else we would pack for different types of weather.
Optional March Den Meetings
Engineer!
For our optional March den meeting our Webelos (4th grade) scouts learned about engineers. We learned about the engineer design process and talked about different kinds of engineers. As part of this adventure the cubs have to look at blueprints and then draw their own, build it, and share it, which we already do as part of Pinewood derby. After our quick engineering chat everyone spent more time working on their pinewood derby cars.
More Pinewood derby help
We had tools and paints available at our optional den night for all the cubs who needed additional time or help with their cars. We can't wait to see everyone's creations race this Saturday!
February Den Meetings
Fire Safety
Our Lions (K) got to meet a Firefighter and learn about fire safety! They even got to try on all the gear and they got awesome fire safety goody bags. Thank you Firefighters!
Building Bird Houses!
Our Bears (3rd grade) learned about how to use tools safely and selecting the right tool for the job. Then they made amazing bird houses.
Cooking!
Our Webelos (4th grade) learned about cooking. They picked some menu options for our spring camping trip, learned about food safety, and learned different campfire building techniques and when to use each.
February Outing Pine Wood Derby build
Cubs design their cars
Design Consultation
Grown ups use the power tools.
The angle makes it hard to tell no fingers are in front of or near the saw blade.
Cubs finish with hand tools
We want all of our cubs to have the opportunity to succeed at Pinewood derby. Before build day we send out resources about how to build a pinewood derby car (We highly recommend Mark Rober's video) and some sample templates that cubs can use as starting points. At Blue and Gold every cub gets a pinewood derby build kit (block of wood, wheels, and axels) and a blank design template. Then to make sure everyone has access to the tools they need we have a weekend build day where families can come for advice, help with their cars, and to use tools they don't have at home. Pinewood derby is as much about creativity as speed, this year we have cars shaped like a hotdog, a bunny, a pickup truck, race cars, and more. We give prizes for creativity as well as race wins.
February Pack Meeting Blue and Gold!
Glow in the Dark Bowling
Glow in the Dark Ring Toss
Dance Party!
Cake!
Blue and Gold Banquet is a February tradition for cubscout packs across the Nation but it's extra special for Pack 673 because it marks the pack's birthday. We turned 5 years old this year making us one of the oldest all-girls packs in the Nation! To celebrate we threw ourselves an amazing glow in the dark party with skits, songs, games, and of course cake!
January Outing
Roller Skating!
The weather finally chased us indoors. We cancelled our trip to see the Monarchs at Natural Bridges and went roller-skating instead. The girls had a ton of fun. Many of them were new to skating, so there was a lot of falling and getting back up and trying again. They exemplified a scout is cheerful, encouraging each other, laughing, and learning together. Our cubmaster needs to improve her skating so she can take better photos.
December Pack Meeting
As is the Pack 673 tradition for our December Pack Meeting we decorated Gingerbread Houses and Winter Cookies. The girls had a great time decorating with icing, candy, and sprinkles and they made some amazing creations! It was a nice laid back meeting going into the Holiday Break. Our pack wishes all of you a Happy Holidays and a Happy New Year!
December Outing
Uvas Canyon County Park
When life gives you rain go on a waterfall hike! Rain cancelled our original December outing plans at Wilder Ranch State Park so we headed out on a nice day to enjoy the amazing post rain waterfalls of Uvas Canyon County Park. There was even a HUGE ladybug swarm!
December Den Meeting
For our December Den meetings our dens worked on various age appropriate adventures. Our lions (K) learned about taking care of their bodies and eating healthy snack and exercising. Our tigers learned about being good sports and played some fun games. Our wolves finished up some missing pieces from several adventures. Our bears talked about their family traditions and values wile working on their duty to god adventure. Our webelos learned how to fold origami as part of the Art explosion adventure started during our troop visit, we want to thank the scouts form troop 673 for supporting us in this adventure and leading this Webelos den meeting.
November Pack Meeting - Pack Carnival
Squishmallow Relay Races
How far can you get without dropping your Squishmallow?
Corn Hole
Stick the nose on the snowman
Our pack carnival was a big success! Thank you to the cubs in our bear den for planning and hosting this amazing event. We had crab walk races, pin the nose on the snowman, cornhole, squishable races, and a prizedrop game. The cubs had a blast!
Webelos Troop Visit Art Merit Badge
Part of setting up cubs to successfully bridge from cubs to scouts is interacting with local troops. Last night we were invited by T673 for their art merit badge meeting. The cubs had so much fun. They learned about design elements and then worked on self portraits in different mediums. They will be able to use some of their work from last night for the art explosion adventure.
Thank you T673 for having us!
Scouting For Food
Our pack participated in the annual scouting food drive Scouting For Food. We collected 74 bags of food from the community, which we estimate will be about 665 pounds of food! Thank you to all the families who donated!
Veterans' Day
Our cubs placed flags on Veterans' graves at two cemeteries in Santa Cruz on Veterans' Day to honor Santa Cruz's fallen veterans. Thank you to Troop 2614 for organizing this amazing opportunity for local scouts Photo Credit Above Shmuel Thaler — Santa Cruz Sentinel
November Den Meeting
For our November Den Meetings our Webelos worked on their fitness adventure, they learned about different exercises and picked 3 to work on for the next month and observe how they improve with practice. Our Bear den planned the pack carnival for later this month. This adventure lets them practice leadership and think about the abilities of all the scouts to ensure everyone has fun. Our Wolf den worked on the duty to country adventure and practiced proper folding of the American Flag. Our Tiger den learned about care and respect for nature and built bird houses. The Lion den built a really big tower and then knocked it down. Then they talked about how words and actions can build people up or knock them down.
October Pack Meeting
Scouting For Food
For our October pack meeting we distributed almost 250 donation bags for Scouts' annual food drive Scouting for Food. Last year we collected 63 bags of food totaling 567 pounds and we are hoping to top that this year! The food we collect will be donated to Valley Churches United which runs food banks serving Scotts Valley, SLV, and Bonny Doon. You can learn more about our pack and the Scouting for Food drive here: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1SRj6V_YGS2-d3zH_pLzXGiPWzplnJyKVo7sX9S76vlQ/edit?usp=sharing
Den meetings
Our Bear den worked on earning their whittling chip by learning to safely use knives. What better way to practice than getting into the Halloween spirit by carving pumpkins. Our Webelos den discussed healthy food for hiking, learned about dangerous plants and animals, and chose leadership roles for our next hike. Our wolf den worked on sportsmanship and games and discussed staying healthy by being physically fit and eating healthy.
Fall camping trip at Joseph D Grant
Amazing views and tons of wildlife at our Fall Camp out at Joseph D Grant County Park! We can't wait to do it again this Spring at Mount Madonna!
Rattle Snake
Deer
Tarantula
Bobcat
Den meetings
Hiking Safety
Our Webelos (4th and 5th grade) started their first den meeting of the year learning about hiking safety. We selected the best hike for the pack for our upcoming camping trip, talked about common hiking injuries and packed a first aid kit for handling them, practiced using a compass, and discussed weather safety and what to pack for different weather forecasts. Don't forget a camera for the rainbow!
Knife Safety
Our third graders learned knife safety. Knives are not toys. They practiced how to safely pass a knife, and practiced safely using a knife by whittling soap. At the end of this adventure these cubs will earn their whittling chip which allows them to carry their pocket knives, with permission, during scout events.
Knots!
Our 2nd grade den welcomed new scouts by learning more about the cub scout program, the scout oath, law, sign, and salute. They also took some time to learn some cool knots! Our kindergarteners and 1st graders were having so much fun we forgot to get photos!
Beach clean up and Bonfire
Saving the fire ring
Sometimes being cubmaster is a hard job!
Look at all the trash we found!
The cubs worked hard to find and pick up trash.
Laying the fire
The older scouts taught the cubs how to make a fire. We had so much fun making and eating S'mores I forgot to get a photo!
PXL_20220913_023425373_2.mp4Water Rockets were a BLAST
We had so much fun building water rockets out of recycled bottles and launching them. The cubs designed their own fins and nose cones and attached them to the rockets and then brought them to get fueled up. Once they had fuel (water) they headed to the launch pad and up up and away!
