My first job just out of High School was working on the Camp Staff at the now long closed Camp Semiconon in Connoquenessing Twp. Named for the creek which runs thru it by local Indians the word means" Long Straight way" it was part of Allegheny Trails Council now known as Laurel highlands Council and just as worthless.
I was hired as a Voyager and assistant to Camp Range Joe Huburda a really great guy whose family would get screwed in the rend by the council when he unexpectedly died.
I would take groups of scouts and their leaders on what was known as Shoe & Canoe a small version of the Boot & Paddle program run out now gone Camp Tionesta it was a 7 mile hike to Lake Author we would then canoe 2 miles across set up camp stay overnight and repeat in the morning.
When not doing this I would help the ranger maintain the camp along with 3 other scouts.
As a break in the first scouts we would work with would be Webelow Scouts 10 years old and 1 year from becoming boyscouts. I and another scout was assigned a group of boys to supervise during the week.
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| Area has greatly grown up and changed over 30+ years |
Everything went good the first night . But the second night something went very scary and bizarre.
Our camp site was across the small feeder creek and by it self. We where sitting at camp fire and it was pitch black when a stone came into camp hitting a scout some one had thrown a quick look around with flash lights can not find anything.
Then it happened again 5 more times at this point the stones where getting bigger I grabbed up the kids and got them to the camp lodge and got the camp leader to come up to site to check things out we saw nothing and as he was asking me questions an even bigger rock came into the campsite hitting the fire pit. With that we took off back to the lodge and brought all the webelow's and staff to lodge for safety and Pa. State Police where called 2 troopers in a unmarked car responded. They looked and could find nothing either and decided it was probably locals playing games .
But we decided it would be safer to keep kids in lodge for the night. That morning we looked around stones where everywhere and we climbed up the hill looking to see if it where locals playing a trick but it would have been impossible for them to do it and sneak down in the dark.
So what could it have been? I have had it suggested we encountered a Big foot Attack but we heard nothing
but they are known supposedly for throwing rocks at cabins and such and disappearing .
Witches Black Magic there has always been rumors of dark magic and satanic rituals going on in the deep woods but nothing ever substantiated than kids playing around .
Was it some one on staff playing tricks maybe but everyone was accounted for including the rangers 2 sons.
If it was locals how where they getting around in pitch black and not making a sound.
As far as I know there was not another incident like this at the camp but heard it from other scouts in other councils when I talked to them at jamboree about similar things happening to them. . But that was also year they announced
they where closing Tionesta which I helped to tear down and year they announced camp heritage was being built in Fayette County also known as Fayettenam for a reason .Because of all the violence that goes on in that county with the highest amount of poverty in the state and its mountain people and inbreeds. yes you can definitely hear banjos playing in that county.
During the presentation of the new camp that fall I asked what security precautions where taking place at camp and they basically shook it off saying its so remote no one should bother any one after everyone knew what happened at Semiconon Some scout leaders started carry concealed hand guns and did not like answers they where getting as well. But like I said that's the useless council for you.
Even thou earlier that summer all of scouting world would be shocked when 3 Girl Scouts where raped and murdered in a camp as they slept.which was same week we had problems at Semiconon coincidence. Needless to say sleeping in the woods would change for ever. I always kept a weapon close while camping after that and even to this day I am always on guard in the woods.
http://www.girlscoutmurders.com/
To this day scouts are still camping and hiking and nothing is being done to insure their safety.
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