Did the boy scouts in America really?

Question

Have a challenge where they would send a couple of boys with absolutely no possessions or clothes into the woods to find shelter and food?

Answer 1

Sort of.

Order of the Arrow has a ritual that is similar to that, but the ban on initiations and hazing that has been in effect for over a decade makes it not so bad as it sounds.

The Wilderness Survival merit badge does something similar on a purely voluntary basis.

Some summer camps in the US practice something like this for their own camping honor societies.

Now- the usual process is to take a Scout with a very small collection of supplies, depending on the program, and having them spend the night alone or in small groups with little other than what they carried. No one is naked, and sleeping bags or something similar are almost always provided. Some small amount of food is usually involved as well.

However... a well-trained Scout SHOULD be able to do OK for a short time with literally nothing in many situations!

Now... historically... yeah. A lot of stuff like that happened at different times and places- rarely with the full approval of the BSA, but it happened anyway. The 'underwear night' was a moderately common challenge- drop a kid off with a blanket, a knife, and his underwear somewhere to spend a night and expect them to find a meal.

Answer 2

this is a myth probably associated with your admission into the Order of the Arrow, which is a type of club you have to be nominated by your fellow scouts to join. I heard all sorts of stories like this before i got tapped out...that you were given a sheet of plastic and one raw egg and you had to survive for a whole weekend. But when i did it it was like 10 guys that had to do a bunch of slave work in the middle of the woods. It does suck but its not anything like what you described.

Answer 3

Yes and then a bear raped their shoes and ate them.

Answer 4

No, but they should. That would be good for everybody.

Answer 5

i dont think so