Scouts BSA welcomes campers at La-No-Che

New precautions include masks, social distancing, temps taken

Although many Scout camps, a summer ritual for kids across the country, are closed because of the coronavirus, a campground in Lake County is open this month with a new protocol aimed at controlling the contagion.

Camp La-No-Che, the 1,480-acre property near the Ocala National Forest, is open for Scouts BSA, though reaction from parents has been mixed, camp officials said.

The Central Florida program, which began July 5 and ends July 24, is one of few in the nation that wasn’t canceled by Scouts BSA because Florida allowed summer camps to reopen.

“In the past we would just let everyone go out on their own,” said camp director Matt Ragan. “But we had to make changes to where we could protect our scouts.”

There are no large gatherings of scouts for the morning flag ceremony at the Lake County campground or mingling with other troops near an evening bonfire. Masks are worn by everyone in small groups when not eating or drinking. Temperatures are taken before troops make their way to the dining hall for meals. Only four scouts are allowed at a table that seats 8 people.

The number of spots available for the week long camp experiences dropped from previous years to ensure enough space for social distancing, Ragan said.

The camp is operating this year at less than half the capacity it normally does with about 500 scouts in attendance compared to 1,720 scouts last year.

“It was different but it was enjoyable,” said Scoutmaster David Reynolds, who camped with a 15 scout troop last week of boys and girls ages 10 to 17.

Social distancing and wearing a mask for long periods of time was a bit of a challenge but everyone did their best, he said.

“When you’re swimming it’s hard to do that but as long as you’re 6 feet apart they didn’t have to wear a mask,” Reynolds said.

Changes this summer also include individual tents for every scout instead of the usual pairs