About Sheppard Base

About Camp Sheppard High Adventure Base

The Camp Sheppard High Adventure Base is located on 17 acres of forested land leased to the Chief Seattle Council, BSA by the US Forest Service White River District, Mt. Baker- Snoqualmie National Forest since the 1950’s. It’s position in a mountain valley, elev.2450 feet, on the west side of Washington’s Cascade Mountain Range also provides year-round activities including snow sports. The facility is 1/4th mile from the East fork of the White River and at the base of beautiful, 300’ high, Snoquera Falls. The well known Mt. Rainier National Park and Crystal Mt. Ski Resort are just 4 miles further south on Highway 410.

This historic camp area is also known as Snoquera Flats using the names Snoqualmie and ERA (Employment Recovery Act) that led to the CCC (Civilian Conservation Corps) of the 1930’s. The High Adventure Trek Shack and Museum are situated in the last remaining CCC bunkhouse in Western Washington and designated as a historic building. The parking lot is a popular public trailhead for over 65 miles of gentle grade trails built by scouts beginning in 1966.

The camp buildings consist of a Directors residence, kitchen lodge, nine heated chalet style huts, trek shack, two heated shower houses and service buildings. The camp has landline phone and fax plus cell phone and wireless Internet backed up by a generator. Two-way radio, cell and satellite phone are used for trek communications.

History of Sheppard Base Program

In the fall of 1964 the Chief Seattle Council hired Max Eckenburg as Ranger for the newly expanded Camp Sheppard. Because of the camp’s close proximity to Mt. Rainier and surrounding mountains, Max couldn’t resist the opportunity to develop something new called “High Adventure”, a collection of challenging outdoor programs intended for scouts of all ages. His vision was to build a progressive program that challenged cubs, scouts and explorers featuring, back packing, fishing, swimming, mountaineering, conservation, trail building and winter sports along with merit badges for each of these activities. He hoped someday scouts would come from across the country to climb Mt. Rainier with a well-trained staff.

In the spring of 1966 Max inspired four high school boys to serve as his first High Adventure Program Staff for the ensuing summer. He had met these challenge seekers thru programs he helped start such as Explorer Search and Rescue and Cascade Trail Blazers.
The summer of 1966 was the beginning of an exciting 14-season heritage unmatched to this day. During that amazing time Max’s highly trained and trusted staff led week long hikes on the Pacific Crest Trail, the Wonderland Trail, lesser known trails and cross country routes. Additionally, they climbed Washington State’s major peaks in 7-day trips, including Mt. Baker, Glacier Peak, Mt. Olympus, Mt Stuart, Mt. Ingalls, Mt. Adams, Mt. St. Helens and Mt. Rainier. For 14 seasons the master outdoor schoolteacher Max was permanently implanting character development combined with leadership skills into his staff. The staff knew Max had placed his trust in each of them. Their respect for Max and his program brought forth the finest qualities in each. Max had “Provided the Challenge” and they had risen to meet it. They were responsible for the safety, well-being and training of each scout on their trips and Max let them lead with minimal interference. This cherished trust between Max and his staff was at the core of the program that attracted so many.

The program’s popularity grew as the highly trained and capable staff led hikes and climbs throughout the Cascade and Olympic Mountain Ranges. In 1971 another of Max’s dreams came true. The Mt. Rainier climbing program went national. Boys came from as far as Florida to climb for one week on the great mountain and sleep on its summit. Each Rainier climb was lead by Max’s trained staff. The program grew from 4 staff in 1966 to 18 in 1976.

But like many good things, without adequate funds the program could not continue. The program’s grand life ended in 1979. During the 14-year run 62 staff members had passed through the program leading over 200 successful one and two week long treks. The cancellation of the program was a serious disappointment to Max, the staff and those that had participated in the program. The loss of the Sheppard program left the Pacific Northwest without a high adventure program.

Max retired in 1983 at age 67 from more then 50 years of very effective scouting. Sadly, at great lose to the scouting community, the program and staff melted away. On more than one occasion after his retirement Max shared his dreams of the program starting again. Max’s former staff all understood their Sheppard experience to be the defining element in their lives, but with young families and new jobs they lacked the time and position in life to resurrect the program. But Max had planted hearty and long lasting seeds waiting for the right time to sprout.

Max was diagnosed with liver cancer in 1997. From that time the focus of his life was building the Northern Tier trail, resurrecting the Sheppard program and attending to his illness and the struggle to vanquish the cancer. His struggles with cancer and the financial hardship that often accompanies that illness brought his former staff members back together. Lead by former staffer Chuck Caley, they provided financial and physical support to their ailing mentor. Max Eckenburg died in April 2001 just before his 85th birthday.
In 2002 three former staff members Bill Rengstorf, John Miner and Denny Fenstermaker began working to restore the High Adventure Program at Camp Sheppard. Working with the Camp Director, they laid the foundation for rebuilding the program.

In the spring of 2004, Pat Tobin was hired as the Camp Director at Camp Sheppard. One of Pat’s major goals was to rebuild a High Adventure program at Camp Sheppard. Like Max, Pat was well qualified to lead this new program and the former staff knew how to help make it happen. They had lived the program. They believed in it’s great potential to build character and life skills in older scouts. Working with other former staff, the scout office and the scouting community the program began to take shape.
Drawing heavily on the previous program’s staff experience while staying attune to the changes in society since those earlier days, the program came together offering a diverse set of experiences, including back packing, rock climbing, mountaineering, adventure racing and mountain biking.

Current Program

Camp Sheppard has grown to be the premier High Adventure Base in the nation. The program motto is Max’s guiding philosophy, “Providing the Challenge”. It’s slogan is “Mountain Adventures Preparing Tomorrow’s Leaders”. There is a strong committee of heritage staff and committed volunteers with a heart for following the High Adventure goals established by Max. The program has local council support, a long term plan, an attractive and well rounded modern program, increased signup, sold out climbs including out of state trekkers, a website, promotion materials, adult support, Igor 2-the cool mascot bus, a mountain bike shop sponsor, donations, USFS and Mt. Rainier Park cooperation, new staff coming on board and after more then 28 years, summit climbs of Mt. Rainier. Pat Tobin has provided the leadership and vision to bring High Adventure opportunities back to the Pacific Northwest and to the nation. Camp Sheppard High Adventure Base does indeed “Provide the Challenge”.

Discovery Treks	Mountain Bike Descents	Basic Mountaineering Seminars	Tri-Trek	Mt. Rainier Expeditionary Climbs	Ranger Challenge	Back to Trek Offerings

	About Sheppard Base
About Camp Sheppard High Adventure Base The Camp Sheppard High Adventure Base is located on 17 acres of forested land leased to the Chief Seattle Council, BSA by the US Forest Service White River District, Mt. Baker- Snoqualmie National Forest since the 1950’s. It’s position in a mountain valley, elev.2450 feet, on the west side of Washington’s Cascade Mountain Range also provides year-round activities including snow sports. The facility is 1/4th mile from the East fork of the White River and at the base of beautiful, 300’ high, Snoquera Falls. The well known Mt. Rainier National Park and Crystal Mt. Ski Resort are just 4 miles further south on Highway 410. This historic camp area is also known as Snoquera Flats using the names Snoqualmie and ERA (Employment Recovery Act) that led to the CCC (Civilian Conservation Corps) of the 1930’s. The High Adventure Trek Shack and Museum are situated in the last remaining CCC bunkhouse in Western Washington and designated as a historic building. The parking lot is a popular public trailhead for over 65 miles of gentle grade trails built by scouts beginning in 1966. The camp buildings consist of a Directors residence, kitchen lodge, nine heated chalet style huts, trek shack, two heated shower houses and service buildings. The camp has landline phone and fax plus cell phone and wireless Internet backed up by a generator. Two-way radio, cell and satellite phone are used for trek communications. History of Sheppard Base Program In the fall of 1964 the Chief Seattle Council hired Max Eckenburg as Ranger for the newly expanded Camp Sheppard. Because of the camp’s close proximity to Mt. Rainier and surrounding mountains, Max couldn’t resist the opportunity to develop something new called “High Adventure”, a collection of challenging outdoor programs intended for scouts of all ages. His vision was to build a progressive program that challenged cubs, scouts and explorers featuring, back packing, fishing, swimming, mountaineering, conservation, trail building and winter sports along with merit badges for each of these activities. He hoped someday scouts would come from across the country to climb Mt. Rainier with a well-trained staff. In the spring of 1966 Max inspired four high school boys to serve as his first High Adventure Program Staff for the ensuing summer. He had met these challenge seekers thru programs he helped start such as Explorer Search and Rescue and Cascade Trail Blazers. The summer of 1966 was the beginning of an exciting 14-season heritage unmatched to this day. During that amazing time Max’s highly trained and trusted staff led week long hikes on the Pacific Crest Trail, the Wonderland Trail, lesser known trails and cross country routes. Additionally, they climbed Washington State’s major peaks in 7-day trips, including Mt. Baker, Glacier Peak, Mt. Olympus, Mt Stuart, Mt. Ingalls, Mt. Adams, Mt. St. Helens and Mt. Rainier. For 14 seasons the master outdoor schoolteacher Max was permanently implanting character development combined with leadership skills into his staff. The staff knew Max had placed his trust in each of them. Their respect for Max and his program brought forth the finest qualities in each. Max had “Provided the Challenge” and they had risen to meet it. They were responsible for the safety, well-being and training of each scout on their trips and Max let them lead with minimal interference. This cherished trust between Max and his staff was at the core of the program that attracted so many. The program’s popularity grew as the highly trained and capable staff led hikes and climbs throughout the Cascade and Olympic Mountain Ranges. In 1971 another of Max’s dreams came true. The Mt. Rainier climbing program went national. Boys came from as far as Florida to climb for one week on the great mountain and sleep on its summit. Each Rainier climb was lead by Max’s trained staff. The program grew from 4 staff in 1966 to 18 in 1976. But like many good things, without adequate funds the program could not continue. The program’s grand life ended in 1979. During the 14-year run 62 staff members had passed through the program leading over 200 successful one and two week long treks. The cancellation of the program was a serious disappointment to Max, the staff and those that had participated in the program. The loss of the Sheppard program left the Pacific Northwest without a high adventure program. Max retired in 1983 at age 67 from more then 50 years of very effective scouting. Sadly, at great lose to the scouting community, the program and staff melted away. On more than one occasion after his retirement Max shared his dreams of the program starting again. Max’s former staff all understood their Sheppard experience to be the defining element in their lives, but with young families and new jobs they lacked the time and position in life to resurrect the program. But Max had planted hearty and long lasting seeds waiting for the right time to sprout. Max was diagnosed with liver cancer in 1997. From that time the focus of his life was building the Northern Tier trail, resurrecting the Sheppard program and attending to his illness and the struggle to vanquish the cancer. His struggles with cancer and the financial hardship that often accompanies that illness brought his former staff members back together. Lead by former staffer Chuck Caley, they provided financial and physical support to their ailing mentor. Max Eckenburg died in April 2001 just before his 85th birthday. In 2002 three former staff members Bill Rengstorf, John Miner and Denny Fenstermaker began working to restore the High Adventure Program at Camp Sheppard. Working with the Camp Director, they laid the foundation for rebuilding the program. In the spring of 2004, Pat Tobin was hired as the Camp Director at Camp Sheppard. One of Pat’s major goals was to rebuild a High Adventure program at Camp Sheppard. Like Max, Pat was well qualified to lead this new program and the former staff knew how to help make it happen. They had lived the program. They believed in it’s great potential to build character and life skills in older scouts. Working with other former staff, the scout office and the scouting community the program began to take shape. Drawing heavily on the previous program’s staff experience while staying attune to the changes in society since those earlier days, the program came together offering a diverse set of experiences, including back packing, rock climbing, mountaineering, adventure racing and mountain biking. Current Program Camp Sheppard has grown to be the premier High Adventure Base in the nation. The program motto is Max’s guiding philosophy, “Providing the Challenge”. It’s slogan is “Mountain Adventures Preparing Tomorrow’s Leaders”. There is a strong committee of heritage staff and committed volunteers with a heart for following the High Adventure goals established by Max. The program has local council support, a long term plan, an attractive and well rounded modern program, increased signup, sold out climbs including out of state trekkers, a website, promotion materials, adult support, Igor 2-the cool mascot bus, a mountain bike shop sponsor, donations, USFS and Mt. Rainier Park cooperation, new staff coming on board and after more then 28 years, summit climbs of Mt. Rainier. Pat Tobin has provided the leadership and vision to bring High Adventure opportunities back to the Pacific Northwest and to the nation. Camp Sheppard High Adventure Base does indeed “Provide the Challenge”.