WELCOME TO THE WEBSITE FOR BOY SCOUT TROOP 13 MONTCLAIR, NJ

For all current troop members and parents, please enter the site by clicking on Log In at the top right of this page.

Troop 13 is open to all boys, ages 11 to 17, or grades 6 and above. We go camping rain or shine, every month, as well as going on numerous other trips all year, including historical trips, whitewater rafting, biking, skiing, and the arctic challenge skills derby, plus many more. We attend summer camp in the Catskills for a week. We also go on high adventure treks to Philmont Scout Ranch in New Mexico and Floodwood in the Adirondacks—trips many of our scouts have described as life-changing! We also take part in service activities throughout the year. Troop 13 boys have fun while learning outdoor, life and leadership skills all year long. Many of our scouts leave the troop as Eagles, the highest rank in all of Scouting. 

Come join us at a meeting and find out what being in a boy-led Scouting America troop is all about! And learn why so many Troop 13 scouts say joining our troop was one of the best things they've ever done. Got questions? Email Scoutmaster Mike Bateman at scoutmaster@bsatroop13montclair.org.

Interested in joining Boy Scouts?

Come check out one of our meetings!

Troop 13 Montclair meets every Monday when school is in session at 7:30 pm in the basement scout room at Union Congregational, 176 Cooper Avenue, Montclair. If you are interested in coming, please email our Scoutmaster Michael Bateman at scoutmaster@bsatroop13montclair.org. to let us know you'll be there. Email him if you have any questions, too—he'll be happy to answer them. Or just drop by. We'd love to have you join us!

You can also check us out on Facebook. We hope to see you at a meeting soon!

ABOUT TROOP 13
Boy Scout Troop 13 Montclair meets Monday nights during the school year at 7:30 pm at Union Congregational, 176 Cooper Ave., Montclair. The troop is open to all boys aged 11 or older. You don't have to be a member of the church, or any church, to join.

What do we do? We have fun! We go camping every month, rain or shine, and we have lots of adventures! During the summer we go to a camp in the Catskill Mountains of New York for a week. Older scouts participate in summer multi-week high adventure camping treks in places like the Adirondack Mountains of New York or the Philmont Scout Ranch in New Mexico. We also do many community service projects throughout the year. At our boy-led meetings, we work on skill-building, plan trips, and play games. We are proud that every year, some of our scouts earn the Eagle rank, the highest in all Scouting, and a rank only 4% of all scouts ever reach. Since our founding, in 1911, almost 200 Troop 13 scouts have earned Eagle!

Although working through the ranks takes time and dedication, most Troop 13 scouts find time to also participate in many other activities including sports—we've had members of the MHS crew, football, soccer, cross-country and wrestling teams, recently—as well as many other activities, from robotics club to music lessons. Our scouts have wide and varied interests, from the great outdoors to the chemistry lab.

Does your son love to camp, hike, backpack, swim, canoe, and fish—or does he want to learn more about doing those things? Does he want to explore STEM merit badges in areas like Game Design, Digital Technology, Robotics, Animation, Engineering, Nuclear Science, and Space Exploration, just to name a few? Then join us at one of our regular meetings to learn about the opportunities for adventure, service, and leadership that Troop 13 offers. To find out more, read below. Or scroll down and click on the attached flyer. Visit Boy Scout Troop 13 Montclair on Facebook. If you have more questions, email our Scoutmaster at scoutmaster@bsatroop13montclair.org.

Come Check Out Troop 13 at Our Monday Night Meetings

Come find out what Boy Scout Troop 13 is all about any Monday night when school is in session, at Union Congregational Church, 176 Cooper Ave., Montclair.

Troop 13 meets every Monday when school is in session from 7:30-8:45 p.m. at Union Congregational. The troop is open to all boys, aged 11-17.

Troop 13 is active all year long. The troop camps out every month, rain or shine; they sponsor a cabin at Camp Glen Gray in Mahwah, NJ, and that’s a common destination. Other trips include a fall biking trip, a skeet shooting trip, a ski outing, and canoe or rafting trips. Each year the trip takes a history trip—recent destinations have included the Pequot Museum in Connecticut, Antietam Battlefield in Maryland, Gettysburg Battlefield in Pennsylvania, Washington’s Crossing on the Delaware River, and West Point in New York.

Each summer, Troop 13 scouts spend a week at Camp Aquehonga, in Narrowsburg, NY. There they sleep in tents, cook meals, swim, boat, work on merit badges, and learn skills. Scouts also get a chance to participate in high-adventure trips. This summer and in 2019, scouts went to the Philmont Scout Ranch in New Mexico for a “life-changing” 12-day backpacking trek of about 85 miles. In 2018 and 2021 Troop 13 scouts went on week-long, 50-mile and 70-mile canoe treks through the Adirondack Park wilderness at Floodwood Scout Reservation.

Weekly meetings are spent prepping for upcoming trips, wrapping up past trips, learning and practicing new skills, conducting troop business, planning upcoming activities, working on rank advancement or merit badges, and playing games.

Troop 13 also does many community service projects—it’s a great way for young people to earn their service hours and give back to the community with friends. The troop is very proud of recent projects, which have included planting 40 trees and building and installing 4 bog bridges at Montclair’s Alonzo Bonsal Wildlife Preserve; reorganizing and building storage shelves at Montclair Animal Shelter; creating and installing a Buzz Aldrin info board at Edgemont Park; building a patio and picnic bench at Temple Sholom of West Essex; installing an outdoor Stations of the Cross at St. Cassian’s; building and restoring signs and bog bridges at Mills Reservation; clearing and creating a new path and installing irrigation systems at Van Vleck Gardens; removing weeds and debris from the Edgemont Park Pond stream; maintaining trails at the Essex County Environmental Center; collecting food, hand warmers and pet food for Toni’s Kitchen and the Montclair Animal Shelter; building garden boxes, a bench and a lending library at Union Cong Weekday Nursery School; building an irrigation system, bee apiary, and chicken coop at Montclair Community Farms; creating a memorial rock garden at Toni’s Kitchen; and creating a memorial arboretum in Glen Ridge.

Troop 13 is a boy-led troop. The Senior Patrol Leader (SPL) and Assistant SPL who run the meetings are elected twice a year. The troop is organized into patrols of 6-8 scouts, with an elected Patrol Leader heading each. Boys also hold other troop and patrol positions, such as quartermaster, troop guide, den chief, and grub master, where even the youngest scouts learn to cook for their patrol. Troop 13 scouts, no matter what age, learn a lot about leadership.

Why join Troop 13? Some boys join because they want to camp, hike, bike, canoe, ski, swim, and learn wilderness skills. Some join because they are interested in the environment. Others join to earn merit badges and work toward the Eagle Scout rank. Many enjoy the STEM merit badges Scouting offers. All boys who attend meetings and participate in activities have a great opportunity to move through the scout ranks and explore nature, learn new life skills, enjoy the camaraderie of the troop, gain confidence, and learn to be leaders. Many Troop 13 scouts also find time to participate in sports and other scholastic and extracurricular activities. Last year, 11 of our graduating seniors became Eagle Scouts—all while also juggling crew, football, cross-country, robotics, theater productions, and more.

Come see what Troop 13 Montclair is all about and learn about the opportunities for fun, camaraderie, skill building, and leadership Montclair’s oldest Boy Scout Troop has to offer.

For more information, check out Boy Scout Troop 13 Montclair on Facebook. Visit the troop website at bsatroop13montclair.org. If you have questions, email scoutmaster@bsatroop13montclair.org.

Troop 13 Scouts take a rest on the hiking trail!

Troop 13 scouts hiked to the top of Baldy Mountain at Philmont in New Mexico last August.

Whitewater rafting and canoe trips are always hit with Troop 13 scouts!

At summer camp at Aquehonga in the Catskills, scouts of all ages practice their cooking skills.

Troop 13 scouts go on interesting hikes and trips all year long.

Scouts have fun learning outdoor skills like map and compass reading, and learn to love the outdoors.

On the trail with burros in New Mexico.

Enjoying camaraderie on the trek through the Adirondack Mountains.

Canoeing at dawn on a peaceful mountain lake on the Floodwood Adirondack trek.

Sharing a tent with a friend is always fun!

Learning about Native Americans at the Pequot Museum in Connecticut.

Cool Eagle Project: Reorganizing the basement and building storage shelves at the Montclair Animal Shelter.

Cool Eagle Project: Planting 40 native trees and building bog bridges at Alonzo Bonzal Wildlife Preserve.

Cool Eagle Project: Repairing and rebuilding information kiosks at Mills Reservation.

Check out our flyers!