Ranger Award

Demonstrate emergency signals used outdoors

Demonstrate search-and-rescue patterns

Explain evacuation procedures and how to judge when to move and when to stay put in a wilderness emergency; explain how to get a group ready to evacuate from a threat and choose suitable Scouts to carry it out

Hypothermia

Frostbite

Sunburn

Heat exhaustion

Heat cramps

Heatstroke

Explain dehydration and why saving fluids matters in a survival situation

Explain four or more ways to get water outdoors, and show at least two ways to treat it

Build at least two kinds of fire lay: one suited to cooking and one for warmth

Learn about and discuss using fire starters, tinder, kindling, softwoods, and hardwoods to build fires

Explain why fire impacts should be kept small and how you kept yours small

Explain how to read and forecast weather from winds, barometric pressure, air masses and how they move, clouds, and other signs

Explain which rope materials and thicknesses work best in the wilderness and how to care for them

Show how to tie the bowline, bowline on a bight, sheet bend, fisherman's knot, clove hitch, timber hitch, taut-line hitch, two half hitches, and figure 8, and how to make square, shear, and diagonal lashings

Explain what each of those knots and lashings is for and how it can help in the wilderness

Explain the benefits and drawbacks of finding food in the wild, including what to avoid

Prepare and eat one or more meals made with food you found outdoors

List what you'd put in a wilderness survival kit, build the kit from that list, and explain what each item is for

Using your kit, show a fellow crew member how to build a wilderness survival kit

Before your wilderness outpost campout, learn the Leave No Trace Seven Principles, and use each one on your outings

Build a wilderness survival outpost camp and stay there for two days and two nights or more

Learn how you'd plan a wilderness shelter in three different environments, then build one that fits where you are

Use and show several knots and lashings from C2h while building your survival campsite

During the outpost campout, build at least one campfire and treat drinking water using the methods you learned

Take a communications-related class of 15+ hours (for example a school elective in creative or technical writing, American Sign Language, or film, or a commercial course in speed-reading or presenting), or attend a Scouting America course like Wood Badge, NYLT, NAYLE, or OA NLS

Be active for three months or more in a club focused on communication (such as Toastmasters, debate, mock trial or moot court, Model UN, or drama), joining at least three activities that build your communication skills; or serve on the staff of a Scouting America course like Wood Badge, NYLT, NAYLE, or OA NLS

Read two or more books on a communications topic you care about, approved by your Advisor (or someone they name), and give your crew a written or spoken report on the key ideas you learned and how you'll use them to communicate better

Oral skills

Audio-visual skills

Written skills

Explain why the four parts of fitness (endurance, strength, flexibility, and body composition) matter for your own fitness

Have a fitness professional or expert (a school PE teacher can do this) test you on those four parts, and with their help set fitness goals for eight weeks

On a topographic map of your area or where you'll navigate, show you know these symbols: index contour, vertical control station, checked spot elevation, map scale, ridge, depression, marsh, stream, intermittent stream, water well or spring, trail, bridge, building, cemetery, campsite, power line, single-track railroad, heavy-duty and medium-duty paved roads, and unimproved dirt road

Explain contour lines: be able to name your map's contour interval and show the difference between steep and gentle slopes

Use a map and compass to complete an orienteering course of six or more legs covering 2.5 miles or more

Learn to use a GPS receiver, and show you can find a fixed coordinate or a geocache at night with it

After talking about using Leave No Trace's seven principles while geocaching, lead three to five people to five geocaches near you

Cook two traditional meals from your chosen era and share them with your crew

Build a model of the kind of housing people used in that era

Learn and practice two cultural activities (such as a game, dance, song, poem, or a skill like flint-knapping) and share them with others

Write an essay on the culture of that era, covering topics such as music and customs

Create a video or presentation that sums up what you learned

Organize a group tour of a museum, archaeological dig, or other site important to your chosen culture

After the tour, lead the group in discussing what they learned

Find a local group or historical society that preserves a historic site, talk with someone there about its work, community outreach, and how people can help, and create a sample presentation or series of social media posts it could use to promote its work

Research careers such as historian, anthropologist, and archaeologist: how people enter each one, the education needed, example jobs, and what a typical workday involves

With guidance from a natural resources professional, investigate an ecology topic approved by your Advisor (or someone they name): inventory and map the area and gather specific data in a detailed study of one topic

Document your findings and present them to a youth group such as your crew or another crew, a Scouts BSA troop, or a Cub Scout pack

Identify 10 plants and animals that live in or pass through your backyard

Observe the spot closely across different seasons and conditions

Research how your city or area has changed over time, especially its ownership, land use, landforms, and climate

How the species' population shifts with conditions or outside influences

How well the environment supplies each species with food, shelter, materials, and protection, and population trends

What you predict for the future of these species

Practices you'd suggest to manage the population, and how you'd check that they're working

Discuss why proper food storage and handling matter when cooking outdoors

Discuss why cooking food thoroughly and properly matters outdoors

Discuss food allergies and dietary restrictions, and how to handle and prepare food to prevent cross-contamination

Discuss foodborne illnesses and how to prevent and treat them

Discuss reading food labels for nutrition facts, serving sizes, and contents

Review the USDA MyPlate with your Advisor (or someone they name)

Review serving sizes and daily intake with your Advisor (or someone they name)

Review recommended daily calories with your Advisor (or someone they name)

Review with your Advisor (or someone they name) how physical activity changes your plate and serving sizes

Fire and coals

Charcoal

Stoves

Backpacking stove

Dutch oven

Fire or coals

Discuss how Leave No Trace's seven principles relate to outdoor cooking

Discuss how to clean equipment, utensils, and the campsite properly after cooking

Discuss how to get rid of dishwater and trash properly

Explain how you'd reduce risk on a backpacking trek, and after your trip discuss with your Advisor (or someone they name) what worked in your plan and what didn't

Explain what an emergency response plan is for

Learn different ways to lay out a campsite on a backpacking trip

Learn and show trail health practices and how to prevent and treat common backpacking injuries and illnesses: blisters, sprains, stings and bites, dehydration, altitude sickness, heat exhaustion, heat stroke, hypothermia, and frostbite

Explain how you'll manage your water supply on a backpacking trip, then do it, including ways to treat water and why that matters

Try on three types of packs and learn to fit the right frame size to your body; be able to explain frameless, internal-frame, and external-frame packs, their pros and cons, and what kind of trek suits each

Explain a backpack's parts and what each one does

Learn the right way to lift and carry your pack

Describe four or more ways to cut weight and bulk in your pack without risking your health or safety

Learn how loading an internal-frame pack differs from loading an external-frame pack

Show the right backpacking clothing for wet, hot, and cold conditions, and explain your choices

Show the right footwear and socks and how to care for your feet, and explain your choices

Show three or more uses for a poncho while backpacking

List 20 or more items of group backpacking gear, including a group cleanup kit

Learn to cook a meal on a backpacking stove, then show you can do it

Show how to clean and sanitize backpacking cook gear properly

Learn the proper way to carry and pack a backpacking stove and its fuel

List 10 or more key environmental concerns for backpacking and describe ways to reduce their impact

Using the Leave No Trace Seven Principles, explain how to handle the human waste, wastewater, and trash you create on a backpacking trip

Pack your backpack with essentials, extra gear, and personal items for a three-day, two-night trip as if you were sharing gear with one partner

List 10 or more must-have items for an overnight trek and explain why each is needed

Unpack in front of an experienced backpacker for a critique of your packing, then repack and have them critique it again

Treks done following youth protection rules

Plan and lead a backpacking trek (it can be one of the S1i treks) for a Scouts BSA troop, your crew, or another crew

Plan a balanced, nutritious menu suited to the trek

Get any needed permits and use them to write a trip plan, including emergency contacts, to leave with your family and the participants

Brief the group you're leading on the trip plan using the map you used to plot your route

Lead a shakedown training session for the trek participants

Review the caving sections of the Guide to Safe Scouting and give your crew a presentation on Scouting America's caving do's and don'ts

Learn about the various kinds of caves and caverns and how people move through them

Learn these knots for vertical caving: endline knots (figure-eight, figure-eight on a bight, bowline), midline knots (butterfly, bowline on a bight), joiner knots (fisherman, water knot, figure-eight bend), and the Prusik ascending knot

Teach those knots to a youth group such as your crew or another crew, a Scouts BSA troop, or a Cub Scout pack

Learn what kinds of rope are used in climbing and vertical caving, and explain what each is used for and its traits

Learn how to care for climbing rope, and know and practice proper coiling and storage

Learn to keep records on climbing rope, check it for damage and wear, and recognize when it should be retired

Show you can rappel properly and safely for 30 feet or more

Show you can climb a rope 30 feet or more using mechanical ascenders, Prusiks, or other ascending knots

Explain how single-rope (SRT) and double-rope (DRT) techniques differ for rappelling and belaying, with the pros and cons of each

At a sporting goods store or a group affiliated with the NSS, attend a presentation on personal caving gear such as helmets, main and backup lights, clothing, boots, and cave packs

Find out the American National Standards Institute (ANSI) requirements for helmets

List what goes in your personal cave pack, including your own first aid kit and cave survival gear

Learn about crew equipment such as the first aid kit, ascending gear, and caving ropes

Help assemble a crew or group first aid kit, and show you can keep it stocked

Show a youth group such as your crew or another crew, a Scouts BSA troop, or a Cub Scout pack how to put together personal and crew first aid kits

Learn about the many kinds of cave formations

Write a report for your Advisor (or someone they name), or give a presentation to a youth group such as your crew or another crew, a Scouts BSA troop, or a Cub Scout pack, on cave formations and cave conservation, including proper carbide removal, protecting walls, ceilings, and formations, and the Leave No Trace Seven Principles

Choose a cave to visit and get permission to enter; make a trip plan listing its location, participants, expected time underground, expected return date and time, and an emergency contact; then go in with a qualified caver leading

Have a cave expert teach you about natural and human-made hazards such as mudslides, loose rock, pits, deep water, animals, complex routes, wooden ladders, and flooding

Learn what the standard symbols mean on a three-dimensional cave map

Pick a requirement from this elective that would be hard for someone with a disability, work out and explain how they could still achieve its purpose, and reflect on ways to raise awareness of disabled people in this activity

Describe how cycling, touring, mountain biking, and bikepacking differ

Explain how road biking and mountain biking differ

Know your state's laws on bicycling

Learn the safety rules and gear for the kind of biking you prefer

Use what you learned to lead a presentation and safe-riding session for a Scouting unit (yours or another), another group, or a youth group at a school or club in your community

Explain how the buddy system works for cycling and what technology could help

First aid for cyclists

Learn the rules for various kinds of cycling, including touring and mountain biking, set by groups like USA Cycling, the U.S. Forest Service, the International Mountain Bicycling Association, and other authorities

Describe the key environmental concerns of mountain biking and touring and ways to reduce their impact

Make a checklist of maintenance to go over before every ride, and include the Guide to Safe Scouting's SAFE Checklist for bike safety

Keep a personal biking journal with notes on at least three trips

Buy or put together a bike tool and repair kit

Show you know how to use every tool in the kit

Write instructions for two basic repairs your own bike might need, such as fixing a flat, adjusting the seat and handlebars, fixing a broken chain, or temporarily fixing a bent wheel

With approval from the landowner or land manager, plan and lead a day-long maintenance project on a bike trail or road

Make a social media post about the project (what you did, who it helped, and what you learned) and share it with your Advisor (or someone they name)

Take eight trips: 20-mile road rides, 10-mile mountain bike rides, or a mix of the two

Keep a journal of the eight trips with routes, weather, sketches, maps, and sights, plus trail features such as climbs, downhills, drops, rocks, log hops, portages, and trail markers

Explain how you put Leave No Trace's seven principles into practice on your rides

Pick a requirement from this elective that would be hard for someone with a disability, work out and explain how they could still achieve its purpose, and reflect on ways to raise awareness of disabled people in this activity

Explain the clothing and safety gear a rider needs for your preferred style

Describe colic symptoms, plus four other health problems horses can have

Explain conformation and why it matters, and the difference between lameness and unsoundness

Explain why hoof care matters and why a horse might need shoes

Show how to groom a horse, pick its hooves, and care for it after a ride

Explain how to decide on the kind and amount of feed for a horse, and why both change with how active it is

Explain the right way to catch, bridle, and saddle a horse

Show and explain three or more steps for mounting correctly and two ways to dismount

Show how to check that your stirrups are the right length both on the ground and in the saddle

Explain short, medium, and long stirrup lengths and why length matters

Explain and show how to hold your body, hands, arms, legs, and feet correctly when mounted

Show how every part of your body should be positioned at the trot, canter, and gallop, and explain why it matters

Remove your horse's tack properly and store it

Show how to care for tack properly after riding

Show how to care for your horse after a ride (cool it down, brush it, give water, and feed it) and explain why each step matters

Pick a requirement from this elective that would be hard for someone with a disability, work out and explain how they could still achieve its purpose, and reflect on ways to raise awareness of disabled people in this activity

Look into the short history of this sport or activity and who takes part in it, then make a timeline of key people and events that celebrates how different groups have shaped it

On a map of your state, mark where its different kinds of water are, such as salt water, brackish water, warm fresh water, and cold fresh water (including tailwaters)

On the same map, note the most popular game fish at each spot you marked and any protected fish species in your state

Pick a requirement from this elective that would be hard for someone with a disability, work out and explain how they could still achieve its purpose, and reflect on ways to raise awareness of disabled people in this activity

Option A: freshwater spinning, spin-casting, or bait-casting

Option B: fly fishing

Option C: salt water

Complete a hunter education course from your state wildlife or conservation agency

Find out and explain the requirements in your state for becoming a volunteer instructor of hunter education

Explain how to report a wildlife violation to the right law enforcement agency

Beyond the S6a1 course, complete a bowhunter education course offered by the National Bowhunter Education Foundation or your state

Beyond the S6a1 course, pass the National Muzzle Loading Rifle Association's Rifle Basic course

Beyond the S6a1 course, take part in a state-sponsored Youth Hunter Education Challenge event run by the NRA and the International Hunter Education Association

Help a certified hunter education instructor teach a hunter education course

Plan, or help hold, a program for National Hunting and Fishing Day

Interview a conservation officer or game warden about their job and, if possible, watch or help out at one of your state game check stations

Pick a requirement from this elective that would be hard for someone with a disability, work out and explain how they could still achieve its purpose, and reflect on ways to raise awareness of disabled people in this activity

Look into the short history of this sport or activity and who takes part in it, then make a timeline of key people and events that celebrates how different groups have shaped it

Explain how bouldering differs from technical climbing (finish the C1 First Aid core before starting this elective)

Explain why Scouting America has rules about safety and height above the ground

Explain how bouldering can prepare your crew for more advanced climbing

Show bouldering with the three-point stance while wearing proper clothing

Explain how climbing difficulty is classified and graded

Explain how weather can change how hard any climb is

Learn the kinds of climbing rope and explain their uses and traits

Learn how to care for climbing rope, including coiling and storing it

Know how to keep climbing-rope records, inspect ropes for wear and damage, and decide when to retire one

Show the difference between natural and artificial anchors

Identify three or more kinds of hardware and setups and describe how each is used

Explain proper climbing safety before and during a climb

Learn about rescue gear and techniques

Learn what helmets, gloves, footwear, clothing, and other climbing gear are appropriate

Learn how to use, and the benefits of, a commercial climbing harness and a Swiss seat sling

Put on two of those harnesses correctly

Show three types of belays: top-rope climbing belay, backup belay, and fireman's belay

Learn and show the proper verbal signals between climber and belayer

With a qualified rappelling or climbing instructor supervising, rappel 30 feet or more down a natural or artificial surface

With a qualified climbing instructor supervising, climb 30 feet or more up a natural or artificial surface

Attend a two-day rock climbing clinic or course led by a qualified climbing instructor that includes some technical rock climbing instruction

Pick a requirement from this elective that would be hard for someone with a disability, work out and explain how they could still achieve its purpose, and reflect on ways to raise awareness of disabled people in this activity

Complete Scouting America's COPE Level 1 course, covering low and high initiatives both

Help a COPE director or instructor lead a low COPE element or initiative game

After each session, judge for yourself how it went and what you could improve

Pick a requirement from this elective that would be hard for someone with a disability, work out and explain how they could still achieve its purpose, and reflect on ways to raise awareness of disabled people in this activity

Say, explain, and show the three main range safety rules

Say and explain the range commands

Name the parts of a rifle or a bow (whichever you choose) and explain what each does

If your discipline was air rifle, muzzleloading rifle, or smallbore rifle, explain using minute of angle to zero the airgun or firearm

If your discipline was muzzleloading rifle, say the correct steps for loading it and the proper order for firing a shot, and explain each step

If your discipline was archery, say the nine steps to the 10 ring and explain each

If your discipline was shotgun, explain how you see a shotgun differently from a rifle

Explain the Scouting America Safety Afloat plan

During a watercraft activity, show a youth group (your crew or another crew, a Scouts BSA troop, a Cub Scout pack, or others) that you know the Safety Afloat plan for safe boating

Paddle craft

Sailing

Boating sampler. Choose 2 of 4

Hypothermia

Concussion

Dislocated shoulder

Spinal injuries

Knee injuries and ankle sprains

Option A: alpine skiing

Option B: Nordic skiing

Option C: snowboarding

Option D: ice skating