Outdoor Bronze Award

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MeritBadge.Org offers Venturing resources for the Bronze Awards including the Outdoor Bronze Award, Gold, Silver,
Ranger, Quest, and TRUST Awards with cross-references for related Venturing Awards.

Outdoor Bronze Award

1. Medal with Outdoor device pin.
2. Outdoor ribbon device.

The Venturing Outdoor Bronze Award may be achieved along the way of earning the Venturing Ranger Award.

After completion of a bronze award, a medal is awarded at a crew recognition ceremony (similar to a Boy Scout Court of Honor), with a miniature device that pins to the medal and a bar that is worn above the left pocket of the uniform for daily wear.

The photo to the right shows the:

  1. Venturing Bronze Award medal with the Outdoor Bronze Award miniature device pin.
  2. The Outdoor Bronze Award ribbon device worn above the left pocket of the uniform for daily wear.

Venturers may earn one or all five Venturing Bronze Awards:


Outdoor Bronze Award requirements

Core requirements

Do four of the following Ranger Award core requirements:

Standard First Aid

Requirement 1. Complete a standard first aid course or the American Red Cross Wilderness First Aid Basics or equivalent course.


Requirement 2. Do 2(a), (b), or (c).

a. Take a communications-related training class that includes at least 15 hours of training. This could be a non-required course at school such as creative writing, technical writing, American Sign Language, or film production. It could also be a commercial course such as speed-reading or effective presentations.
b. Actively participate in a communications-related club or organization for at least three months. Participate in at least three activities of the organization where you practice or improve your communications skills. Examples include Toastmasters, debate clubs, or drama clubs.
c. Read at least two books approved by your Advisor on a communications subject of interest to you. Write or give a report to your crew on the important communications principles you learned and how you think you can apply these principles to improve your communications.


Do (d), (e), or (f) in connection with an outdoor skill or area you are interested in. Have your Advisor approve your plan before you begin.

d. Make a formal, oral presentation of at least 30 minutes to your crew, another crew, a Cub or Boy Scout group, or another youth group. Include demonstrations, visual aids, or other techniques that will help you communicate more effectively.
e. Prepare and present an audio/video presentation at least 15 minutes long to your crew or other group approved by your Advisor.
f. Prepare a written pamphlet, set of instructions, or description and summary. It should be at least 1,000 words and provide a complete description of your chosen subject. Include pictures, charts, and/or diagrams to better communicate your topic. Have two people, one with expertise in the area you are presenting and one without expertise, read and critique your work. Make improvements to your draft based on their input. If your work is applicable to your crew, such as a work on caving skills, then share your work with your crew.


Do (g).

g. Make a tabletop display or presentation for your crew, another crew, a Cub or Boy Scout group, or another youth group on communications equipment used in the outdoors with emphasis on how this equipment would help in a wilderness survival situation.


Requirement 3.

a. Plan a menu and purchase the food for at least six people for a two night campout with at least three meals.
b. On the campout in (a) above, cook the three meals using at least two of the following three methods of cooking: fire/coals, charcoal, stove.
c. Demonstrate and explain proper safe food handling methods for outdoor cooking.
d. Demonstrate that you can prepare backpacking-type trail food using a backpacking style stove.
e. Without using any cooking utensils, prepare a meal with the four basic food groups for three people.
f. Cook an entree, a bread, and a dessert in a Dutch oven.

Emergency Preparedness

Requirement 4.

a. Discuss potential disasters and emergency preparedness with your family and then set up a family emergency plan.
b. Build a family emergency kit.
c. Make a tabletop display or presentation on what you have learned for your crew, another crew, a Cub or Boy Scout group, or another youth group.

Land Navigation

Requirement 5.

a. Using a topographical map for your area or the area you will be navigating in, demonstrate that you know the following map symbols:
* Index contour * Vertical control station * Hard-surface, heavy-duty road * Railroad, single track
* Power transmission line * Building * Checked spot elevation * Marsh
* Map scale * Intermittent stream * Depression * Ridge
* Trail * Stream * Hard-surface, medium-duty road * Bridge
* Cemetery * Campsite * Water well or spring * Unimproved dirt road
b. Explain contour lines. Be able to tell the contour interval for your map and be able to show the difference between a steep and a gentle slope.
c. Using a map and compass, navigate an orienteering course that has at least six legs covering at least 2.5 miles.
d. Learn to use a global positioning system (GPS) receiver. Demonstrate that you can find a fixed coordinate or geocache at night using a GPS receiver.
e. Teach the navigating skills you have learned in (a) through (d) above to your crew, another crew, a Cub or Boy Scout group, or another group.

Leave No Trace

Requirement 6.

a. Recite and explain the principles of Leave No Trace.
b. Participate in three separate camping/backpacking trips demonstrating that you know and use Leave No Trace principles.
c. Make a tabletop display or presentation on the Leave No Trace principles and how they affect the environment and attitude of campers for your crew, another crew, a Cub or Boy Scout group, or another group or teach a Leave No Trace Awareness course.

Wilderness Survival

Requirement 7. (Before you begin wilderness survival, you must have completed the cooking, land navigation, and first aid core requirements.)

a. Write a risk management plan for an upcoming crew high adventure activity such as a whitewater canoing or rock-climbing trip. The plan should include nutrition, health, first aid, supervision, insurance, safety rules and regulations, proper equipment, maps and compass, in-service training, environmental considerations, emergency and evacuation procedures, and emergency contacts.
b. From memory, list the survival priorities and explain your use of each in a survival situation.
c. Learn about and then make a tabletop display or presentation for your crew, another crew, a Cub or Boy Scout group, or another youth group on the following subjects:
1. Emergency signals used in the outdoors
2. Search and rescue patterns
3. Evacuation procedures and value of when to move and when not to move in a wilderness emergency
d. Explain the following environmental exposure problems. Discuss what causes them, signs and symptoms, and treatment.
1. Hypothermia 2. Frostbite 3. Sunburn 4. Heat exhaustion 5. Heat cramps 6. Heat stroke
e. Hydration
1. Explain dehydration and the necessity of conserving fluids in a survival situation.
2. Explain at least four methods of obtaining water in the outdoors and demonstrate at least two ways to purify that water.
f. Fire making
1. Demonstrate at least two different fire lays-one for cooking and one for warmth.
2. Learn and discuss the use of fire starters, tinder, kindling, softwoods, and hardwoods in fire making.
g. Explain and demonstrate how you can gain knowledge of weather patterns using VHF band radio and other radios, winds, barometric pressure, air masses and their movements, clouds, and other indicators.
h. Knots and lashings
1. Explain the different rope materials and thicknesses that are best for wilderness use and how to care for them.
2. Know the use of and demonstrate how to tie the following knots and lashings:
a. Sheet bend b. Fisherman's knot c. Bowline d. Bowline on a bight e. Two half hitches
f. Clove hitch g. Timber hitch h. Taut-line hitch i. Square lashing j. Shear lashing
i. Food
1. Explain the usefulness and drawbacks of obtaining food in the wilderness, including things to avoid.
2. Prepare and eat at least one meal with food you have found in the outdoors.
j. Survival kit
1. Make a list of items you would include in a wilderness survival kit and then make copies to hand out to visitors to your wilderness survival outpost camp.
2. Using your list, make a wilderness survival kit. Explain the use of each item you have included.
k. Outpost camp
1. Set up a wilderness survival outpost camp and spend at least two nights and two days in your site.
2. Use and demonstrate several knots and lashings from requirement (h) in your wilderness survival campsite demonstration.
3. Know how to plan a wilderness shelter for three different environments and then build a shelter as part of your wilderness survival campsite demonstration.
4. Have your crew, another crew, a Cub or Boy Scout group, or another youth group visit you in your outpost for a presentation you make on wilderness survival (at least one hour).

(Note: Remember to use the Leave No Trace principles you learned.)


Requirement 8.

a. As a Venturer, plan, lead, and carry out a significant conservation project under the guidance of a natural resources professional.
b. Make a tabletop display or presentation on your conservation project for your crew, another crew, a Cub or Boy Scout group, or another youth group.

Venturer Handbook, 2015 Edition (BSA Supply No. 33216 - SKU# 620714)


Do two of the following Ranger Award elective requirements:

  1. Backpacking
  2. Cave Exploration
  3. Cycling/Mountain Biking
  4. Ecology
  5. Equestrian
  6. First Aid
  7. Fishing
  8. Hunting
  9. Lifesaver
  10. Mountaineering
  11. Outdoor Living History
  12. Physical Fitness
  13. Plants and Wildlife
  14. Project COPE
  15. Scuba Certification
  16. Shooting Sports
  17. Watercraft
  18. Winter Sports


The text of these requirements is locked and can only be edited
by an administrator.


  1. Venturers who have received the Outdoor Bronze Award need to complete only four more of the core requirements and two more electives to qualify for the Ranger Award.
  2. Venturers may complete requirements for the Outdoor Bronze Award and the Ranger Award concurrently. The Outdoor Bronze Award does not need to be completed before proceeding onto Ranger Award requirements.

Requirement resources

1. First Aid

2. Communications

Reading Merit Badge
Communications Merit Badge
Public Speaking Merit Badge

3.Cooking: Cooking Skills
3a. Meal Planning - Recipes
3b. Outdoor Cooking
3c. Food Handling
3d. Backpacking Stoves
3e. Outdoor Cooking
3f. Dutch Oven Cooking
4. Emergency Preparedness

5. Land Navigation 5a, 5b. Topographical Map
5c. Map and Compass - Orienteering Skills
5d. GPS - Geocaching

6. Leave No Trace

Leave No Trace-related awards

7. Wilderness Survival 7. Cooking - Land Navigation - First Aid Core Requirements.
7a. Whitewater - Canoeing - Climbing - Meal Planning - First Aid Skills - Insurance - Outdoor Gear
7b. Wilderness Survival Skills
7c. Survival Signaling
7d. Hypothermia - Frostbite - Sunburn - Heat Exhaustion - Heat Cramps - Heat Stroke
7e. Hydration - Dehydration - Water Purification
7f. Campfire Setup - Campfire Types - Campfire Starting - Campfire Safety
7g. Weather Skills

7h. Knots: Sheet Bend - Fisherman's Knot - Bowline - Bowline on a Bight - Two Half Hitches - Clove Hitch - Timber Hitch - Taut-Line Hitch Square Lashing - Shear Lashing
7j. Survival Kit
7k. Wilderness Survival Skills - See the knots and lashings above. Leave No Trace
8. Conservation

Related awards

1 & 4 Emergency Preparedness Awards
Emergency Preparedness-related awards

2c: Reading Merit Badge

3, 5, & 7 Outdoor Skills Awards
Outdoor-related awards
6 & 8 Conservation Awards
Ecology-related awards

See also

Venturing portal

External links

Personal tools