Trek Preparation
I'd been asked to plan and lead a backpacking trip for my son's Troop. Oil Creek was initially proposed and when I asked around for backpackers experienced with this area, Tracy Ridge was suggested as an alternative. This was soon dismissed since campsite reservations aren't available and the focus returned to Oil Creek.
Insufficient Adirondack reservations at either of the two Oil Creek campsites quickly scrapped that idea again.
Back to Tracey Ridge, then. A camping permit allows Leave-No-Trace tenting 1500 feet from the treeline of the reservoir and I was assured by two sources that there were plenty of tenting opportunities. As we announced this at the troop meeting, I was taken aside and it was suggested that due to weather (it was supposed to snow), distance to the park (easily a three-hour, one-way drive), the difficulty of the terrain, the lengths of the segments (I was told to plan 10-12 miles Saturday and 4-5 on Sunday), the age of the scouts (most were newer scouts) and the availability of adult leaders (three, two of which were first-timers), we should consider something closer and shorter.
There are hiking trails at GCC's Beaumont, GWRC's Stigwandish, Chagrin Reservation, Hinkley, etc., and all within an hour of home.
Through my OA trail work at Beaumont, I'd been made aware of a long loop in the Cuyahoga Valley National Park that passed through GTC's Butler and Manatoc camps. A plan began to form that started us at Boston Store, took us on the Buckeye Trail to Pine Lane Trailhead, over Route 303 to Camp Butler, past Manatoc to the Pine Grove Trail and a part of the Ledges Trail back to camp at Manatoc for the first (Saturday) night. This would be approximately 9.5 miles, a little less than the 10-12 miles I was told to plan for. At 2 miles an hour, we could do 9.5 miles in five hours and have plenty of time for fun (and resting) at the campsite.
The next day would see us hike a different trail out of Manatoc to the Pine Lane Trailhead on the Buckeye Trail and into Peninsula where we'd break to head home.
Saturday Morning: getting started
Saturday morning dawned dark, cold and drippy. We decided to take advantage of the early hour and short drive to have a thorough shakedown. This was valuable but as events would show, was still insufficient.
Cars were in position (one at Peninsula and two more at Boston Store) by 10:00 am when the ranger station at Boston Store opened. We checked in with CVNP Dispatch (they want to know when you're leaving cars overnight), checked out the exhibits and got a recent trail report from Ranger Brady. (Ranger Brady has done a number of Junior Ranger programs for my children over the years and knows me only as "Jamie's Dad".) By 10:30 am we were off on the Towpath Trail headed south and then, following the Blue Blazes, onto the Buckeye Trail.
The Buckeye Trail: Boston Store to Pine Lane Trailhead
The trail leaves the Towpath just south of I271 and heads east into the hills. Soon, except for the distant road noise of I271 and then I80, it was easy to just hike along and enjoy the trail.
The trail is heavenly this time of year (and probably others, as well). The fall foliage left the trail in filtered light of pale greens, bright yellows, crackling browns, fiery reds, shocking pinks and peaches and scores of variations and combinations. The terrain is of medium difficulty with plenty of ups, downs and gentle slopes.
The trail remains nearly parallel to Boston Mills Road, crosses it once and uses it to go over I80. There's a grove of white pines (five needles) at this point and we stopped there for a break, a snack and to adjust packs.
Some packs were poorly sized while others were poorly packed. Almost all were overpacked. Overall, footwear, clothing and raingear were good.
These pines were reportedly planted by Girl Scouts many years ago and the trail stays among this "pine lane" for a while before turning off into the forest. At one point the trail crosses the Valley Trail (a bridle trail) and while one is aware of not being in the wilderness, the outside world wasn't too obtrusive.
Being a fast walker, I placed myself at the tail to keep from leaving everyone behind.
The trail continues to wind its way mostly south to the Pine Lane Trailhead. From Boston Store to here on the Buckeye Trail is approximately 4.2 miles.
Here we followed the Pine Lane road east to Route 303, noting the OA trail markers on occasion. It appears that if we'd crossed Route 303 sooner, we would have discovered a trail on the south side of 303 leading to the northwest corner of Camp Butler. At it was, we crossed at the camp boundary and found a trailhead with the OA symbols and markers for their yellow and orange trails.
Camp Butler and Camp Manatoc
At this point, we were behind our time and some scouts were beginning to show signs of tiring. It was decided to skip the hike through camp to the Pine Grove Trail and beyond to the Ledges Trail and back to our campsite and instead, find a quick trail to Camp Manatoc and our campsite. The Yellow trail south from this corner of Butler seemed to be the fastest despite the two ravines.
These two ravines could really benefit from some switchbacks and it was here that we experienced our first point of confusion about the route to take: short with two ravines or much longer on paved paths. As we were halfway down our first ravine, we opted to continue and hiked our way through some stunning maples to Camp Manatoc.
Camp Manatoc
Although we had reservations, we didn't know which campsite and upon checking in, we found ourselves assigned to Valley Forge. It was described as "ideal" and "idyllic" but when we arrived, we discovered it was bordered by a full parking lot and had no level surfaces. No matter: when one is tired enough, one simply makes do. And by 9:00 pm, we were all out.
Sunday Morning: Manatoc to Peninsula
From Valley Forge, we followed the White trail southeast to Truxell Road where we crossed and joined the Salt Run Trail (going counterclockwise). This transition (from Boy Scout camp trail to National Park trail) could be made easier. And it was surprising to talk to the campmasters the previous night and hear that they had no knowledge of what was to the south of them.
By the time we reached as far west as we could go on this loop, a spur left the path and connected with the Akron-Peninsula Road. We crossed here headed west and joined the Valley Trail (bridle path) north to Peninsula.
Here we shuttled cars, loaded scouts and headed home.
Closing
Overall it was a successful trip. The scouts indicated that they would do it again and there were no injuries. 
The ability for the plan to be adapted and drastically shortened cannot be understated. Although the original instructions were for a much longer trip, it became very clear that the ability and preparedness levels varied so wildly that a longer trip might well have ended in disaster.
In hindsight, asking a new leader to plan and lead this event was probably the wrong thing to do. I was not acquainted with the ability levels and experience of the scouts. I received conflicting guidance from the scoutmaster and the assistants. My expectations were tempered by another leader present and brought more in line with the experience levels of those attending and it was the modification of the original instructions that led to a successful event.
So many thanks to John for making this trip successful!
