The Polar Bear Award is a council-level award to honor those Scouts and Scouters who extend their camping experiences through the winter months.
The Polar Bear Award can be earned by any W. D. Boyce-registered Scout (Scouts BSA), Venturer, Explorer, or adult leader. Webelos/AOL Scouts camping with a troop are also eligible for this award.
The Polar Bear Award is not an honorary badge. To earn this award, the candidate must have tent-camped or camped in a constructed survival-type shelter (such as a quinzhee) outdoors for 24 hours, during which the local outdoor temperature stays at 32 degrees Fahrenheit or below, and must be under the two-deep leadership of registered adult leaders.
Camping should take place in tents or temporary shelters built for the campout, and meals should be prepared outdoors. However, these qualifiers are left to the discretion of the unit leaders and are based upon the safety and welfare of the candidates.
Having met these requirements, contact the Scout Service Center in Peoria to obtain the patches. (The patches are not available through the Scout Shop.)
This award can be earned multiple times a season, but only once per campout.
