High Adventure Girl Scouts

[alki]

I'm a BSA scouter with no sons, so I'm trying to learn about GS as much as I can. Double-enrollment in a BSA Venturing Crew will be too much of a stretch on time and money...

 

Are there any Cadette and Senior Girl Scout troops that have high-adventure as regular activities? Are there high-adventure advancement opportunities? My girls love backpacking, mountain biking, rock-climbing, and kayaking... and they don't want to give up on GS.

 

How can I, as an adult male, help their troop to enjoy these kinds of activities?

 

concerned dad

[Iowambu]

 

You're in luck! GSUSA is releasing a new older girl program this month! I don't know all of the details, but it will emphasize three areas, one being travel/high adventure. Many older Girl Scouts go on high adventure trips already; there are just fewer adults willing to help them do it. There is no need for your girls go give up on GSUSA; they can plan any travel they want as long as they follow safety-wise requirements.

[MomScouter]

Girl Scouts can plan whatever high adventure activities they desire, as long as they are within Safety-Wise guidelines. Troops are girl run at all levels (to varying degrees based on age) so it is up to the girls to plan these things...it is up to the leaders to make sure the girls know how to plan things and to know they should be running the troop.

 

As an adult male you have a lot to offer; you could be a leader, a volunteer, teach skills, etc. Girl Scouts, like Boy Scouts, is as good as the scouts make it.

[ScoutNut]

GSUSA is NOT releasing a new older girl program. The program is not changing. There will NOT be new IPA's or new books.

 

In October, at the National Convention, they will be introducing "New Directions" for girls 11-17. This, from what I understand from various e-mails to National, will be a series of pamphlets/booklets about different ways that older girls can experience Girl Scouts. They have had various different polls and questioneers on the national website aimed at trying to find out what older girls like/want. IMHO this does not sound like it will be anything very revolutionary, or helpful. But, we shall see in October!

 

ALKI -

 

If you are interested in helping your daughters troop to experience high adventure type activities - GO FOR IT! Get registered with GS, take the level appropriate training, take camping training. Then talk to the troop's leader and offer your services to organize high adventure trips. Go to a troop meeting and find out what kind of activities the girls are interested in doing.

 

We are finding that once they get in High School their schedule is just SO busy that it is REALLY hard to get them to concentrate on GS. We have a meeting this weekend and all of the girls should be done with finals so maybe I can get them to deceide where they want to go camping on our July 1st trip (or it will end up in someone's back yard)! I will be pushing for something new and different for them, like caving (Mammoth Cave), primitive (Apostle Islands), canoeing/rafting (anywhere near a river! But they should start kind of wimpy!). But it will come down to what the GIRLS want to do (1 of them considers a hotel with no pool primitive!). Also, it will depend on what my other leader is up for, she is deathly afraid of heights!