Tips For Your Daughter’s First Girl Scout Camping Experience

So your daughter is going on her first Girl Scout camping trip. It may seem overwhelming to you but it will be a great experience for your daughter. There are many things to decide and figure before the camping trip even begins. Here is a short guide to what you may need to know.

If your daughter’s Girl Scout Troop is going camping, there must be at least one person who is “camp certified” with the Girl Scout council before the troop heads out. As the parent, you need to make sure that this is so. Being “camp certified” or “camp trained” means that that person has taken a course teaching him or her the safety measures and techniques involved in camping with a troop.

The next thing you need to find out is if there will be enough adults supervising the girls. Girl Scouts has specific rules on this but sometimes, especially for longer trips, even more adults may be necessary. This is a judgment call but one that you have to figure carefully. The proper number will depend on the age and maturity of the girls as well as the needs they may have. The location of the camping site may also play a part in this decision as well as activities that are planned. Take all of these into consideration.

Sometimes extra parents are invited to go on these camping trips as chaperones and sometimes they are encouraged not to so as to allow the girls to learn a bit of independence. Take into consideration the needs and abilities of your daughter when deciding if you should go on the trip. Pay careful attention to your daughter’s desires and take them into consideration but do not necessarily go against your gut instinct just because of this.

If your daughter has any other special needs do talk with the troop leader and let her know if she doesn’t already. Be honest. It may help your daughter have a better camping experience if the leader knows about any issues that may arise before they do. They may be able to help your daughter before a problem arises. For example, if your daughter is generally afraid of the dark, the troop leader can help alleviate fears by making sure that your daughter has her flashlight handy before the lights go out. She may be able to talk to the entire troop about this fear (without mentioning names) as other may have it too and a group discussion may make your daughter feel less uncomfortable.

So, you’ve decided your daughter is going to go on the trip. You need to know what to pack. Usually you are provided with a packing list so use this as a guide if you are. If not, these items are usually essential:

Sleeping bag
Pillow
Mess kit with drip/net bag
Entire set of clothing for each day of camp
Rain gear
Jacket
Pajamas
Toothbrush/toothpaste
Soap
Washcloth and towel
Brush
Bug spray
Duffel bag to carry gear
Water bottle
Flashlight with EXTRA batteries

If your daughter has to take any medications, make sure you send it to camp in the original bottle with explicit instructions. If you are not sure, talk to the troop leaders about how to handle this. Usually an adult will take the medication right away and put it in a safe place so that it does not get accidentally lost or abused. Find out specific policies abut over the counter medications as well if this is necessary.

These are usually considered the essentials. Girls are usually encouraged not to bring more than necessary because they often have to carry their own gear so keep it as light as possible. Girls are usually encouraged not to bring anything valuable to camp. Additionally, they usually are told not to bring toys, electronic gadgets or anything that could be potentially lost of stolen.

Your daughter should help pack her own bags for camp. Even a 7 year old is able to do a lot of the work in packing her bags. When she has to find things, it will be much easier if she has packed or at least taken an active part in helping pack her bags. In addition, she will have to re-pack her bags when getting ready to leave camp and having the experience in the first place will be an advantage to her.

Packing the items that will be used first on top of the pack is usually a helpful arrangement as girls will not have to unpack the entire bag and chance losing gear when she needs things. Providing extra layers for girls to put on or take off during the trip is often helpful as days can get warmer as the sun gets higher and evenings can get cooler as the sun goes down again.

If you have a waterproof backpack or duffel bag, this may be helpful in case the bags sit outside in the weather. It may depend on the type of camping the girls are going to do too. If they are setting up tents or camping under the stars, it may be more important to have waterproof bags. If girls will be sleeping in cabins this may not be as essential.

So, the gear is packed and your daughter is ready to go. Be sure to arrive at camp or the meeting place on time. There is no one who wants to have to wait for the latecomer to get started. Follow all specific rules given by troop leaders in providing phone contact numbers or other information. Best of all, send your daughter off with a happy smile and she will have a great camping experience!