Spring Encamporee
April 19-21, 2024 - St. Albans
  
Hold the date -details to come 

COMPLETED:
- FALL ENCAMPOREE 2023: 9/15-9/17 at​CAMP RIVER RANCH
- SPRING ENCAMPOREE 2023: 4/28-4/30 at CAMP LYLE MCLEOD
- FALL ENCAMPOREE 2022: 9/9-9/11 at​CAMP RIVER RANCH
TROOL LEADER TO DO LIST: Top 5 Things You must Do Before Camp!
  1. Troop Leaders: Pay your fees for camp by April 26th using "e-check" not credit card in Cheddar Up
  2. Upload TAST forms to the google drive by April 25th.
  3. Make sure all girls and adults attending camp are members (have paid $25) to Girl Scouts of Western Washington. All adults attending should be listed as "volunteers" and be back ground checked through the Sterling Volunteers system.
  4. Collect forms and plan with your own troop:  ITEMS YOU NEED TO COLLECT FROM YOUR TROOP AND KEEP ON YOU AT CAMP AT ALL TIMES. You need a Girl Permission & Health History, Adult Health History and a Transportation Card for those driving to camp.

​The following are camping tips leaders have shared at meetings.  Below are printable documents that can help leaders plan and prepare for camping.
  • All Brownies should be able to light matches.  They should light so many matches they don't care if they ever light another match.  Spring is the perfect time of year to practice.
  • On each camp-out, pick one or two things per trip to focus on and have the girls really focus n it.  Like meal planning/cooking, fire-building/tending, a Journey, whatever.  IT's better to learn one thing well, than to do many and not really learn any of them.
  • For meals, pre-cook all meat at home so you don't have to worry about under cooking.
  • Eat on your way to camp the first night or bring take out.  You don't want to cook after dark.  
  • Don't forget dunk line and clothes pins for hanging dunk bags!
  • Try to give each girl a chance to be the  expert on something and/or a leader at something.
  • Bring an extra sleeping bag and extra wan girl-sized clothes, just in case.
  • Foil meals are great because there's not a lot of cleanup.
  • For breakfast try pancakes and bacon.  Get the big pre-cooked bacon from Costco and let each girl cook her own pancakes.  You can pre-make pancake batter, put it in ziploc bags, and then just snip the bag end an pipe it into the pan when you're ready to cook.
  • Have girls create paper place-mats before the camp-out, laminate them, and then use them to arrange or mix up the seating at meal time.
  • Agree on and post camp Kapers in the camp area so girls don't have to as an adult what to do.
  • Make EASY meals - hot dogs, mac n cheese.  You might be sharing a camp area with one or two other troops and need to share the site's cooking facilities.
  • Let girls pick the cooking method - pie irons, stick, box, pot, dutch ovens - and the leader can help find a suitable recipe.
  • Don't plan every minute.  Girls remember the time they spend hanging out.  They easily think of their own things to do.  But bring an easy 'back up' plan - cards, string for friendship bracelets, twine for lashing fairy houses, etc.
  • Make sure girls get lots of exercise.  Encourage them to hike and explore the area.  Letterboxing is a great way to entice them onto the trails.
  • Have girls pack their cloths in gallon size ziplock bags - one complete outfit (socks, undies, shirt, pants) in each bag. Label each bag: Saturday clothes, pajamas, rain clothes, extra warm clothes, etc.  This will help them from having to dig through their bag to find socks, etc.
  • For meals,  'Make Your Own Whatever" is a great way to handle picky eaters and allergies.  Baked potatoes, tacos, burritos, omelette in a bag, all work well.   Girls pick ingredients/toppings they want.
  • When you make Friendship Trail Mix, give the girls some parameters or it can become inedible!  When each girl gets their bag let her know it's her snack for the entire camp out and let her practice portioning it out.
  • Make a small 'memory pillow' from a regular pillowcase on one side and t-shirt material on the other.  Girls can decorate the t-shirt side with signatures from her camp bunk-mates, a drawing from each camp, or write a memory from that camp.  After a few years she'll have a lovely souvenir.
  • Girls WANT to help (even with clean-up!)  Just give them jobs and watch them go.
GENERAL CAMPING IDEAS
PACKING LIST IDEAS:
MENU PLANNING:
CAMP ORGANIZATION:
EQUIPMENT FOR BORROW
RECIPES
Dutch Oven Gorilla Bread
Hillbilly Camping Breakfast Hash
Zip Lock Bag Omelettes 

Pie Iron Pizza_
Milk Carton Quesadillas
Campsite Pasta Italiano
Dutch Oven Chicken Enchiladas

Dutch Oven Chocolate Sour Cream Cake
Dutch Oven Coconut Cake
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