Monday, May 08, 2006
Kayaking with the Girl Scouts
Yesterday our family went with the Girl Scouts to Newport Harbor for a day of kayaking. There were 8 girls, 2 moms, myself, Andrew, and 2 Sea Scouts as our guides. It was a great day, although some of the girls were getting tired before the day was over. We were out there from 9am to 4pm -- so it was a long day.
Our adventure started at the BSA Newport Sea Base. We had some basic instruction to get started (including a training video designed for very young boys) and then moved on to row boats and the swim test.
The low point of rowing was the dead possum that came floating along. The girls got the willies a bit from that, but the Sea Scouts got rid of it before it was a major issue.
The water was not too cold, but it was somewhere in the low 60s. The girls were required to take the test, but the adults were not. Several girls complained due to (a) the cold water and (b) swimming in the harbor vs. a nice, clean pool. However, they all ultimately took the test.
Hayley was the youngest girl there at 10 years old (since it was Bethany's troop of 12 and 13 year olds). She was really not wanting to take the test. I volunteered to do it with her. While I was up changing, she took the test anyway. However, she also made me keep my word so I had to do the swim test too. That put her back in a happy mood. It was not as cold as I expected. I was also able to shower off and change afterwards (although the showers were cold).
After the swim test we started the kayaking part of the day. The Sea Scouts had motor boats to follow us, take those not kayaking, and carry gear. We started with lunch on a beach we boated to. Next we went to an area with a bunch of moon jellyfish. It was really neat to float among them and see them up close. We then went on to another beach and did some exploring which including another dead animal: a small stingray. The girls seemed more interested than concerned about the dead ray. They "buried" it in the sand and left. We then unburied it and sent it back to sea so that it would not get stepped on. We then paddled to the Fun Zone in Balboa and got treats. The girls were pretty tired then, so we towed the kayaks back to Sea Base.
After cleaning off the kayaks and putting them away, the scouts took the girls out motor boating for a while. When the girls got to drive, that was the big highlight of the day for many of the girls. We then headed home to get some rest from a long but fun day.
Our adventure started at the BSA Newport Sea Base. We had some basic instruction to get started (including a training video designed for very young boys) and then moved on to row boats and the swim test.
The low point of rowing was the dead possum that came floating along. The girls got the willies a bit from that, but the Sea Scouts got rid of it before it was a major issue.
The water was not too cold, but it was somewhere in the low 60s. The girls were required to take the test, but the adults were not. Several girls complained due to (a) the cold water and (b) swimming in the harbor vs. a nice, clean pool. However, they all ultimately took the test.
Hayley was the youngest girl there at 10 years old (since it was Bethany's troop of 12 and 13 year olds). She was really not wanting to take the test. I volunteered to do it with her. While I was up changing, she took the test anyway. However, she also made me keep my word so I had to do the swim test too. That put her back in a happy mood. It was not as cold as I expected. I was also able to shower off and change afterwards (although the showers were cold).
After the swim test we started the kayaking part of the day. The Sea Scouts had motor boats to follow us, take those not kayaking, and carry gear. We started with lunch on a beach we boated to. Next we went to an area with a bunch of moon jellyfish. It was really neat to float among them and see them up close. We then went on to another beach and did some exploring which including another dead animal: a small stingray. The girls seemed more interested than concerned about the dead ray. They "buried" it in the sand and left. We then unburied it and sent it back to sea so that it would not get stepped on. We then paddled to the Fun Zone in Balboa and got treats. The girls were pretty tired then, so we towed the kayaks back to Sea Base.
After cleaning off the kayaks and putting them away, the scouts took the girls out motor boating for a while. When the girls got to drive, that was the big highlight of the day for many of the girls. We then headed home to get some rest from a long but fun day.
Labels: Day Trip, Family, Scouts
# posted by - Rob @ 10:06 AM 
Comments:
<< Home
Fun fun fun! Diana would like that too. Probably all my girl scouts would, but we won't be heading down to Newport any time soon. Sorry!
Good you had fun :)
Post a Comment
Good you had fun :)
<< Home
