Tuesday, May 29, 2007

Girl Scout's become Bear Aware


On a cool weekend in April, a hardy bunch of Girl Scouts (250 of them) gathered in Carnation, WA for their annual encampment event. They built rain shelters, canoed the lake, created works of art and performed skits around the campfire. A highlight was the retiring of an American flag in a special ceremony.

GBOP’s own Julie Hayes lead forest nature hikes for the Brownies, the Junior campers and their parents. Bear safety and biology were on topic, and many thoughtful questions were asked by campers and parents alike. As it turns out, many of the families had experienced some bear activity (mostly in garbage cans) in their neighborhoods. GBOP brochures packed full of useful information on safe camping, hiking and home sanitation were passed out to extend the learning at home.