NPS photo/Dave Bieri
In order to earn the Girl Scout Ranger patch, girl scouts must spend 10 hours in a park completing interpretive activities or doing service projects. The National Park Service at New River Gorge National Park and Preserve holds a Girl Scout Ranger Weekend each year where local girl scouts are invited to spend the night at Camp Brookside Environmental Education Center. Girls participate in a variety of fun and educational activities, play camp games, sing songs and roast marshmallows over a campfire, sleep overnight in a cabin, and take part in a service project. 
NPS Photo 2023Girl Scout Ranger weekend is back! Friday, August 4-Sunday, August 6, 2023. This year's focus is supporting girls in science. Meet women working in different science related fields and participate in hands-on activities to complete different badges.Details: Location: Camp Brookside Environmental Education Center Arrival: Friday, August 4th, 3-4 pm Departure: Sunday, August 6th, 12 pm Cost: $20/person (please reach out if cost is a barrier.) Age Range: Brownies and Juniors in 3rd-6th grades Meals: Two dinners, two breakfasts and lunch are included in cost. Activities: Water Bug Safari with an aquatic ecologist, plant walk with a botanist, visit to Three Rivers Avian Center to see a bird rehab program. Work towards completion of two badges. RSVP: Spots are limited for overnight stays but day options could be available. Please signup by Thursday, July 27, 2023. Contact Lorene Hynes, Education Program Manager, to signup! lorene_hynes@nps.gov or 304-465-2621. 
NPS photo/Dave Bieri 2019In 2019 the park held three Girl Scout Ranger Weekends, June 8-9, June 22-23, and September 7-8. Girls participated in science based activities to learn about the park and its natural resources. They will also had an opportunity to earn the Space Science Investigator badge and the Night Sky Explorer Junior Ranger patch. The September weekend was an extension of the Wild and Wonderful Girl Scouts event at Grandview.
NPS photo 2018:Sixteen Girl Scouts from all over West Virginia traveled to Camp Brookside Environmental Education Center on September 8 and 9, 2018 to take part in our third Girl Scout Ranger Weekend. The girls had to spend 10 hours participating in educational activities or service related projects to earn their Girl Scout Ranger Patch. They fulfilled these requirements by taking part in educational activities on Saturday all related to the theme of "How will I help to save my watershed." They picked up trash practicing Leave No Trace principles, learned about water conservation, and on Sunday put their thoughts to paper to hopefully inspire others to "save their watersheds." Their artwork became part of an exhibit at Sandstone Visitor Center to showcase the Girl Scout’s hard work and how they to hope to inspire others to make a difference. The girls also participated in the Night Sky Junior Ranger Program and earned their Night Explorer Junior Ranger Patch.
NPS photo 2017On Saturday and Sunday September 16-17 ,2017, New River Gorge National River held our second Girl Scout Ranger weekend at Camp Brookside Environmental Education Center. Seventeen girls and 12 parents participated in the event. The girls all earned the Girl Scout Ranger patch and seven girls received leadership awards for helping lead the program. The girls all participated in a watershed curriculum program that incorporated learning about watersheds and water conservation while developing leadership and teamwork skills. They also did a service project at Sandstone Visitor Center where they planted coneflower and milkweed seeds in the native plant garden. After planting seeds the girls created posters about the importance of native plants and how they felt about helping care for the garden. These posters were used for a new audience-centered exhibit displayed at Sandstone Visitor Center.
NPS photo/Dave Bieri 2016In September 2016, 18 girl scouts spent the weekend at Camp Brookside Environmental Education Center to earn their Girl Scout Ranger patch. Over the course of the weekend the girls learned about New River Gorge and the National Park Service through a series of interactive activities including fishing, a stream stomp macroinvertebrate activity, owl pellet dissection, a leave-no-trace hike, and several art activities. The girls also completed a service project planting trees in an area that had lost trees due to a wind storm. The girls all had the unique opportunity to stay overnight in cabins at the recently opened Camp Brookside Environmental Education Center. The NPS was able to help fund this program through a National Park Foundation grant. |
Last updated: July 8, 2023