Troop 410 News for March 2023

Troop 410 is a Scouting troop for girls in grades 6-12.  We currently have Scouts from Woodbridge, Hamden and Orange in our troop, but we welcome girls from any town.  We welcome all faiths and backgrounds.  We have weekly troop meetings on Tuesday evenings and an outing or campout every month.  This can include camping and outdoor activities or cultural outings like visiting an art museum or historical site.  We have done many service projects, like Scouting for Food to help stock the Woodbridge Food Bank and trail maintenance with the Woodbridge Land Trust.

A few examples of recent weekend activities are:

• In November we had a visit from NCAT (New Haven Coalition for Active Transportation) at our troop meeting to teach us about bike safety, bike maintenance and bike etiquette.  Then we embarked on a bike ride on the Farmington Canal Rail Trail.  We were lucky to have perfect weather!
• In December we were invited to attend a day at a rifle shooting range, learning about gun safety and trying our hand at target shooting.
• In January we spent a Saturday at the annual Klondike Derby.  We built a shelter from objects found nearby, competed in tomahawk and knife throwing competitions, and sled races.  We tested our Scouting skills during the orienteering challenge and fire building competition.
• Our February outing was Interstellar Nights after dark tubing at Powder Ridge tubing park.

We have exciting plans for the months to come.  In March we will have a cabin camping and skiing weekend.  May will be a hiking and camping trip, while in June we will celebrate summer with a laid-back beach camp at Hammonasset State Park.  We are also starting a hiking program.  This will start with “mini-hikes” locally to work towards a more challenging “high adventure” hike on the Appalachian Trail.

Every year we attend Camp Sequassen, the Connecticut Yankee Council’s resident summer camp in New Hartford, CT.  Scouts from all over New England stay for a week or more with their troop.  While at camp you can choose from a selection of fun merit badges.  The camp also has a nice waterfront with many water-related merit badge choices, including Swimming, Small Boat Sailing and Fishing.  Watercraft are available to paddle around the lake in afternoon free time.

Any interested girls are welcome to attend a troop meeting to find out more.  At this time, girls in 5^th grade and up are welcome to join before the end of the year, allowing them to attend summer camp with the troop.  For more information, please contact enrenevantonder@gmail.com.