It’s June and officially camp season here at Girl Scouts River Valleys. We know you might miss your girls while they’re off exploring leadership, building skills, and developing a deep appreciation for nature at camp this summer (or maybe you’re lucky enough to be going with them—troop camp for the win!). Girl Scout camp is a special place where girls can discover their strengths, challenge themselves, be silly, and have fun in an all-girl environment—it’s almost like its own little world!
When your girls come back next fall, it might feel like they’re speaking a whole new language and we don’t want you to be out of the loop! Or, if you’re heading off to troop camp with your favorite gals, you might want to be “in the know” on some of the camp lingo before you go. Either way, read on for a quick breakdown of some must-know camp lingo—you’ll be passing for a resident camper in no time!
Kapers – (aka chores) is a fun name used at camp for all those daily duties that keep camp clean and running smoothly like taking out the trash, sweeping, and picking up litter. These handy little things can be a great addition to troop meetings all year round!
Hoppers – One of the kapers you might have at camp is being a hopper. Hoppers help set tables for meals and help get food for everyone at the table (Girl Scouts like dining family-style!).
Pudgy Pies – Pudgy Pies are a favorite campfire food. They’re made in individual pie irons that you place in the fire and it consists of two pieces of bread (or two tortillas) with just about anything you can imagine between them—pie filling or pizza sauce and toppings are the most common.
Yurts – You’ve heard of cabins but I bet you didn’t know we have yurts at camp! They’re a style of housing accommodations at some of our camps that are based on a traditional Mongolian housing that dates back over 2,000 years! Yurts are often described as a cross between a cabin and a tent, and are a round structure with a domed skylight–we have bunk beds inside ours!
Song Porch – The song porch is, well, pretty much what it sounds like! It’s the place at camp where we gather before meals and sing fun camp songs while we wait to go into the dining hall for the meal.
Katie Bartels – Katie is an outdoor program specialist at River Valleys and runs programs and events at camp! She has a Bachelor’s degree from the University of Minnesota, where she studied Youth Studies, Family Social Science, Public Health, and Spanish. Katie has been a member of Girl Scouts ever since Kindergarten and has experience working with youth of all ages in various non-profit and school settings, including Girl Scout camps with River Valleys and another council. She enjoys all outdoor activities (especially canoeing and camping), exploring new cities and places, and spending time with her family and two cats.