Five Scouts from La Cañada’s Troop 501G spent five days at the end of their summer with plenty of wind in the sails, living aboard a 47-foot sailboat in the Bahamas as part of one of Scouting America’s high-adventure programs.

  The crew set out from Marsh Harbour in the Bahamas and spent the week working its way through the Sea of Abaco, anchoring off Man-O-War Cay, Elbow Cay and Great Guana Cay and stopping in the small boating villages that dot the chain. Over the course of the trip, the Scouts learned to handle the boat under sail, set and check anchor, plot a course and navigate the local Bahamian water. They also cooked their meals in a galley roughly the size of a closet.

  There was plenty of snorkeling, sunshine and white sand beaches. But the crew also sailed through high seas and dodged lightning storms and waterspouts forming on the horizon, providing a true test of the girls’ sailing skills. The entire adventure was an exercise in teamwork: someone on the helm, someone on the lines, someone keeping an eye on the sky.

  “It was an incredible experience for these girls and a scouting memory that they will carry with them throughout their lives,” said Scoutmaster Sommer Cripps, a La Cañada resident who led the trip. The Scouts came home already talking about the next adventure.

  Troop 501G is the girls’ troop of La Cañada’s Troop 501, and trips like this are what the program is built around. Those who have a daughter that is age 11-17 and is interested in adventuring and teamwork, the troop welcomes visitors – come by a meeting and see what it’s about or reach out to the troop for information on joining:  www.troop501.org.

Contributed by Jesse CRIPPS