Outdoor adventures have a long-standing tradition in Girl Scouts. To celebrate our strong history of encouraging go-getters, innovators, risk takers, and leaders through outdoor experiences—we bring you Adventure Club!
Adventure Club is for any Girl Scout who wants to get outdoors and push themselves to have more adventures than they have had before. Adventure Club programs and activities are mostly outdoors, engage with the natural world, and challenge you to try something new or go further. Participants can earn the Adventure Club Patch.
After your third and sixth adventure, tell us about it! Tag us on social media with #GSRVAdventure and @GSRV and share your photos with us. The
Adventure Club Patch and Adventure Club Pro patch can be purchased at our Girl Scout Shops.
Why It’s Important
Outdoor education is one of the four areas that form the foundation of the Girl Scout Leadership Experience. Adventure Club continues a strong tradition of outdoor experiences and skill exploration which afford the opportunity to:
- Try new activities or sports that encourage an active lifestyle
- Be challenged to grow in new ways and become better problem solvers
- Unplug from screens and social media—and know that it’s ok to take a break
- Develop leadership skills and become team players
- Have fun exploring and building social bonds within a safe space like Girl Scouts!
Choose Your Adventure
Choose three (or more) outdoor adventures! Maybe you have never gone kayaking, but always wanted to try. Perhaps you went snowshoeing at Camp Lakamaga as a Brownie, but now you want to try snowshoeing a longer trail at a State Park. The activity and challenge level is up to you. Adventure Club activities are mostly outdoors, engage with the natural world, and challenge you to try something new or go further. Be sure to review Safety Activity Checkpoints for your chosen activity.
Examples of possible Adventure Club activities include:
- Canoeing
- Mountain Biking
- Hiking or Backpacking
- Kayaking
- Skiing
- Rock Climbing
- Parkour
- Plein Air Painting (painting outdoors)
Check out our Events page to find events that are of interest to you.
Get Your Patch
After your third and sixth adventure, tell us about it! Tag us on social media with #GSRVAdventure and @GSRV and share your photos with us. The Adventure Club Patch and Adventure Club Pro patch can be purchased at our Girl Scout Shops.
Adventure Club FAQs
What types of activities count towards Adventure Club?
An Adventure Club activity is one that is mostly outdoors,
engages with the natural world, and challenges you to try something
new or go further. Here are a few examples of Adventure Club type activities:
- Hiking/Backpacking
- Rock/Mountain Climbing
- Kayaking/Canoeing/Boating
- Fishing
- Skiing/Snowboarding
- Plein Air Painting
- Ice Skating
- Biking (city or mountain)
- Horseback riding
Our troop went backpacking before 2018 – can that count as one of
our three Adventure Club activities?
No. Only activities that were completed after September 1, 2018
count towards Adventure Club.
Who should track participation and the number of activities completed?
Participation is “on your honor”. Troops and/or GirlScouts and
families are responsible for tracking number of Adventure Club
activities completed.
Can Girl Scouts participate in Adventure Club activities on their
own/with their family?
Girl Scouts are encouraged to participate in events at the
troop, service unit, or council level. However, if their troop is not
participating in Adventure Club (or if a Juliette Girl Scout), they
may plan Adventure Club activities on their own. Please remember that
individual Girl Scouts (with a parent chaperone) can attend council
events! Check out our event
list for lots of Adventure Club activity options!
Is there a cost for the patch(es)?
Yes, the Adventure Club patches may be purchased at our Girl Scouts River Valleys Shops.
What if an outdoor-type activity is being done indoors (example:
rock climbing at an indoor facility)—Does that count towards
Adventure Club?
Yes! If you are participating in an activity that prepares you
to take it outdoors next time, such as indoor rock climbing, then
yes—we’d consider that a great fit for Adventure Club!
If we do the same activity three times does that count towards
our three activities for Adventure Club?
While we encourage Girl Scouts to try three different
activities for Adventure Club, we know there may be a time where they
want to expand on the skills they started. For example, if a troop
goes indoor rock-climbing first, then on another date tries out-door
rock climbing—That would be a good way to push themselves further in
the same activity and both sessions could count towards Adventure
Club. If a troop went skiing and did the same trail three different
times, that should only count as one Adventure Club activity, and not three.
Helpful Resources
- Camp and Outdoor Training – Girl Scouts offers a variety of training opportunities for you to prepare for a safe and fun outdoor experience.
- Safety Activity Checkpoints – Use this information to ensure safety while planning and participating in particular activities.
- Planning for Trip Safety Guide – A detailed guide on planning Girl Scout supervision, training on the buddy system, dressing for outdoors, and creating emergency plans.
- Travel Progression and Planning – This article outlines travel progressions, planning resources, and exciting travel opportunities for your troop or individual Girl Scout.
- Destinations and Getaways – The ultimate adventure program for Girl Scouts ages 11 and older. With a ton of different trips to apply for every year.
- Outdoor Gear Rental Resources – This is a list of resources for renting outdoor equipment.
- Girl Scouts River Valleys Events – This calendar includes year-round events for Girl Scouts, families, adult members, and alums.