Girls get their sea legs

Marisa O’Neil

This week, Brownie Girl Scouts at the Newport Dunes Resort learned

the importance of keeping both oars in the water.

On Thursday morning, 15 rowers in three boats took their first

solo voyage at a weeklong camp, rowing around the placid waters of

the Back Bay. But to hear the squeals of delight and screeches of

excitement from the 6- and 7-year-olds, one might think they were

rowing through class-five rapids.

“We’re going under the bridge!” a girl in one boat shrieked as

they drifted to within 15 yards of the pedestrian bridge.

“Don’t panic!” another girl yelled frantically, as her boat

cautiously approached the shore.

A group of 45 Brownies, ages 5 to 8, took part in the camp through

the Girl Scout Council of Orange County. They learned the basics of

boating skills and safety, canoe paddling and rowing this week, but

that first time alone in a tippy boat can still be a daunting

experience.

“We were scared,” 8-year-old Costa Mesa resident Chelsea Davis

confided, once on solid ground. “All we were doing was going in

circles.”

Sydnee Higginson, 7, was quick to set the record straight.

“I wasn’t scared,” the Huntington Beach resident corrected.

The girls huddled together under the gray skies and recounted

their first row without their instructors on board. One problem,

6-year-old Rossella Juliano thought, was that they weren’t rowing

enough.

“The hardest part was turning in circles,” 7-year-old Anna

Kallinikos said. “And not panicking.”

Up on the beach, a second group of girls made bunches of daisies

from green pipe cleaners, yellow pom-poms and some white felt petals.

They added some googly eyes for good measure.

“I like going boating,” 7-year-old Kate Hesson said as she glued

an eye on a flower. “It gives you strength in your arms because it’s

hard to paddle.”

Katie and the other campers spent five hours a day on and around

the water at the Dunes, floating, crafting, playing, learning and

doing a lot of giggling. The annual summer camps will continue

throughout the summer with older Girl Scouts learning the intricacies

of rowing, kayaking and sailing, said Tricia Wedekind, assistant day

camp director.

Individual scouts from Orange County troops sign up for the summer

camp, usually with a friend or two, she said. During the school year,

scouts can come down for boating lessons with their whole troop.

“Boating is one of those things that’s very expensive,” Wedekind

said. “This exposes them to basic boating safety and fun in a safe

area.”

Newport Beach resident Jaclyn Martin, for one, was sold.

“Rowing is the best thing I can think of,” 7-year-old Jaclyn said.

“It feels good, and you get to see the world. And fish.”