DATE: Friday, September 26, 1997            TAG: 9709260074

SECTION: DAILY BREAK             PAGE: E1   EDITION: FINAL 

SOURCE: JOY MOSSMAN, HIGH SCHOOL CORRESPONDENT 

LENGTH: 101 lines

HOW I SPENT MY SUMMER VACATION

I'LL NEVER FORGET the cry of the loon echoing across the sapphire blue waters of the Boundary Waters Canoe Area.

For 10 days this summer, the loon entertained me and 35 other Girl Scouts as we paddled our canoes across U.S. and Canadian waters and along fur routes traveled by French-Canadian voyageurs in the 18th century.

Each year, the Girl Scout Wider Opportunities program selects Scouts from across the country to participate in these trips, which mix survival skills with nature and history. The Girl Scouts sponsor the trips in hopes of increasing young women's self-esteem and preparing them to be successful in the future.

My trip began in Minnesota with a crash course on survival skills. We learned how to flip and carry our canoes across land (sometimes for more than half a mile); cram our packs full and lift them by their ``ears''; and paddle efficiently through the crystal lakes that make up the Boundary Waters. Engraved on our brains was the saying ``If you take care of your equipment, your equipment will take care of you.''

After the lessons, we were ready to begin the journey. The Boundary Waters Canoe Area is the largest lake wilderness area in the United States. It encompasses more than 1 million acres and is home to an abundance of wildlife. More people visit this wilderness than any other in America. It has about 1,200 canoe-trail miles, 18 hiking trails and 2,200 designated campsites.

It is naturally peaceful, naturally beautiful and naturally hard to reduce to a few words.

There were sights along that way that forever will be etched in my mind: the man fully dressed in Native American attire; the big black dog named Rambo that hogged the narrow trail and almost tripped our guide and made her lose her canoe; the loon.

We photographed - but were careful not to touch - ancient pictographs of moose drawn many decades ago by native Americans. While paddling down a a canal, we discovered bugs' shells - some bugs actually shed their skin like snakes. We saw a cinnamon-colored bear.

But the most breathtaking site was Louisa Falls, with its steady rain of cold water.

We stopped at the foot of the falls one day, tied up our canoes and climbed up the steep trail until we reached a basin in the falls.

In swimsuits and hiking boots - a clumsy mix that likely never will become a fashion trend - we swam and played in the basin. The frigid water roared down onto our backs. From our vantage point, about two-thirds the way up the falls, we watched as the water cascaded down to meet the sun-reflecting lake. It was magnificent.

Along with the beauty, our trip was filled with routine. Every day we drank Tang and ate a lunch of peanut butter and jelly or cheese. Dinner provided variety, including a cabbage stew - yuck - and deep dish pizza - yum. We drank water from the lake, after pumping it through a purifier. Any garbage generated we transported out with us. We sang voyageur songs during our canoe trips to keep our minds off our weariness.

And were we weary!

Canoeing is tough. By the end of the first day, I was sure I had made a mistake. My whole body ached. I was sore and very tired. I had bruises on my back and bug bites on my body. It got better as the days wore on and grew accustomed to the routine and mosquitoes.

The demanding physical labor made sleeping easy. The only time I awoke before the wake-up call was the morning I heard two of my peers screaming loudly from their tent. The zipper on their tent had broken in the night and hundreds of mosquitoes had invaded. Our head guide tried unsuccessfully to fix the zipper. Ultimately, she traded tents with the Scouts. She used safety pins to keep the tent closed at our next stop.

On our last evening in Canada, we watched the most spectacular sunset with the hues of orange, red and pink blended seemingly with the stroke of a paintbrush. As we stretched out on rocks along the water, I felt like I was in an IMAX theater, with everything so near and so perfectly beautiful.

Following Girl Scout tradition, we exchanged swaps, trinkets that represent you or where you are from. My swap-bag included a miniature strawberry jam jar I had made - my initials are JAM; a Navy pencil - my father is retired Navy; a Gymstrada gymnastics patch - I am a gymnast; and more. The most popular swap was cheese from a Wisconsin Scout, mostly because it was food.

We had Scout's Own, a reflection on our personal growth and our growth as a group. We discussed how we had changed, grown, become stronger and made new friends.

Our group was odd in one sense: Most other groups consisted of boys and men. In fact, we passed only three women during the 10-day trek. I think girls groups tend to stay away from such trips because they're rigorous and demanding. But they're also educational and life-altering.

Our trip strengthened my determination to protect the planet's beauty. It taught me how litter can damage fragile ecosystems. It taught me teamwork skills that I'll employ for the rest of my life. My crew heightened my understanding of other people and showed me how to work with them to accomplish a goal.

Before we departed from the base on our last day, we were given a miniature canoe paddle, a map with our route marked on it, and a pin for our uniforms. Clothed in our Girl Scout uniforms and wet from our tears, we rode away. Though we were sad to leave the pine-scented air, crystal waters and newfound friends, we were happy to have been part of such an awesome learning and growing experience. MEMO: Joy Mossman is a freshman at Tallwood High School in Virginia

Beach.Joy Mossman is a freshman at Tallwood High School in Virginia

Beach. ILLUSTRATION: Color staff illustration by John Corbitt

Color photos by Joy Mossman

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