The Big Pine Lakes, located in the Sierra Nevada mountains, attribute their vibrant turquoise color to the Palisade glacier. Join this trip if you want to see some epic views of the mountains, hike past three glacier-fed lakes, take a cold plunge, and enjoy two nights of warm campfire at a pretty campsite. We will camp Friday and Saturday night at the Big Pine Creek Campground, leaving early Saturday morning for our ~11 mile hike and spending the whole day exploring the lakes and taking in the sights. The trail starts at an altitude of 7,600 feet. To reach Third Lake, you will gain about 2,650 more feet, giving access to sweeping views of the mountains and lower lakes!

Come unwind on this beautiful camping trip to Santa Paula! Get ready for a weekend full of swimming holes, rock-hopping, and gourmet camping food. When we arrive on Saturday, we will venture out on an 8-mile hike to the Punch Bowls, where we will swim, splash around, and eat lunch before returning to our picturesque campsite to hang out and eat dinner.

Doing nothing Friday thru Sunday and want to go outdoors, see some beautiful trees, hang out by a lake, go on a hike, camp, and enjoy some quality time? Then this trip is perfect for you. We will go to Sequoia National Forest Friday midday, cook some dinner and then have a Saturday full of small hikes and hanging out and enjoying the beautiful national forest and a chill Sunday before going home. Hopefully we also see some bears.

Ok ok ok, who doesn’t want to go to a National Park?! Professor Ronney is so excited to show USC students one of his favorite hikes—Keane Wonder Mill, which besides being a gorgeous hike, contains so much rich history! Check something off your bucket list and sign up!

Get ready to explore these two BEAUTIFUL National Parks with Conor and Maia! Join us for 3 days of hiking, exploring, learning, cooking, meditating, and adventuring. We’ll be disperse camping for two nights in the Hume Lake district, going on scenic hikes in the surrounding area and enjoying cozy nights by the campfire.

Come voyage with us across the high seas to the far-away lands of Channel Islands National Park! We’ll hike along cliffs overlooking the ocean, hang out on da beach, sleep on the dirt for two nights, and attempt to stop our fox neighbors from breaking into our tents.

We’ll take the ferry from Ventura Friday morning and sail back home on Sunday afternoon!

Join us on an overnight trip with Prof Larry Harris! We will be leaving early Saturday morning and heading straight to the Afton Canyon campground to set up. After that, we will do the Spooky Canyon hike and then return back to camp for cooking and lovely times! The next morning we will hit a few stops on the way back, including the Alvord Mine. We will aim to be back on campus before 7pm.

Need weekend-before-Thanksgiving plans? 🦃 Come join da Peaks + Broyer fam for a fun camping trip up in Malibu Creek State Park! We’ll splash around in some Rock Pools, explore some little lakes, dip our toes in some ocean water nearby, and touch some grass (hike) before enjoying some good ol’ car camping grub around the fire. I’ll try to make it Thanksgiving-y but no promises! 🍂

Join the amazing Professor (and former astronaut!) Reisman for a spooky overnight Halloween trip to the abandoned mining town of Cerro Gordo! We will be driving early Saturday morning to the ghost town to camp, hike the nearby hills, and explore the local silver mines and buildings of the town. On Saturday night, we will enjoy the moonless sky to bask in the Milky Way, use a telescope to observe Jupiter and Saturn, and take a star tour through the visible constellations (do your weather dance for no clouds!). On Sunday we will continue to explore the town, do some more hikes, and head back to campus by that night!

Er… there’s no better way to prep for finals than sleeping on the floor! Join us for a ~chill ~ 1 night beach camping trip at Leo Carrillo State Beach!

Join the amazing Professor Reisman + 3 other incredible Astronautical Engineering PhD students for an overnight trip to the tiny but mighty Pinnacles National Park! We will be driving early Saturday morning to Laguna Mountain to camp and act as home base to explore the nearby nature. On Saturday we will explore the caves and peaks of Pinnacles and return to the campsite that night for some full-moon stargazing and dinner on a campfire. On Sunday we will wake up bright and early to hike through another cave and another peak (and hopefully see some California Condors!) before returning back to campus Sunday night.

From tufa spires to volcanic rock, it’s time to explore all the unexpected but interesting things that the desert has to offer on this 2 night camping trip! We’ll be camping under the Milky Way in Trona Pinnacles and Fossil Falls, while stopping by Red Rock Canyon (no, not the one in Nevada, but the one in California - trust it’s just as beautiful), Vasquez Rocks, Burro Schmidt Tunnel, Johannesburg (no not the one in South Africa)/Randsburg, and more on the way. Joining us will be Peaks legend Dr. Larry Harris and his 2 Peaks legend pups Bootstrap and Musket!!!

Unwind from midterms with a ~chill ~ beach camping trip at Leo Carrillo State Beach! We’ll explore some tide pools, scramble some rocks, imagine what it’s like to be a seagull nosediving towards the ground, and enjoy a nice sunset by the ocean before heading back to camp! Come for good vibes, good convo with Dr. Broyer + co, and some good ol car-camping grub :)

Looking for a tree-mendous way to spend your Halloween weekend? Then join us for an “in-tents” backpacking trip along the gorgeous Lakes Trail in Sequoia national park. We’ll hike ~6 miles in to our campsite by pear lake where we’ll spend the night before exploring around the alpine lakes, babbling brooks, giant sequoias, and rocky Sierra Terrain. We’ll spend another night at our lakeside campsite and head back Sunday morning, stopping to check out General Sherman and any other park highlights.

Couldn’t get enough relaxation on Spring Break? Look no further! Join us for a two-night, three-day hiking/camping expedition on Santa Cruz Island. Located 20 miles off the coast, being on the island will feel otherworldly, with all sorts of critters that are endemic to the Channel Islands, the rugged peaks and cliffs, as well as peaceful beaches. We will be ferrying over from Ventura on Friday morning and returning on Sunday in the early afternoon. Activities will include some nice hilly hikes, attempts at plant and animal identification, eatin’ good in the backcountry, and getting to know Professor Harris, among others!

We will be hiking our gear into the campground, so be prepared for a brief backpacking moment on Friday afternoon. Besides that, we will be camping at the same spot on both nights and will be taking various day hikes to explore all the Island has to offer!

A nice weekend getaway to the desert filled with gorgeous hikes, sunsets on sand dunes, chill car camping, spectacular stargazing and good vibes! Saturday we'll bop around the park including Badwater Basin, Artist’s Palette, and a natural bridge. After our day of exploring, we'll head to the sand dunes for sunset and then back to our campsite for dinner, campfires and s'mores. We'll wake up bright and early Sunday to go for some chill hikes and check out where lots of Star Wars scenes were filmed!