Join the Society of Physics Students and Professor Vahe Peroomian for a day in Anza Borrego State Park. Explore the desert scenery, hike through slot canyons, see the amazing metal sculptures, and conclude the day with some stargazing! We’ll camp overnight in the park before heading back home the next morning.

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.

So! Many! Rocks!!! Come channel ur inner monkey while rock scramblin’ on a trip with Dr. Broyer to JTree SLaytree. Rumor has it she’s bringing her daughter?? We’ll hike around cholla cacti, scramble around Skull Rock, send it up Ryan Mountain, stargaze, and top it off with some dispersed camping in the desert wilderness!

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!

If your cowboy soul is already yearning for an escape to wide open spaces after the first week of classes, come along for an overnight trip to the rocks that have been featured in everything from Django Unchained to Iron Man! Tucked away in the shadow of Mt. Whitney, the Alabama Hills have a little bit of everything - hiking, scrambling, and (if we’re lucky) some pretty epic stargazing. We’ll spend our days exploring the hills and rock formations before taking a quick trip up to the Ancient Bristlecone Pine Forest, home to some of the oldest organisms on Earth. It’ll be a bit chilly, but it’ll be fun!

Looking to embark on a weekend adventure after spending the last few weeks settling back into life at school? Come no further! Join us for a scenery-packed, beginner-friendly backpacking trip for the ages. We are going to have some great conversations in the great outdoors and take this trip at a chill pace over two days.

ALSO no worries if you have little to no backpacking experience prior to this trip! But having experience with long and/or difficult hikes is HIGHLY recommended as you will be carrying a 35 lb. pack on your back while hiking, plus going up ~1200 ft. to the falls over 5 miles the first day.

Start your school year off right with an epic weekend trip in Yosemite National Park, a land of towering granite monoliths, meadows, giant Sequoias, and waterfalls!!! We’ll trek to the top of Vernal and Nevada Falls, meander through Cook’s Meadow, and marvel at the views of El Capitan and Half Dome as we unwind around the campfire!

Are you ready for the best introduction to Southern California backpacking ever???? Skip your Saturday finals and come to Ojai with us for some epic views, hills, and W A T E R F A L L S. If that wasn’t enticing enough, come take a dip in the swimming hole! This will be an amazing and relaxing weekend full of meditative conversations in the great outdoors as well as fantastic photo opportunities (if that’s your type of thing).

No worries if you have no backpacking experience prior to this trip! But having experience with long and/or difficult hikes is HIGHLY recommended as you will be carrying a ~35 lb. pack on your back, plus hiking up a gradual uphill to the falls.

Disclaimer: Peaks and Professors does not encourage skipping your Saturday finals to go backpacking

Join us for a classic California camping trip along the Big Sur coast! Wikipedia calls this area the “greatest meeting of land and water in the world”. We’ll drive up to our San Simeon campsite on Friday and do a short sunset hike. Saturday, we’ll wake up bright and early to trek up further to Pfeifer State Park and spend the day hitting the most iconic Big Sur locations! Beaches, coves, cliffs, forest waterfalls…this place has it all. On Sunday we’ll pack up, do a short hike near San Simeon (catch some elephant seals?) and head back to campus. Professor Broyer and her family will be joining us on this busy, sight-seeing packed road trip!

Love the ocean? Dig the dirtbag lifestyle? On a mission to check off every beach name-dropped in the 1963 Beach Boys classic Surfin’ USA? This just might be the trip for you! We’re traveling to San Onofre State Beach, longboard capitol of California, for Peaks and Professors’ FIRST EVER surf overnight trip!

We’re going all the way to Alabama for a one night trip?? Nope, nestled between Death Valley and the Sierras, Alabama Hills is a popular climbing, hiking and stargazing destination. From desert boulders to alpine lakes and amazing mountain tops, Alabama Hills has it all! We’ll spend Saturday exploring the park, scrambling around and looking for the amazing arches. Sunday morning we’ll wake up bright and early to hike a portion of Whitney Portal.

A nice weekend getaway to the desert filled with gorgeous hikes, sunsets on sand dunes, chill car camping, and good vibes! Saturday will be filled with exploring the park including Badwater Basin, Artist’s Palette, a natural bridge and sand dune sunsets. We’ll go for a nice hike Sunday and check out the Harmony Borax Works before heading back to campus.

Spend your weekend in Joshua Tree with Annenberg’s spunkiest professor! On this trip we will be car camping on Friday before backpacking the Boy Scout Trail on Saturday and Sunday - plenty of rock scrambling, star-gazing, and general desert boolin guaranteed. No backpacking experience needed ;)

Get excited for some backpacking right in our own backyard, north of Ojai! We will be backpacking the Sespe River Trail to Willett Hot Springs, about 10 miles out and back each way (but super flat!). This is a wonderful backpacking trip for both those new to backpacking and to those who have been backpacking for years - plus Larry Harris is bringing not one but TWO dogs - Benbow & Musket!

Mojave with Karin

No, we’re not going all the way to Alabama.

BIG-inning to get tired of the red bricks and palm trees of campus? SUR-ching for redwoods and dramatic coastlines? Join peaks regular, Rebecca Broyer, for a weekend backpacking trip to Big Sur! Some expected highlights include, but are not limited to: a scenic drive up California’s coast, a Friday evening spent camping among the redwoods of Big Sur’s Pfeiffer State park, a short but SCENIC backpacking experience in the Silver Peak wilderness!

Join us for a quick but hearty weekend adventure in the gorgeous San Gorgonio Wilderness with a Peaks veteran, Vicki Petryshyn! We’ll pack in close to 15 miles on Saturday by backpacking our camp gear up to Halfway Camp and summiting Mt. San Gorgonio via the Vivian Creek Trail before returning to camp for the evening. Sunday morning, we’ll take a short hike back to the trailhead and relax at the nearby waterfalls along the Big Falls trail, potentially with a little trailside brunch action thrown in.

Come visit the lowest point in North America before hitting rock bottom in Leavey this midterm season! Peaks is headed to Death Valley for a weekend of car camping, desert sunsets, chill day hiking, and some rocks & sand & rocks & sand.

If you’re ~diene~ to get off campus (and off the mainland) then join chemistry professor Rebecca Broyer on an overnight trip to the Channel Islands, the “Galapagos of North America!” We will be visiting Anacapa, the smallest of the Channel Islands, and spend our time exploring the 1 square mile of volcanic rock, sea caves, and cliffs. Get ready for mind blowing sunset watching, card game playing, and seagull/pelican/sea lion sighting.

Ready for a weekend trip to the forest to break up the mid-semester grind? Then this is the trip for you! Join us for two days filled with hiking, exploring and taking in the early season views in one of the most beautiful places in SoCal. Plus, get a crash course in first-aid/wilderness medicine from USC professor Dr. Dan Dworkis—what more could you ask for?

We’ll be taking a short drive into the Angeles National Forest to hike Mount Waterman (and possibly other nearby peaks) then camp at the nearby Buckhorn Ski Lodge in a trip filled with mindfulness, gratitude and performance of course, Not sure what performance science is? Dr. Fox is the person to ask!

Truly one of California’s best kept secrets, the Carrizo Plain National Monument is home to glorious wildlife (BIRDS, antelope), wildflowers (ones that will be in bloom while we are there), and geologic and cultural history. Prominent features on the monument include the white alkali flats of Soda Lake, Painted Rock, vast open grasslands, and a broad plain rimmed by mountains.

Join yoga professor Stephanie Eggert for a truly once in a lifetime opportunity - an island meditation and yoga retreat! Professor Eggert is a kundalini yogi, a school of yoga that incorporates movement, dynamic breathing techniques, meditation, and the chanting of mantras. Beginners are welcome to join, no yoga or meditation experience necessary!

While it took 23 million years for the Pinnacles to travel 200 miles along the San Andreas fault from L.A. to Central California, we’ll be making a weekend out of the journey. We’ll do everything Pinnacles National Park has to offer, from exploring unique talus caves and tall rock spires to watching massive California Condors in one of their few natural habitats.

Think you can find a grander canyon than this? Think again. This baby is one big, beautiful hole and you’re gonna want to see it for yourself!

The Peaks and Professionals series returns! For this iteration of the series we have the honor of being joined by writer Shawnte Salabert on an overnight wildflower-chasing  and slot canyon ‘splorin camping excursion to Anza-Borrego State Park.