Camping Ministry
Each September Valley Presbyterian Church sponsors a backpacking trip in California's Sierra Nevada Mountains for men and their sons. This is an excellent opportunity to enjoy the fellowship of other believers in the midst of God's beautiful creation. For more information concerning the backpacking trip, please email Norm Herr.
- Norm's suggested equipment list
- Locations of bear boxes in Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks
- Checkout the weather forecast for Sequoia or Yosemite National Parks.
- Checkout the backpacking terrain from space using Microsoft's Terraserver.
- Topographic maps from topozone.com
- Reserve a National Park or National Forest campsite for base camp.
- Check out other camping and backpacking links
- Download the song sheet for backpacking
2008: (1) Kaiser Peak Wilderness; (2) Sabrina Lakes Basin
2007: (1) Summit Lake; (2) Piute Lake; Piute Pass
2006: (1) Little Lakes Valley; (2) Kearsarge Lakes
2005: (1) Lake Ediza; (2) Mount Langely
2004: (1) Ranger Lakes; (2) Donkey Lake
2003: (1) Big Pine Lakes; (2) Kearsarge Lakes; (3) Eagle Lake, Mineral King
2002: (1) Bishop Creek
- Mount Agassiz; (2) Hilton Creek Lakes; (3) Cottonwood Lakes
2001: (1) Mike Augur Memorial
- Hilton Creek Lakes; (2)Dingleberry Lake; (3)Mosquito Lakes, Mineral King
2000: (1) Dingleberry Lake; (2) Eagle Lake, Mineral King
1999: (1) Cirque Peak Trip; (2) Eagle Lake, Mineral King
1998: (1) Seville Lake, Twin Peaks; (2) Weaver Lake, Hume Lake
1997: (1) Mineral King; Pinto Lake, Sequoia National Park
1996: (1) Kearsarge Lakes; Sequoia National Park
1995: (1) Palisades Glacier; Big Pine Creek region of John Muir Wilderness
1994: (1) Muir Lake; Cottonwood Lakes region of John Muir Wilderness
The Children's Ministries and
Youth Ministries
Departments at Valley Presbyterian Church sponsor retreats at Forest
Home Christian Conference Center in the San Bernardino Mountains.
Call the church office for dates and details
- 4th-6th Grade Winter Camps
- Forest Home Junior Winter Camp
- Junior High/Middle School Camps
Forest Home JHS Winter Camp
Youth Camping Song Sheet
MS Word | Adobe
PDF
- Forest Home Christian Conference Center
40000 Valley of the Falls Drive
Forest Falls, CA 92339
(909) 389-2300
E-mail: webservant@foresthome.org; reg@ForestHome.org
For many years, families from Valley Presbyterian Church have been participating in family camps at Inter-Varsity Christian Fellowship's Campus by the Sea on beautiful Catalina Island. These six day vacations provide ample time for family fun, worship and fellowship. The family camps are very popular, and spaces fill up very fast, so it is necessary to make a reservation as soon as applications become available in late January or early February. Please write the Morgans or the Herrs for more information.
Campus by the Sea
PO Box 466
Avalon, CA 90704
310 510-0015
Hiking, Backpacking and Camping Links
National & State Parks
- United States National Park System: Links to U.S. National Parks
- Yosemite Sequoia & Kings Canyon Death Valley Joshua Tree
- California State Parks
- Park Search: Search for National Parks, State Parks and wildlife refuges
National Forests in the State of California
- Pacific Southwest Region: Links to USNFS sites in the California
- Inyo National Forest: Hiking, camping and backpacking in the Inyo National Forest.
- Humbolt-Toyabe National Forest: Hiking, camping and backpacking in the Humbolt-Toyabe National Forest.
- Sequoia National Forest: Hiking, camping and backpacking in the Sequoia National Forest.
- Angeles National Forest: Hiking, camping and backpacking in the Angeles National Forest.
- California's White Mountains: Hiking in the ancient Bristlecone Pines.
Wilderness Areas: Hiking and Mountain Climbing
- Sierrawilderness.com: Wilderness Permits and Information:
- Wilderness Areas: Wilderness Areas in the United States
- ClimbNet: Mountain Climbing in California
- Hikes in the Tule River Drainage: Some Southern Sierra Hikes
- Eastern Sierra: Topographical Maps to Easter Sierra
- Bear Boxes: Locations of Bear Boxes in Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks
- Peak to Peak: Trail and Wilderness Links
- Hikes in the Angeles National Forest
- America's Roof: Information on the highest points in all 50 states
- Highest Peaks in California: A listing of California's 14,000'+ peaks
- Highest Peaks: Including highest peaks of California.
Campground Reservation
- National Park Reservation System: Camping in the National Parks
- Park-Net: Camping in State Parks
- National Recreation Reservation System: Reservations for U.S. Forest Service Campgrounds
- ReserveAmerica: Reserve campgrounds on-line
- ReserveUSA.com: Reserve campgrounds on-line
Wilderness Permits
- Inyo National Forest: John Muir Wilderness Area
- Sequoia/Kings Canyon National Park: 559-565-3761
- Sierrawilderness.com: Wilderness Permits and Information:
Hikes in the Los Angeles Area
- Hikes in Angeles National Forest: Information and photos on hikes in the San Gabriel Mountains.
Maps
- TopoZone: Get online USGS (United States Geological Survey) topographical maps.
- Terraserver: Satellite photos & topographical maps. Free to download..
- Topo 3D 3D toppographical maps
- Trails Illustrated: order composite topographical maps
- Peakware.com :information and mapson peak climbing
- Geographic Names Information System: Locate the exact latitude and longitude of geographic featuers.
- USGS: order USGS 7.5' topographical maps here.
- Norm's topographical maps: maps for use on VPC trips.
- Norm's maps links.
Weather
- Weather and Skiing conditions
- California Snow Survey:
Other Valuable Links
- Sierra Club: Premier organization for preservation and conservation
- Gorp: Outdoor recreation in California
- Pacific Crest Trail Association: From Canada to Mexico
- Backpacker.com
- Wilderness Press; Literature on backpacking
- REI: Order equipment online
- Hymn Sheet: Condensed 2 page hymn sheet for backpacking
Mountain Biking
- MyBikeSite.com; Mountain biking in Southern California. Alternate site.
- Mountain Biking in LA County: Trails in the San Gabriel and Santa Susana Mountains