Fun activities other than skiing?

[alanfujii]

We are bringing our church youth group up in the first week in January 2008. Some of the youth are reluctant to go since they do not ski and have no desire too. Are there other activities around Wrightwood or nearby that we can take the non-skiers too? We want to have as much participation as possible in our Youth group and I want to convince the non-skiers it still will be fun to come.

[ForestGal]

What age kids are you talking about?  I've lived here full-time for almost 31 years, and have never skied in my life, and at my age, I don't intend to start (I don't have a death wish... ).  Depending on the weather and the age of the kids, there are wonderful hiking trails near here.  Grassy Hollow Visitor Center is a great place to start.  It's 6-1/2 miles up Hwy. 2 from Wrightwood, and they have wonderful displays of local wildlife and info about our mountains.  The Pacific Crest Trail runs through there, and you can take sections of it, with great views.  My favorite is the road from Grassy Hollow out to Jackson Flat group campground, and the view from the top of the water tower is spectacular.  I was there today, as I've been a zillion times over the years, and I never get tired of that walk.  It's not strenuous at all, and it's a little over 2 miles round trip.  If there is natural snow on the ground, snowshoeing is fun, but that requires snowshoes.  I don't know if the local ski rental places rent them or not.

These are my favorite experiences, I'm sure others can supply more info.  Good luck in recruiting as many kids as possible, I know they will love it here!

[ChattyCathy]

Mt. High also has tubing that should be open at that time of year.

We are bringing our church youth group up in the first week in January 2008. Some of the youth are reluctant to go since they do not ski and have no desire too. Are there other activities around Wrightwood or nearby that we can take the non-skiers too? We want to have as much participation as possible in our Youth group and I want to convince the non-skiers it still will be fun to come.

[Wrightwood]

If there is not snow on the ground how about mountain biking ?

[Nolena]

There's fishing & picnicking at Jackson Lake.

[Hillbillies]

We are bringing our church youth group up in the first week in January 2008. Some of the youth are reluctant to go since they do not ski and have no desire too. Are there other activities around Wrightwood or nearby that we can take the non-skiers too? We want to have as much participation as possible in our Youth group and I want to convince the non-skiers it still will be fun to come.

How many kids are you looking to bring, where are you staying, and where are you coming up from?

[Wrightwood]

How long of visit?

[alanfujii]

To answer your questions:
Jan 4, 5, 6 2008
Coming up from Hungtington Beach Friday evening. Saturday is the day we need to fill with an alternate activity, Sunday we're going back to Huntington Beach.
The age group is from 10 to 15 years of age (girls and boys)
I'm guessing there will be about 15 to 20 kids.
We are staying at Camp Wrightwood (an Episcopal campground) although we are not camping they have real cabins.

The tubing idea sounds great. It there a specific park that we can go to that provides everything. It would be idea if all we had to do was buy tickets and the kids could rent tubes and tube as long as they wanted.

I hesitate on the hiking idea. We are going to have to split up the supervision, 2 will go with the kids skiing and 1 will take the rest of the kids. The one that will probably do this (she doesn't ski) is not what I would call a nature person. Unless I was absolutely positive that they couldn't get lost I wouldn't feel comfortable. I don't want to have our group make the evening news.

[Surfer_Dude]

The tubing park is intermittently in service and expensive but a good idea.  It will cost considerably more than buying a few sleds at the hardware store and going to Grassy Hollow Visitor Center.
One can tube for free at GHVC and it is just as fun.  Be sure the kiddos have waterproof clothes and gloves.  Have fun, and be nice to the forest. You will need a pass for the forest which you can get at the center for only 5 dollars a car.

[ChattyCathy]

You might check out Mt. High's website  www.mthigh.com - for prices.  I don't believe you are allowed to sled/tube at the visitor center, and definitely not on Mt. High property.  I'm sure someone will correct me if I'm incorrect about the visitor center.  Although the tubing is part of Mt. High, you'd have to drive from the ski area to the tubing area - not very far, but a very steep road.

[ForestGal]

You cannot possibly get lost in the Grassy Hollow area.  Please consider it, it's so beautiful, and so easy.....

But, of course, the whole plan depends on the weather.....

Plus, if you are camping at the camp that I'm thinking of, it's the the Methodist camp, not Episcopal.  To my knowledge, we don't have an Episcopal camp up here.  Camp Wrightwood is the Methodist Camp.

[Surfer_Dude]

Yes, you can sled at the visitor center.  There is a whole hill back behind it.  It is a good spot.

[RobertW]

I've grown up and spent my whole life sledding around Wrighwood.  I didn't take up skiing until I was 30+ years old.  Back in the 60s, "Holiday Hill" had a slope that they allowed you to sled on "for free".  Times change and things are different now.

Being apart of the USFS Volunteer Patrol Group I can say that while out patrolling last winter and visiting the snowplayers, I found the best sledding site available in the area.  I never even knew it existed.  Many people seem to know about it and keep it as "their secret" and groups plan outings at this location.  It is safe in the the fact that you don't have to worry about sledding out onto Hwy 2 as many spots do.  You can also get a really long run depending on the snowpack.

The caveat is that there must be some decent snowfall.  If we've had a couple of good storms, you'll want to visit this area for sledding.

Directions:  Head down Big Pines Hwy from the intersection of Hwy 2, the Big Pines Vistor Center and the Road to Table Mountain.  Just a short distance down the road you will notice a sign indicating the Arch Rock picnic area on your left.  Go just a little futher to a large turnout on the left side.  This is the location.  It's just a short jaunt to the beginning of the run and, snowpack permitting, will be the run of your lifetime.

While out patrolling last year we found this to be the best location and "Toolman" and I found that a religous group of 20 or more comes to this spot every year.  Just remember that you'll need an Adventure Pass to park here to participate in the fun.

All we need is a good snow storm.... and shushhhh!  Mums the word!  We wouldn't want everyone to know about his place. 

[Wrightwood]

Do you mean Camp Wrightwood which is the Methodist Church Camp?

http://campwrightwood.com/

[love_walnuts]

There is an Episcopal Camp in the area as well. It goes by the name Episcopal Camp.

[Nolena]

Here's a link to the Episcopal Camp near Wrightwood.
(Scroll down. It's the second camp listed.)

http://www.ladiocese.org/campingprog.htm

[Wrightwood]

We are staying at Camp Wrightwood (an Episcopal campground)

The Episcopal Camp is not "Camp Wrightwood" and that was the reason for the clarification. If they ask a bus driver to take them to Camp Wrightwood they will end up at a different location.

Episcopal Camp at Wrightwood

The reason for asking is that it will make a big difference in activities within walking distance.

[Tomas]

Actually, Episcopal Camp at Wrightwood is called Camp Wrightwood as well. At least that is what the sign says at their camp. I've had to give confused people directions to both camps. It actually confused me a bit when I first moved out here. You'll see Camp Wrightwood Episcopal Camp just before Jackson Lake on the left side of the road. I know they are not "Camp Wrightwood" proper.

alanfujii, you should probably ask Joseph or Sloan about alternate activites. If there is snow there are some good sledding hills right around camp. Just bring your own snow toys. If there is not snow I'm pretty sure Camp Wrightwood has a basketball court or volleyball court, if not both. You could also walk over to Jackson Lake and play capture the flag or ultimate frisbee. You should also bring up some board games and cards. Kids that age have almost forgotten how much fun board games could be. The best part is that those activities force them to sit face to face with someone and engage in conversation, an imperative skill that many kids lack.

[dragonfly]

I believe snowshoes are available at Grassy Hollow visitirs center.

[bigpines]

the snowshoes at grassy hollow are for tours only  I quit doing sat.. tours 2 year ago due to parking and traffic issues..  snowshoeing is great fun but finding parking for 15 people on a sat afternoon was just too hard.  sometimes it took an hour to get from Cardinal to big pines due to mtn high trafffic ugh!