Outdoors - Cate School

The Outdoor Program

The Outdoor Program is intrinsic to your Cate experience.

Living on campus, you can see the Channel Islands National Park from your dorm balcony, and gaze at magnificent Los Padres National Forest mountains behind you.

In the fall, you’ll spend your afternoon surfing, surf-kayaking, mountain biking, rock climbing, stand-up paddle boarding, or hiking—counting towards your athletics credit. In the winter, you’ll focus on specific activities, either surfing or rock climbing. In the spring, you’ll dive into the water for surfing and stand-up paddle-boarding, plus experience rock climbing and hiking at the level that’s right for you.

On campus you can use the Claire Andriveau Drake Memorial Ropes Course located in a grove of eucalyptus trees. There is a climbing tower and a bouldering house for practicing your skills before off-campus climbing excursions. And when you’re ready to head out on an adventure Cate has backpacking and camping gear, surfboards, kayaks, rafts, and mountain bikes for your use.

Outdoor Curriculum

Outings Week takes place each fall and is designed to give your class the chance to come together while enjoying the beauty and challenges of California’s wilderness.

As a freshman, you’ll travel to Pyles Camp in the Sequoia National Forest, where you’ll hike during the day and spend the evening together around the campfire. During your sophomore trip, you’ll carry in all your food and gear on a backpacking trip in Yosemite National Park.

As a junior, you and your accompanying faculty head to the Kern River for a 40-mile-long, full-pack camping trip. When senior year rolls around you have the option of a week of college visits, a camping trip on nearby Santa Cruz Island, or as a leader on an underclassman trip.

Our Outdoor Program can count towards your athletics credits. In the fall, is a rotational offering that includes introductions to surfing, surf-kayaking, mountain biking, rock climbing, stand-up paddle boarding, and hiking. In the winter, students can sign up for surfing or rock climbing.

During freshman year, students experience their first overnight trip on the trails behind the Mesa. Each weekend a group of ten students will hike up to Bee Camp from campus and experience a night under the stars. In the morning, students wake up to a view of the Channel Islands and a birds eye view of campus. There is an option waterfall hike before heading back down to campus. It is a required trip that teaches students about the local flora and fauna surrounding campus and to give a preview of what to expect on overnight trips in the future.

Throughout the year, students have the option to sign up for numerous weekend trips. Recent trips include a ski trip to Mammoth, a surfing trip to Jalama Beach, a hiking trip to Santa Cruz Island, a climbing trip to Bishop, and a hiking trip to Pinnacles National Park, to name a few!

In addition to athletic options, you’ll get to experience weekend adventures throughout the year, both day trips and overnights. You can backpack in the Los Padres National Forest, go hiking and kayaking on Santa Cruz Island, surf in Big Sur, or ski in Sierra Nevada. Groups head out almost every weekend to California’s stunning locales, giving you plenty of options to spend time in nature with friends.