During the 2024 Winter Faire, Edith de Guzman, UC Cooperative Extension specialist based at UCLA, hosted a breakout session on backpacking. It was wildly popular. ANR colleagues enjoyed sharing their backpacking tips and experiences so much, a group formed to hike together.
A trip to John Muir Wilderness on Sept. 6-7 was organized by de Guzman; her husband Jolly de Guzman; Greg Ira, UC Environmental Stewards director, and Chris Jakober, Risk and Safety Services director.
The group hiked Sabrina Lake trailhead, camped at Blue Lake then hiked to Midnight Lake.
“We’re going to try to plan two trips next year and will start the planning process early in 2026,” Jakober said.
Anyone who is interested in joining a group for a backpacking trip can contact Edith de Guzman at eb3@ucla.edu and Jakober at cjakober@ucanr.edu.