D&T Grind: Primal California Backpacking 2025

Men and women 16+

All creeds welcome.

Adventure Score: 3

Three days and thirty miles, backpacking with your brothers and sisters in faith will make the going easier, but it will still be a grind.

There is no more iconic landscape than the rolling, verdant grasslands of California. Long before gold was discovered, the honeyed hues of an oak-studded hillside were enough to cement California’s aurulent reputation; for it is the Golden State.

Except in the winter. In this time, much of California is a misty emerald.

And we invite you to savor this damp and cold jewel for three days and two nights in California’s Henry W. Coe State Park.

D&T Grind is our winter coed backpacking adventure where we ask men and women to face adversity together. Cold temperatures, wet weather, swollen creeks, impassable routes, long miles, and steep climbs are only a few of the challenges we will embrace as we rediscover what it means to be sisters and brothers in faith.

This is a far cry from the lecture halls and temple sermons.

This is lived experience where all that you are will become apparent to yourself and others, coaxed into the dim winter light by the rigors of novelty and fatigue.

Grind will humiliate the arrogant and reward the selfless. Against the backdrop of wet earth and grey sky, our insignificance is an undeniable mandate for the humble to assist one another and press on. Even so, the haughtiness within us may rue the day, grumbling for a return to the small, safe spaces that affirm our sense of grandeur and control.

Grind is a lesson. Grind is a teacher. Grind is a gift.

Included:

• Point-by-point itinerary, packing list, and personalized assistance with logistics
• All necessary permits
• Two nights of backcountry camping
• Wilderness first-aid certified adventure guide
• Daily check-in message to loved ones via satellite transmitter
• Nightly circle reflections
• Commemorative D&T keepsakes to honor our time together
• New friends and a lifetime of memories!

You are responsible for your food, transportation, clothing, park entry fees, and gear (limited rentals are available). Interested participants should feel confident in their ability to carry 30 pounds of gear a distance of at least 10 miles. Backpacking experience will be helpful, but is not required. We’ll coach you through anything you need to know, insha Allah.

Your trip facilitators are Luke Frobase and Andrea Guaschino.

Trip will cancel if fewer than 5 registered participants by January 11, 2025.

Inclement weather anticipated and will not be grounds for either cancellation or refund except in cases of extreme severity.

Book your spot with a $190 deposit that is refundable up to 30 days prior to our trip (refund deadline Thursday 12/26/2024).

Don’t want to hassle with food? We’re happy to put together a 2000 calorie/day vegetarian meal bundle to get you through the weekend. The bundle includes pasta and quinoa-based entrees, oatmeal, granola, and lots of chocolate, nut-butters, and fat-rich coconut strips to fuel your adventure.

Questions? Drop them in the comments below or send us a message through our Contact page.