God's Love . Mountains . Worship

Backpack . Prayer . Together . Jesus

Hope . Never the same

Summer 2025 is going to be great. One of the things we are really excited about is that our high school group will be going to Trek. Trek is a great week of spiritual growth and spiritual focus in the mountains of Colorado. This webpage contains everything you need to know about Trek.

Here are some of the big details about Trek:

Dates: July 5-13

Who: Students currently in 9th-12th grade

Sign-up Deadline: April 16

Cost: $325 ($375 after April 16, if spots available)

(if you are a part of Trek and the HS Mission Trip, there is a $25 discount.)

Okay, now that you’ve read the big details, it's time to really find out all the info about Trek. And, well, there's a lot to know. So look at all the info below. And then pray about this opportunity. Then talk to your parents and see if you can go. If they say yes, then sign-up using the form at the bottom of this page. And then we'll go. And it will be awesome.

What is Trek? Trek is a 6-day wilderness backpacking experience in the mountains of Colorado. We'll spend time hiking, camping, rappelling, backpacking, in devotionals, in Bible study, cooking and being in the backcountry. We'll camp at multiple campsites in the wilderness and we'll attempt to climb to the summit of a mountain. The overall goal of Trek is not to climb a mountain. Instead, the goal is to learn more about God and strengthen our relationship with Him. Even though Trek is in the mountains, it's not about the mountains. Instead, it's all about God and His love for us. (But the mountains He made create a wonderful place to be, and makes this trip even better.)

Who? Where? When? Trek is for all current HS students. We'll be in Colorado, in and around Salida. The current plan is to leave B/CS on July 5 and return on July 13. We do not know departure and arrival times yet - but we will know those soon.

Do I need to be in shape for Trek? Short answer: yes. Long answer: y -y - e - e - e -s - s - s. Okay, really, it's not like you need to be able to run a marathon, but you do need to be in shape. Good shape. We'll be hiking at altitudes between 10,000 and 13,000 feet with a backpack on our backs. It is suggested that your fitness level should be such that you can walk/run 2 miles in 20 minutes at a minimum. Make no doubt, Trek is awesome, but If you spend all spring and summer lying on the couch watching tv and eating cookies, you will have a hard time at Trek, and our group will have to wait on you. We will exercise together some, but you will have to exercise on your own as well.

Do I need a tent, backpack, and such? No, a lot of the things you need for Trek are furnished for you. Things such as tents, backpacks, stoves, cooking utensils, etc., are provided. Many of the things you'll need are things you already have. (like pants, shirts, socks, gloves, sweatshirt, etc.) The following is a list of suggested items you might not already have: heavyweight socks, hiking boots (not required...many people use tennis shoes), jacket or parka with hood, poncho or rain suit, and 2 one-quart water bottles.

Are there TV's at the campsites? No, sorry.

Is there Wi-Fi? No.

Are there radios? No. Seriously, are you really asking these questions? It’s camping. It's getting away from everything. And in getting away from everything, we are able to focus on our relationship with God and see Him in ways that we sometimes do not see Him. It's incredible. Having no phones/computers/screens/etc is one of the best things about Trek.

Phones and electronics. As with all of our trips, electronics such as tablets, laptops, video gaming devices, etc., are not allowed on this trip, even in the bus. If you want to bring your phone, you can turn it in when we leave, and it will be passed out 1-2 times before/after we go on the mountain. Except for those times when we pass out phones to call your parents, Trek will be a non-phone trip.

What if I can't go this year? Can I go in two years when we go again? Great question. And... the answer is: maybe. But maybe not. If you would like to go to Trek during HS, this may be the only year we go. We simply don't know if or when we will go again. We have been in a pattern of going to Trek every two years in the past. However, as with all youth ministry things we do, we constantly re-evaluate to make sure we are doing the best things we can do for our group. We may go to Trek again in the future...or we may not. So... if you are currently in high school and want to go to Trek before you graduate, consider going this year.

Can we climb the cross-tower for practice? No. But the tower by the Stella hotel (at Lake Walk in Bryan) or other tall sets of stairs (like in one of the parking garages on campus) make for good places to go and exercise.

Can adults go on Trek? Yes, but we are very limited in how many adults we can take. Unlike Winterfest or retreats, we can not take everyone who would like to go. We wish we could. But we would like some parents to join us. Talk to Monty or Heather if you are interested.

Service Hours: Each student who goes on Trek will be required to complete 10 service hours between January 1 and July 5. These can be on your own, from doing service projects with our youth ministry, or for volunteering at things like Kids' Praise or VBS. This is not intended to be difficult, but rather to help us each serve before going to Trek. We will be serving while at Trek, so this is a good opportunity to also serve before Trek.

Pre-Trek Bible Study: We will have a pre-Trek Bible study for each participant to go through before Trek. This will be one we distribute and you'll complete on your own.

Bible Memorization: There will be some verses which each student who goes to Trek will need to memorize. If you have been coming on Wednesday nights or Sunday nights, you already know most of the verses.

Coming to Church: We would like for everyone who is a part of our church family and who is going to Trek to be involved in classes and worship during the spring and summer as much as possible. It's going to be really hard to be connected and involved with everyone at Trek if you don't want to be involved and connected to everyone while we are in town. We know you're busy and maybe you have things scheduled on Sunday other than church, but we want to encourage you to make worship a priority over other things on Sunday mornings, and we encourage you to join us on Sun nights and Wed nights as well. (And we would love for students who are not a part of our church, but who want to come to Trek, to come and get connected to our group before Trek, but this is not a requirement.)

Cost: Your registration fee covers just about everything for the week except for a few meals or snacks you purchase on the way to/from Colorado. So...transportation, lodging, equipment (backpack, sleeping bag, sleeping pad, cooking gear, etc.) campground use before/after our time on the mountain, journal, t-shirt, and most everything else you will need is covered. Some things like rain gear or hiking boots (optional) are not covered in your registration cost. As far as what to expect for meal expenses on the way to/from Colorado, plan on around 4-5 meals. This meal money is not needed until we leave.

A few words about the cost: First, we work hard to keep costs low. We stay in churches instead of hotels. We provide food for some meals while in Colorado - this is usually in the form of sandwiches and such which we will eat at a park or a rest stop in Colorado. The weather is usually great, and eating a "picnic meal" saves each family money. Our church takes care of all transportation costs (which is a really large amount) and some additional food costs as well. Also, our outfitter gives our gear to us at a low price for the amount of equipment we get. We say this to let you know that the costs could be much higher, and we make a big effort to keep costs down.

We realize the cost of Trek might be high for some families. If any parents are willing to help with some fund-raising opportunities, that would be great. We would love for some parents to say they will coordinate a garage sale or a coffee bar one morning at church or something similar. In years past we did a coffee bar for two Sundays and some students were able to lower the cost of their trip by around $100. A garage sale could raise even more. We know of some churches who raise enough money to substantially lower the price. We would like to do this. We just can't pull off a garage sale without parent/student help.

Also, if a full or partial scholarship would be needed, let Monty or Heather know. We always have people who are willing to help provide scholarships, and your name will be kept confidential. Also, if you need some extra time to pay the deposit, let Monty know. We'll work with you in every way possible.

Since these costs can add up quickly, we suggest talking to your parents about coming up with a plan of how you can pay for this trip. Extra jobs, Christmas or Birthday money, cutting down on money you already spend to eat out of go to the movies, etc., are ways you can come up with some extra money.

A change from past years: In the past we have always used a Christian outfitter to guide us up the mountain and lead our spiritual focus for the week. This year, we will still use an outfitter we have used in the past for equipment, base camp, low camp, high camp, and access to the mountain we will climb. We will provide our own food this year, and we will also provide the spiritual direction for the week. The biggest reason for this is that we want the trip to make a bigger spiritual impact on our students, and we want to help our students learn more about leadership and faith. We are glad to answer any questions about this, but wanted you to know about the change. One last thing - we want you to know that we are being very intentional about planning and about safety of our group. We will take every precaution necessary and plan things out in a way which will best take care of our students.

Sign-up details: The sign-up deadline is April 16. If we run out of spots for Trek, students will be able to attend based on when they signed up. To sign-up follow the link below and turn in your $100 deposit. The remaining $275 will be due by July 5.

Two things to keep in mind: 1) Once you sign-up, we're paying the money for our equipment and campsites. This money is typically non-refundable. We will be able to refund all money to you which we haven't spend on gear or food or supplies. And we'll do our best to get the equipment and campsite money back if you need to back out. We will always try to help you financially, but just want everyone to know some money we may not be able to refund you if you need to back out.