Outdoor Club of South Jersey

Spring is here. Lawns are greening, flowers are exploding with color. Soaring trees are blooming, attempting to embrace the billowy clouds with their tangled branches. Beaming rays from the brilliant sun slip into lakes and ponds, making everything warm and comfortable. Could there possibly be a better time to embrace the great outdoors in all its splendor?

The Outdoor Club of South Jersey (OCSJ) is the perfect group to join for a little help with planning how to make the most out of Mother Nature in all of its grandeur. The non-profit organization is “dedicated to providing opportunities for extending the individual's awareness, knowledge, appreciation, and enjoyment of the environment through experiences in outdoor activities.” The schedule of events is coordinated by the advisory committee and leaders, and all activities are led by volunteer members.

For $20 per year for individuals ($25 for families), people of any age can participate in or create their own activities. The club’s website explains how backpacking, bicycling, camping, canoeing, cross country skiing, hiking, and a training and practical experience course in basic backpacking comprise the 52-week, year-long program. Most of the activities take place in the South Jersey area, although members occasionally trek farther away for long-distance bicycling, hiking and backpacking trips.

Meetings are held once a month, at the Cherry Hill Library (1250 Kings Highway), usually on the second Thursday of each month. Members often get involved in one specific section of the organization. For instance, there is a canoeing and kayaking portion of the group that is based in the Pine Barrens. Members involved in that area of the Outdoor Club enjoy South Jersey’s lakes and streams as well as the expanse of the Atlantic together. The group occasionally takes trips with other local clubs and also travels to outside locations from time to time.

Their website contains a wealth of information about all of the different activities you can participate in. For example, one portion of the website is the hiking page. Here, you can find updates, schedules and directions to the 26 standard meeting places. Also listed are pace definitions and codes. Easy, moderate, brisk and fast are defined, as well as abbreviations for phrases like “wet feet possible” and “no pets/leashed.” Also, the activity coordinator gives an “activity trip report.”

Information about past and upcoming events can be found online in the group’s quarterly newsletter (as well as in the individual activity sections), the Trekker.

For more information about The Outdoor Club of South Jersey, go to ocsj.org.

4/13/15

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For more on local Organizations, visit our South Jersey Organizations page.

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Author: Editorial Staff--SouthJersey.com