As a student at UCSB, I know that what I’ll cherish most from my time here are the friendships I make, the adventures I go on, the moments I’m pushing myself out of my comfort zone, and the person I grow into from my first day here to my next big step. But if I had to pick one thing, it’s the people who make an experience memorable — they’re the ones who shape you, make your days, and share endless memories.
One piece of advice I always hold close since my time here and share with others is this: join clubs. UCSB is a huge school, and there are countless people here who share your interests — you just might not know it yet. Clubs and involvement make your experience; they provide community, friendship, adventure, and growth.
If you do not want to commit solely to snowboarding, skiing, climbing, or surfing, the Excursion Club offers the perfect solution. It’s a club where you don’t have to pick just one activity — you can try out all of these hobbies and more! Whether you want to hike, paddleboard, surf, explore, or just try something new each weekend, the Excursion Club brings together people with diverse outdoor interests. This way, you can explore different activities without the pressure of committing to only one, making it a great choice for anyone wanting variety in their adventures. In the midst of our busy UCSB student lives, the outdoors offers a refreshing escape — a chance to connect with friends, recharge, and discover new parts of ourselves.
Staff Insight: John’s Take on why you should join!
There’s no better way to get the inside scoop on why the club is worth joining than hearing directly from board & staff member John Kubiak! He is a second-year computer and electrical engineering major at UCSB, and in his free time he leads various trips through Excursion Club.
Why should you join Excursion Club?
To be an official member of Excursion club you pay $60 flat (they only take cash) for the whole year, which includes rentals and access to sign up for the trips. The easiest way to sing up is to go to one of their weekly meetings on Tuesday at 7 PM in 1924 Psychology Building, it is a quick sign-up and you are all good to go.
For John, his three favorite things about the club are the accessibility to the outdoors, the beauty of trying something new with every trip, and the best friends he has met throughout his time with the club. John says that “another benefit that you might not initially think about is how nice is it to have access to transportation when you sing up for trips. As an out-of-stater, I think it is so cool to have the opportunity to explore so much of California beyond just Santa Barbara without your own car, I wanted that to be a part of my experience coming to college here.” This is such a good benefit of joining the club and the long car drives to some of California’s best spots definitely makes you bond and get to know each other a lot better.
I don’t have a lot of experience, what do I need to know before I sign up?
The beauty of excursion club is that you learn a lot of the skills while you are on the trip with your staff leader. Excursion Club provides you with the gear you need and the staff will teach you all you need to know.
John shares, “I love how as a staff member I have the complete freedom to set up a trip, meaning what we do, how long, where we go. We usually get so many sign-ups, but the amount of people selected for the trip is actually really small. A smaller group ensures we have enough transportation for everyone, a better staff-to-member ratio for better learning, a tight group where it is easy to get to know each other, and improved organization overall.”
John’s main motto throughout all he does with Excursion Club is to make the outdoors accessible to anyone who wishes to be a part of it, and the staff are there to support you throughout the learning process!
my first excursion with the club
Every week, Excursion Club sends out a new email with all that is going on that week, who is leading the trip, sign-up forms, and cool discounts such as on their Ikon Pass (very exciting now that season is coming up!) On Halloween, my friends and I joined the club on their sunrise at Lizard’s Mouth! We all dressed up in Halloween costumes and watched the sunrise together, it was so gorgeous and for anyone who has not been, Lizard’s mouth is a great spot for either sunrise or sunset. The view is incredible!
Excursion Club has such a good balance between trips where you travel far away for the weekeend, and just local trips to get out for a couple hours and enjoy a new part of Santa Barbara you might have never heard of before. Or if you want to go on your own adventure with your friends, pick up some rentals with your membership and go out together! As UCSB students, we are so privileged to have so many awesome outdoor adventures only a walk, a bike-ride, or a drive away, enjoy it all while you are here!