Directions

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Camp Hye Sierra is a secluded, rustic camp in the Sierra Nevada Mountains, just seven miles from Kings Canyon and Sequoia National Parks, 50 miles east of Fresno. It's equally accessible from the Bay Area and Los Angeles, with driving times of about 4 to 5 hours.

If you're coming to camp from far-off lands, whether New York or Japan, and plan to fly, the nearest airport is in Fresno, about an hour's drive from camp. Some airlines that fly into Fresno are America West, Horizon Air/Alaska Airlines, American Airlines, Delta, and United Airlines. Depending on your location, it could be cheaper to fly into Oakland, San Francisco, or Los Angeles and share a car rental with friends. Make a real vacation of it and see more of California!

If you wish to fly or take a bus or train and won't be renting a car, we will provide a shuttle from Fresno between the hours of 11 am and 4 pm for a $50 fee. Please let us know by June 10 if you need a Fresno pick-up.

We encourage you to get a map of the Fresno area to help you with your travels! Both North and South approaches continue below at "Take a left on Jensen Ave."

From the north toward Fresno:
1: Get onto I-80 E toward OAKLAND.
2: Merge onto I-580 E toward
CA-24/DOWNTOWN OAKLAND/HAYWARD-STOCKTON. (63.3 miles)
3: I-580 E becomes I-5 S. 42.9 miles. This is one of those joinings that can be tricky so watch for the sign. It is more like an exit than a merge.
4: Merge onto CA-152 E toward LOS BANOS/FRESNO. (43.1 miles)
5: Take CA-99 S. (31.8 miles) to Fresno.
6. In Fresno on CA-99 go past the Highway 180 exit, the Kings Canyon Exit, Stanislaus St., Fresno St., Ventura St., and Highway 41 S., to the Jensen Ave exit. This route bypasses downtown Fresno due to ongoing construction.

From the south toward Fresno:
1: Get onto US-101 N toward HOLLYWOOD FWY/HARBOR FWY.
2: Merge onto US-101 N toward HOLLYWOOD FWY/HARBOR FWY. (0.2 miles)
3: Merge onto CA-110 N toward PASADENA. (2.0 miles)
4: Take the I-5 FWY N/GOLDEN STATE FWY exit on the LEFT toward
SACRAMENTO. (0.7 miles)
5: Merge onto I-5 N. (82.4 miles)
6: Take CA-99 N toward BAKERSFIELD/FRESNO.
7. Take the Jensen Ave exit. This route bypasses downtown Fresno due to ongoing construction.

Go East on Jensen Ave. toward the town of Sanger. (see map. Make the map 1 level bigger, look down half a frame, and follow to the east to find Academy Ave.) Jensen Ave will dead end at Academy Ave (approximately 12 miles.) Turn left on Academy and drive for approximately 1.8 miles. Turn right on East Kings Canyon Rd (HWY 180). You will be climbing into the foothills for 33 miles more or less. When you are just past the 4,000 foot elevation (31.8 miles) you will pass the Snowline Lodge (32.3 miles.) About .7 of a mile past the lodge look for a sign that reads: "McKenzie Helispot, Armenian Church Camp (this is us), Highlands Camp". It is an OFFICIAL FOREST SERVICE SIGN, BROWN WITH WHITE LETTERING. Close to there is also a black mailbox that says 45,000 on it in reflective lettering...take a sharp left turn onto the driveway and follow signs to the Armenian Church Camp, which is the location of Dance Camp. See you there! If you come to the 5,000 foot elevation on HWY 180, you have gone too far...turn around!

Rides & Carpooling

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In order to maximize efficiency for both campers and organizers this year, we are utilizing Yahoo Groups to help carpoolers offer and find rides. Below are instructions for signing in to Yahoo Groups. It is a six step process that takes about 3 or 4 minutes max to complete. Please take advantage of this system by offering a ride or by carpooling with someone in your community. It saves precious resources and help NCDC minimize its ecological footprint!

Instructions for using Yahoo Groups Carpooling System

  1. Click the link below to join the NCDC Carpooling Yahoo Group (on the webpage this will be a button)
  2. Or, from your browser go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/NCDCdancers/join
  3. You will be taken to a Yahoo Groups sign-in page. If you have a Yahoo account, please sign in.
  4. If you don't have a Yahoo account, please click the "SIGN UP" link just below the sign-in field. Yahoo groups will require you to fill in a short form and create a Yahoo ID.
  5. Once you have created a Yahoo ID you will be directed to the NCDC Yahoo Group.
  6. Next you can set a few options. If you would like to receive no email at all, please select the option in Step 2, "Web Only". If you do this you will have to log in to see the rides offered/needed. If you would like, you can choose the "Daily Digest" to receive only one email per day. If you choose to change your options in the future, click the link "Edit Membership" near the top of the page when you log in to the NCDC carpool groups webpage.
  7. To go to the group in the future to check for rides, etc., please visit: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/NCDCdancers/ You must be a member to view the rides. This is for security (although anyone can become a member).

To Post a message send an email to: (or log in and post a message using the posting form).

To Subscribe:

To Unsubscribe:

To contact the list owner:

When posting messages , please post your messages using the following format (for example) in the subject line:
RIDE OFFERED: From Berkeley to Camp, June 15th, 4-6 PM
RIDE NEEDED: From Marin to Camp, June 18th, Anytime
RIDE TAKEN(no longer offered): From Berkeley to Camp, June 15th, 4-6 PM
RIDE FOUND: From Marin to Camp, June 18th, Anytime

By using this format, riders can easily look through the thread's subject lines to see currently available rides.

See you on the dance floor!!