Who We Are

 Sasamat Outdoor Centre is a place for all. We are a community-based non-profit organization that offers summer camps, outdoor education and community rentals. We believe that time spent outdoors is time well spent, especially when we have the privilege of doing so together.

Sasamat Outdoor Centre is a member of the Association of Neighbourhood Houses of BC (ANHBC), a non-profit charitable organization establish in 1894. ANHBC includes eight neighbourhood houses and Sasamat Outdoor Centre, cumulatively reaching more the 100,000 people throughout Metro Vancouver with over 300 programs and services.

Sasamat Outdoor Centre is an accredited member of the BC Camps Association (BCCA).

Sasamat Outdoor Center is a member of the Canadian Camps Association (CCA).

Our Values

 Our Story

Sasamat Outdoor Centre has a rich history of bringing people into the outdoors that dates back to the early 1960’s on Sasamat Lake. Sasamat’s early days stemmed from a growing demand on camping services within the Association of Neighbourhood Houses of BC (ANHBC). At the time Camp Alexandra, now Alexandra Neighbourhood House in Crescent Beach Surrey, was experiencing a growing need for additional space and camping opportunities. The committee responsible for Camp Alexandra undertook a major survey in the late 1950’s to find a new location that offered the isolation desirable for a camping program, yet was still within a one-hour drive from Vancouver. This resulted in ANHBC leasing a parcel of land on Sasamat Lake in 1962, which came to be known as Camp Wallace, Sasamat’s predecessor.

Camp Alexandra was founded in 1918 as a summer camp for children in the Alexandra Orphanage in Vancouver. Camp Alexandra was part of the early evolution of ANHBC, as one of the founding organizations. The camp hosted children from the orphanage, as well as needy mothers and their children, offering families a vacation who wouldn’t otherwise have a chance to get away from the city, as well as essential social service supports. Over the years, Camp Alexandra became Alexandra Fresh Air Camp (1934) and eventually Alexandra Neighbourhood House. By 1960, the organization had served over 45,000 people and ANHBC saw a need for expansion of camping services. Camp Wallace came to be in 1962, marking the start of Sasamat’s story and the expansion of organized camping services within ANHBC.

Camp Wallace operated on the north shore of Sasamat Lake from 1962 to 1987, close to the modern-day White Pine Beach. ANHBC obtained a 20-year lease from Imperial Oil for use of the Camp Wallace site. Imperial Oil later handed the title and lease of the property over to the Province of BC. Camp Wallace spanned twenty acres of pristine forested land, and hosted a number of small cabin structures, a rudimentary kitchen facility, and a dock. The camp began as a destination for ANHBC neighbourhood house participants to come and enjoy camping programs, introducing many urban youth to outdoor recreational activities. Camp Wallace is remembered fondly by those who participated in programs or worked there as a place of community and personal development.

With the growth of the Tri-Cities, GVRD (now Metro Vancouver) was planning to develop public park lands around the lake. These developments resulted in an agreement between GVRD and ANHBC to relocate the camp to its present day location. This new location was referred to as the ‘Centennial Site’ and was formerly used by the locals as a public beach. With the move of the camp, the present day Belcarra Regional Park was established, opening up popular White Pine Beach. The Centennial Site brought about the construction of a brand new camping facility, originally including the Helm Lodge, the four cottages, and the changeroom building and boathouse (now the boys changeroom). Shortly thereafter, the Wallace Room, Cedar Room and seven cabins were added to the site through various community build initiatives. With the completion of this brand new camp, Camp Wallace was renamed Sasamat Outdoor Centre, effectively beginning Sasamat’s modern day operations.

Today, Sasamat operates year-round as a summer camp, outdoor education and community rental organization. The centre hosts over 5000 people per year, welcoming visitors from across the Lower Mainland, as well as some from out of province or international guests. Sasamat Outdoor Centre has become a leader in the summer camp sector within BC, offering day camps, overnight camps, leadership programs and family-based programs. The camp honours its history as it continues to grow and evolve to meet the present day needs of our communities.