Need activity information for school children in Hockinson and Camas (Vancouver: home, high school)

[joy3]

Hello. We are looking to move to Washington by September and have hit some issues that we cannot seem to resolve by reading online information. We have three children (10, 7, and 5 years of age) currently involved in many activities. Baseball, soccer, ballet/tap, and golf. I'd like to compare average time spent going to activities if we were to live in Hockinson or Camas area and where to go to participate in such activites if we were to live in the area. Any other information for either area is very much appreciated. Thank you for your time!

[melpotensky]

I have that same question too as we are moving in August with two boys that are 7 and 12 and heavily into sports. Camas and Salmon Creek/Felida area is what I am debating with. My husband works in Woodland so the latter is much closer for him but we really like the Camas area.

[StealthRabbit]

for the younger set, there are adequate fields / golf in each region, and fairly ez commute (excluding dance / indoor / private, which also have regional sources, but not so many)

for the older crowd, (high school) schools provide transportation, and we found that youth league only required traveling across county (1 hr) to ~ 20% of your games. Being on a 'Select' team is way more burden (traveling around the state...)

Swimming facilities is MAJOR deficit compared to most 'suburban' areas. There are very few pools, and almost all competitive are private. There are no 50M pools to my knowledge, unless you drive to Beaverton ! (I drive 30 miles to Stevenson to lap swim $2.30 / entry; good thiing I get 50 MPG on free fryer grease)


You are asking a good question, as life was much easier when we lived 10 minutes from everything (Minnehaha, 5 acre 'U-Pick' berry farm), I would not want to get into a location that required multiple trips / day over curvy, narrow, hilly back roads, then a gravel drive or subdivision access road. But lots of folks do it. Also consider if you want your soon-to-be 16 - 17 yr old driving that route 4x/day, for school / work / practices... (we had two friends lose their teenage daughters recently due to rural crashes). Maybe locate the sports fields / facilities of interest and then find a nice home nearby. Or itemize your annual trips and decide what to be near. I would prioitize on the trips when I'm hauling mine or other kids, as I'm more worried about liability / risk / long term medical care. (dads are usually well insured, and less harried; they can adapt, make it ez for mom and safe for the kids). The library is quite good about mailing books (which is good, b-cuz if you specify you'll pick them up at a branch location, the books never show up??). With fuel costs (and more importantly for safety / efficiency) try to find a central location for home. These (sports) years will be over soon enough, there are lots of nice areas close in. (not your typical subdivison, if that is not your style). The harder part will be finding a good church if that is a requirement. Tho there are some good ones, finding one that fits, is not a trivial process. Many folks find themselves driving across the county for that...(and often to PDX). This can be several times/week if you and kids are active. Hockinson would be a tad on the 'outskirts', but attending HS graduation last Friday Night, it is obvious that the academics and community support of the local Apostolics / LDS / farmer type original residents play a big role in the level of excellence in this area. It is a VERY HARD district to be 'exceptional', and discipline / expected work is demanding. Accomplishments and proportion of 'high achievers' was significant.

Tough decisions, maybe Brush Prairie and east to get into Hockinson district would be most accessible.

Bring a big umbrella and muck boots and some wool / goretex garb. (and waterproof reading material )

PM me if I can be of specific help, but I've been out of the 'youth' league for several years. There are many new fields being built these last few years. Your friendly realtor should know all this. (don't count on it... many are a tad 'driven' by commision..., the sooner they get you out of their hair, the better cash flow for them). There should be a web site (CCYS ?) Clark County youth soccer? similar for Baseball.

[chrissyd]

Originally Posted by joy3

Hello. We are looking to move to Washington by September and have hit some issues that we cannot seem to resolve by reading online information. We have three children (10, 7, and 5 years of age) currently involved in many activities. Baseball, soccer, ballet/tap, and golf. I'd like to compare average time spent going to activities if we were to live in Hockinson or Camas area and where to go to participate in such activites if we were to live in the area. Any other information for either area is very much appreciated. Thank you for your time!

I currently live in Camas, WA Moderator cut: please, no soliciting within a post Being an active soccer, football, ballet, cheerleading, & youth group mom, researching the commutes is very wise of you. We chose Camas for the quality education & convenient location to SR14. You can get to downtown Vancouver in ~15 minutes and downtown Portland in ~20 minutes. We first chose a dance studio ~10 minutes away, but found another one that my daughter preferred up in the Hazel Dell area (~20+ minutes away). You can find out about our soccer club at Camas/Washougal Soccer Club

Hockinson also has excellent schools. It is a more rural setting, so you will be adding to your commute time to compete in baseball & soccer functions. It really is dependent upon how far out you go & your proximity to the major roadways.

Golf really won't be an issue, because we have a lot of courses close by. We even have a private water ski area in Camas directly across from the golf course.

I hope that helps

[chrissyd]

Originally Posted by melpotensky

I have that same question too as we are moving in August with two boys that are 7 and 12 and heavily into sports. Camas and Salmon Creek/Felida area is what I am debating with. My husband works in Woodland so the latter is much closer for him but we really like the Camas area.

We have a lot of great sports programs in both the Salmon Creek and East Vancouver/Camas areas. Both districts have great sports programs, both areas have indoor soccer arenas. Moderator cut: please no soliciting within a post