Avalon

January 11
Sunday

Patapsco Avalon Pre-registration is required and will open Monday, Jan. 5 at 6pm. It will close on Saturday, Jan. 10 at 12 noon. There will be no day-of registration.

Orienteering at Avalon

Welcome to the Avalon section of Patapsco Valley State Park, where you'll find fairly typical ridge/valley terrain (similar to the other PVSP areas), with steep hillsides both to the start and on the courses.

For several reasons, this event will feature advanced courses only (Beige through Blue), while the introductory, learner, and intermediate courses White, Yellow, and Orange will not be offered. Consequently, beginner instruction will not be provided.

All registrations must be individual (in other words, members of groups choosing to orienteer together must register individually). We also ask that you attempt to hit your chosen registration time slot in an effort to spread out the use of the available parking spots, in response to a park request.

In addition, Patapsco Valley State Park has a strict rain policy, which will force us to postpone or cancel the event in case of more than 1/4” of precipitation within the 24 hours preceding the event. Please check the event status on this webpage late Saturday evening and/or early Sunday morning before traveling to the meet if rain has been falling during the 24 hours preceding the event. If we cancel the event, we will fully refund all registration payments.

Dogs are permitted at this event but must be leashed at all times.

Park Entrance Fee

The park collects entry fees, as follows:
- $2 per vehicle in-state; $4 per vehicle out-of-state
- Buses: $10 per bus (any vehicle with over 9 passengers)
- Admitted Free: Children buckled in safety seats, senior citizens 62 and older with the Golden Age Pass, people with the Universal Disability Pass for persons with disabilities, members of the Maryland National Guard and all active duty military personnel who display their active military identification card (complimentary access is permitted for card holder only).

A ranger may not be on duty to provide change or check your pass. Please remember to pay the fee and/or enter your pass ID on the envelopes at the entry gate, even if the booth is unmanned.

Parking and Check-in Details

Car-pooling is encouraged in order to minimize club use of the available parking spaces. Additional parking is available but will require an additional walk to get to the registration area.
Event check-in is at Shelter #105; there are restrooms nearby.
Both Start and Finish are remote.

Groups

OC allows groups of up to 4 people to orienteer together, but please note that for this event, all persons must register individually. Any youth or large groups attending this event should contact the Event Directors in advance so that we can coordinate pre-registration for your group. Details and the required waiver form can be found on our For Group Leaders webpage.

Location

Patapsco Valley State Park, Avalon area, Elkridge, MD (Advanced Only)

Registration

Advance registration will be required. The date and time that registration will open will be posted here; usually, registration will open at 6pm on the Monday before the event.

Start Times

Start times will be by windows (to be defined for this event before registration opens).

Schedule

Sunday, January 11

10:00 am - 3:00 pm

Advanced Only:

Volunteers

Event Director:	Anne Jepsen
Event Director:	Kim Jepsen
Course Designer:	Anne Jepsen
Course Designer:	Kim Jepsen

Location Details

Advanced Only
Patapsco Valley State Park
Avalon area
Elkridge, MD
Google Map

From I-195 exit 3 in Elkridge MD, take US 1 South. Then take the first right, and very soon afterwards the first left into Patapsco State Park. Follow road to park entrance, pay the weekend park entrance fee ($2/vehicle in-state, $4/vehicle out-of-state), and then go left at the T intersection. The Avalon parking/registration area is just after the road curves to the right after crossing the river (near the large playground), and will be in one of the two pavilions.

Course Details

Advanced Only

Course Name	Length (km)	Climb (m)	No. Controls
Beige	3.3	145	7
Brown	4.2	200	8
Green	5.8	220	11
Red	7.1	300	14
Blue	8.7	390	18

Course Notes

Advanced Only

Course Notes:
Since all the usable terrain at Avalon is in the hills and plateaus around the river, the start and finish are both placed up in the terrain, and there will be a 1000m uphill (65m) walk to the remote start, as well as a 1500m walk back down to the registration/download area from the remote finish.
Although getting there and back will not happen ‘on the clock’, it is advisable to at least consider this when deciding which course to run.
Once in the terrain you should find woods that are generally nice and runnable, albeit occasionally steep. A few patches of thorny vines (mainly wineberry) will be encountered, but the courses have been designed to avoid the worst.

All courses make use of the terrain southeast of Norris Lane, while the Red and Blue courses also make use of the terrain northwest of Cascade Trail for additional adventure (and climb).

Map scales: Beige and Brown: 1:7500; Green, Red and Blue: 1:10000.

Cautions: The walk to start and finish follow and cross the park road which carries car traffic. Mountain bikers use many of the trails; please be alert, and help them by stepping off the trail if appropriate.

Mapper Notes:
5 meter contours.
Map uses 2017 map symbols (one of few QOC maps that uses them).
The mapping criterion for rootstocks is 2 meters and above (some older rootstocks will have degraded to less than 2 meters, and not all newer rootstocks will have been mapped).
All distinct rocks are mapped.
Trails under power lines are hard to see; animals trails not mapped.
In the greener areas there are thorns.

Entry Fees

Individual Entries

Note: juniors = under 21

	Club Member, adult	Club Member, junior	Non-Member, adult	Non-Member, junior
	$10	$5	$20	$5

Group Entries

Participants are welcome to orienteer together as a group (up to the maximum for that event; usually 4). Each member of a group is charged their individual rate as shown above, up to a group total of $30 (maximum), and each receives a map. A group receives one epunch. Individuals or groups desiring to compete on a second course after completing their first can do so for a reduced fee of $2/map subject to approval at the event by the Event Director.

Important Notes

If you wish to become a QOC member you should join online in advance via this webpage (which also explains the member benefits). Membership is completely optional.
Most of our events use an 'epunch' timing chip for electronic timing. Individuals or groups without their own epunch will be loaned one for that event. Loaned epunches that are lost incur a $40 replacement fee. Epunches (also known as SI-cards or finger sticks) can be purchased from online vendors as described here.
Former QOC members who have let their membership lapse pay non-member fees.
Compasses are available at no charge, but if lost incur a $15 replacement fee.
Please provide collateral (such as car keys) when borrowing a compass or epunch.
There is no planned, on-site beginner instruction, but beginners are encouraged to watch relevant videos such as this one created by QOC's instructional guru David Onkst