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Tilden Regional Park

Open Event for non-Scouts

Date: (Sun.) Oct. 9, 2016
Location: Berkeley, CA
Event Director: - 925.934.6567
Course Setters: Gavin Wyatt-Mair, Steve Harrison
Type: B; Open Event for non-Scouts — Regular 7-course BAOC event in conjunction with the Scout-O Championships

Related Event Information

Course Setters' Notes Last Year's Event Concurrent Scout Champs Event Results

Please note that fees and time limits apply. Events are typically not canceled due to bad weather.


As in previous years, there will be an "open" event in conjunction with the 24th annual Scout-O championships. This event is open to the general public, including people who have never tried orienteering. Tilden Park is a great area for picnics, so bring your friends and your family, and enjoy the beautiful park.

The standard set of White, Yellow, Orange, Brown, Green, Red, and Blue courses will be offered (see below). All the courses will have E-punching. Grass stickers and poison oak are present, so be sure to wear long pants (and/or wear gaiters) on the off-trail courses.

The annual Scout-O will be held concurrently with this event, so expect a sizable crowd. Although preregistration is required for the Scout-O, it is not required (nor available) for the BAOC all-comers event.

BAOC members: Please note that your showing is very good publicity for the club, and sets an example for hundreds of scouts and adults to see!! Please do come, with your best O-gear, a smile, and a word of encouragement for the youngsters.

Please be polite to other park users (this is a requirement for future permits).

If you have any questions, contact the Event Director, , at 925-934-6567.

Schedule

Registration will be open from 9:00 AM to noon.

Beginner clinics will be available from 9:30 to 10:30 AM. These are short, repeating sessions that introduce orienteering, and provide enough instruction to be able to complete a beginner (White) course.

Starts will be at the usual times: from 10:00 to 12:30.

The Finish will close at 2:00 PM. Everyone must report to the Finish by then, and then to the E-punch download tent​—​even if they have not completed their course.

Courses

The following courses will be available. Be sure to read the Course Setters' Notes for more information. 

                                              Navigational   Physical  
   Course        Length    Climb   Controls   difficulty     difficulty
   White(1)      1.9 km     50 m      12      Easy           Easy  
   Yellow(2)     2.4 km     80 m      13      Easy           Easy
   Orange(4)     3.6 km    150 m      14      Moderate       Moderate
   Short Brown   3.3 km    140 m      15      Moderate       Moderate
   Brown         4.2 km    185 m      19      Hard           Moderate
   Green         5.4 km    280 m      20      Hard           Hardish
   Red           6.3 km    325 m      23      Hard           Hard
   Blue          7.1 km    440 m      23      Hard           Hard

Keep in mind that the distances shown above are the cumulative straight-line distances between controls. The actual distance traveled on a course will be somewhat more, depending on route choices and any errors made.

All the courses use E-punch.

The Start is 0.5 km from the registration area, with 40 m of climb to get there​—​please allow 15 minutes to walk to the Start. The Finish is at the registration area.

Beginners' Courses

The Scout-O overlaps the White(1), Yellow(2), and Orange(4) courses. There will be many scouts on the courses, please be tolerant. There is an extensive network of trails in Tilden, and in some cases new trails have been blazed near the old ones. It’s a good idea to use other features to locate yourself, not just the trails.

Advanced Courses

The advanced courses (Brown through Blue) are designed to cross the scout courses often, thereby exposing scouts to advanced runners. Please set a good example! The courses are a mixture of forest, requiring careful navigation, and open that can be taken at speed. Footing is good. Route choices should be carefully selected, and there are many.

Map

The Tilden Park map is relatively new, so it is reasonably accurate. Some areas of vegetation have grown up, but not enough to warrant any changes. There are a number of unmapped fences, but these should not affect the courses.

The map scale will be 1:10,000 unless otherwise noted on the map. The contour interval is 5 meters.

There are two symbols used for man-made objects. The blue circle O represents a water feature, typically a drinking fountain, while the black × represents other man-made objects. It can be difficult to distinguish between the blue drinking-fountain symbol and the green distinct-tree symbol.

Hazards

Tilden Park has some dense undergrowth, including brambles, so it makes sense to wear long-sleeved shirts, long pants, and gaiters on the intermediate (Orange) and advanced courses. The courses have been designed to avoid stickers and poison oak as much as possible. The poison oak is dormant, with just stalks and almost no leaves. Nevertheless, take the usual precautions if you are allergic to the stuff.

Wildlife we have seen include deer, eagles, coyote, skunks, buzzards, orienteers, ticks, turkeys, goats, and frogs.

All the courses feature many route choices, and some of those choices may cross roads. Please be careful of traffic!

Some trails are quite rough, especially around the Lake, so do be careful with your footing​—​it's better to take a little extra time than to fall. Strong shoes with rubber cleats or studs are recommended.

Request for Volunteers

Please, if you have some extra time, we really could use a few more volunteers. You will still be able to run your course. We especially need help with setup (about 8:30 AM), Parking (9:00 to 10:15), Clinics (9:15 to 10:15).

Driving Directions

There are many ways to get to Tilden Park. Here is one: From Highway 24, take the Fish Ranch Road exit (this exit is just east of the Caldecott Tunnel). Go northwest up Fish Ranch Road for 1 km (0.6 mi), to the top of the hill. Turn right onto Grizzly Peak Blvd. Wind around on Grizzly Peak for about 2.5 km (1.5 mi) until you reach the South Park Drive entrance to Tilden Park (don’t take the steam trains entrance; continue on Grizzly Peak until South Park Drive).

Directions to Lake Anza: Once you are inside Tilden Park, follow the Park signs to Lake Anza. Lake Anza is just 400 meters south-southeast of the Merry-Go-Round, but please do not park your car in the Merry-Go-Round parking lot.

If the main Lake Anza parking lots fills, there is additional parking available a short distance away, off Lake Anza Rd.

There's a map here that shows the location of the event.

Public Transit

AC Transit bus #67 is a very convenient way to get to and from Lake Anza. Catch the bus a half-block from the Downtown Berkeley BART station; buses leave at 8:45 AM, 9:30 AM, and 10:15 AM. The trip takes just under 20 minutes. Coming to Tilden Park, tell the driver you want the next-to-last stop. From the stop, find Selby Trail just downhill from you and take the trail downhill for about 300 m to the grassy area by the lake. Registration is there.

For the return trip, catch the bus at the same stop going in the same direction; it loops and returns to the Downtown Berkeley BART station.