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Interesting rock formation at Castle Rock Park

Shell Ridge

Date: Sunday, March 7, 2004
Location: Walnut Creek, CA.
Event Director: Marie-Josée Parayre - 925-516-7622
Course Setters: François Léonard, Laura McKeegan, and Rob Clima
Event Type: B; Regular Event, all seven courses

This will be a standard event with the full range of courses offered. The standard schedule for registration, starts and course closure will be followed. E-punch will be used for Orange and advanced courses. Maps are 1:10000. Poison oak is not common in the area of the park used for this event. A portable toilet will be available near the registration area.

We have been instructed by the park ranger NOT to cross fences. Hence, crossing a fence without using a gate will be an automatic disqualification. White, Yellow, Orange and Brown courses do not encounter fences. If you are on these courses and find yourself wanting to cross a fence, think again. On the Green, Red and Blue courses, you will need to cross the same fence twice, and you will use the same mandatory gate for both crossings. The location of the gate will be indicated on the map by the mandatory crossing symbol, and the segments that join controls for these legs bend through the crossing.

Map quality is generally poor. There are unmapped and extended trails, and some of the existing trails are not mapped precisely. Boulders are not reliable and contours sometimes require interpretation. White "forest" or vegetation boundary is sometimes just a single tree. However, the map quality should not be a problem for this event since orienteering in Shell Ridge is not technically difficult.

Preliminary course statistics:

Matthias Kohler and Dan Greene compare strategies on the Red course at Big Basin 9/21/01 (Photo: Tony Pinkham)
Course Length Climb Navigational Challenge
White 2.1km 130m Beginner
Yellow 3.1km 160m Advanced Beginner
Orange 2.7km 180m Intermediate
Brown 3.1km 210m Advanced
Green 4.1km 295m Advanced
Red 5.0km 330m Advanced
Blue 6.0km 375m Advanced

Anyone interested in volunteering for this event, please contact the Event Director.

BAOC sweeps M40 Red at the Morgan Territory A-meet (from the left): Kent Ohlund 2nd Place, Steve Gregg 1st Place, and Tapio Karras 3rd Place; October 2001 (Photo: Judy Koehler)

Driving Directions

From I-680 in Walnut Creek, exit onto Ygnacio Valley Road and head east approximately 2.3 miles to Walnut Avenue (NOT Walnut Boulevard). Turn right on Walnut Avenue and go 1.5 miles to Oak Grove. Turn right onto Oak Grove and immediately veer right onto Castle Rock Road. Northgate High School is on the right about 0.5 mile along Castle Rock Road. Park in the school lot closest to the hills, past the buildings. Registration and starts will be about a ten minute walk from the lot along Castle Rock Road, right on Comistas Drive, and left on Hanna Grove Trail.