Photo gallery image (click to enlarge)

Huddart Park

Date: (Sun.) Oct. 16, 2016
Location: Woodside, CA
Event Director: - 650.906.9672
Course Setters: Matthias Kohler, Nick Corsano
Type: B; Standard 7-course B-meet in this beautiful redwood park

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


BAOC returns to the dramatic redwood forests of Huddart Park on the eastern slopes of the Santa Cruz Mountains above Woodside. The usual event schedule and fees will be in effect, and electronic punching will be used.

Huddart is popular with equestrians, and it is mandatory that all runners yield the right of way to horses. If you encounter people on horseback, you must stand by the side of the trail and let them go by. If you are about to emerge from the woods onto a trail, look and listen for horses first, and wait if they are nearby. The worst thing you could do is burst out of the woods onto a trail near a horse.

There are likely to be hikers and other group events in the area. Please be considerate of them, too.

No dogs are allowed in the park.

In addition to the information below, be sure to read the Course Setters' Notes.

October 12 Update

A few quick notes about this Sunday's event at Huddart Park:

Volunteers

I still need a few people, mostly for control pickup.

Weather

The forecast is for showers on Sunday. Don't be deterred! The redwood forest is at its most spectacular in the rain. Our assembly area is at Werder Shelter (note the word "Shelter"), so you'll be able to dry off after your run.

Course Details

                                           Navigational     Physical  
    Course     Length    Climb   Controls  difficulty       difficulty
    White      1.9 km    110 m      12     Easy             Easy   
    Yellow     2.5 km    150 m      12     Somewhat harder  Easy
    Orange     3.4 km    220 m      15     Moderate         Moderate
    Brown      2.6 km    190 m      14     Hard             Moderate
    Green      3.8 km    340 m      20     Hard             Hardish
    Red        4.9 km    435 m      22     Hard             Hard
    Blue       5.4 km    565 m      28     Hard             Very Hard

Full Course Setters' Notes are here.

Map

New this year: The map now uses 5-meter LIDAR contours!

Historical note:

Experienced Bay Area orienteers are used to the imprecise nature of contour lines on our maps of redwood forests. In the case of Huddart Park, it appears that not only were individual contour lines sometimes suspect, the contour interval itself has been misleading us. The contour interval has always been shown as 7.5 meters (yes, I checked the 1992 offset-printed map), but data from GPS and LIDAR indicate that the average contour interval was actually just about 5 meters.

Volunteers

We will need a few helpers, particularly for control pickup. Contact if you would like to volunteer.

Driving Directions

From the Bayshore Freeway (US 101) or Interstate 280 on the Peninsula, go west on Highway 84 (Woodside Road). About a mile past 280, you will come to a stop sign at the intersection of Mountain Home, Cañada Road, and Woodside Road (near Roberts Market). (Heed the 25 mph speed limit in Woodside!) Continue straight for 0.7 miles to Kings Mountain Road. Turn right (northwest) and follow Kings Mountain Road for 2.1 miles to the park entrance. Pay your fee at the entrance station and follow the park signs to the Werder Picnic Shelter. Park in any of the designated areas along the road.

There is a park entry fee of $6 per vehicle. If the entry kiosk is not staffed, you must use a self-service process nearby (which involves putting exact cash in an envelope).

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