Poster for Huddart Park event
Huddart Park Poster (click on it to enlarge)

Huddart Park

Date: (Sun.) Sep. 14, 2025
Location: Woodside, CA
Event Director: - 650.421.6457
Course Setter: Ouri Karni
Type: C; Several point-to-point courses for beginners through advanced; beginners and non-members are welcome (free beginner instruction will be available)

Related Event Information

Event Results Course Setter’s Notes Attackpoint Event Page (http://www.attackpoint.org/eventdetail.jsp/event_58993) Last Year’s Event

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 (http://parks.smcgov.org/huddart-park) on the eastern slopes of the Santa Cruz Mountains above Woodside.

Huddart is a steep park. The club map from the 1990s had a contour interval of 7.5 meters, and suffered from some imprecision in contour lines (typical of redwood forest). We now have a new map that is based on 5-meter LIDAR data! That makes the map more precise, but unfortunately does not make the slopes any less steep.

Huddart Park is popular with equestrians, and it is mandatory that all runners yield to horses. If you encounter people on horseback, you must stand by the side of the trail and let them go by. It has been suggested that when approaching a horse and rider, say "Hello" to the rider at a distance so that the horse knows you are a human being, and thus will not be spooked. 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 Setter's Notes.

Note: The course setter will appreciate the help of one or more vetters. That would be an opportunity to enjoy the park by somebody who will not be able to attend the event.

What is Orienteering?

An adventure! Discover the outdoors and discover yourself! You can explore a course by yourself or go as a team with your friends. You will get a highly detailed orienteering map, probably unlike any map you have seen before. The map will have a lot of detail on it, such as fences, boulders, lone trees, vegetation boundaries, and anything else you might see.

This will be a point-to-point event, which has the course printed on the map as a sequence of control locations (shown by circles) that must be visited in the order shown. Your challenge will be deciding on a route to each control, navigating that route, and finding the control marker (which will be in the center of the circle on the map). In addition to the map, you will have a list of the controls that describes the features at which the controls are located, and gives the identifying numbers that are on the controls so you can be sure you are at the correct one.

Orienteering is easy to learn, a challenge to master, and incredibly fun!

Schedule

The following standard BAOC event schedule will be followed:

  9:00 AM – 11:59 AM: Registration open
  9:30 AM – 10:30 AM: Beginner-clinic instruction is available (free)  
 10:00 AM – 12:30 PM: Starts open  
                  2:00 PM: Everyone must have returned to the Finish  
Note: At registration, everyone younger than age 18 must be accompanied by a parent or legal guardian, or bring with them a waiver signed by their parent or legal guardian. (The registration form is available here [PDF/12KB].)

Note that you can register and start on your course anytime during the open times above. Thus, for example, you do not need to be "punctual" at 9:00. (You can if you want, but please don't show up earlier and expect to be served.)

Beginner clinics are 15–20 minute, repeating sessions that introduce the sport of orienteering, and provide enough instruction to be able to complete a beginner course.

Note that everyone must return to the Finish by 2:00 PM, and then promptly go to the E-punch download tent, even if they have not completed their course. Please do not leave without checking in! If there are unaccounted people after 2:00, we must initiate a search for them.

Registration and Costs

Notes:
Optional online registration (and payment) is available as described below.
Scout units and similar youth groups: Rather than using the normal entry form (i.e., online or at the event), please email Registration (). We can help you simplify the registration process for groups.

The following fees will apply for this event:

  $3 for each junior on the Beginner (White) and Advanced Beginner (Yellow) courses
  $8 for each adult on the Beginner and Advanced Beginner courses
  $5 for each junior on the Advanced (Silver, Brown, Green, Red) courses  
$15 for each adult member on the Advanced courses
$20 for each adult non-member on the Advanced courses
  $1 for a compass rental (optional)  
  $5 for an electronic fingerstick rental (if you don't own one; each group will need one to complete their course)
$15 for the lowest-cost individual one-year BAOC membership (optional)  
Notes:
  • Juniors are age 8 through 20 (under age 8 is free).
  • You can register at the event or online before the event (see below).
  • At the event, we can accept payment by cash, check, or credit/debit card (but no electronic payments — e.g., PayPal, Venmo).
  • There is no charge for a second course (but you must end up paying for the more expensive course — e.g., the Silver course after a Beginner course).
  • Members of other orienteering clubs can pay the "member" fee. (We hope your club would do the same for our members. 🙂)

At the event, each person or group that has not registered online will need to fill out the standard entry form (PDF/12KB). You can print the form and fill it out in advance to save some time at the event. (You will need one entry form for each group of people going on a course together.)

Optional Online Registration

Online registration has closed, but you can still register at the event.

Notes:
  • Online registration is not required​—​you can register at the event.
  • You can see who is registered here (https://eventreg.orienteeringusa.org/eventregister/reglist/home/huddartpark2025) (but keep in mind that others will register at the event).

Location In The Park

The assembly area will be at the Zwierlein Picnic Area. From the entrance station, proceed straight ahead at the first stop sign; the road will take you to the picnic area (which will be on your right, opposite a large open field).

There are several parking areas around the loop that starts about 200 m (~1/8 mi) after the park entrance. The picnic area is on that loop.

The Start and Finish, picnic tables, and restrooms are all nearby. A children's playground is about 200 m from the picnic area.

What to Bring

For the Beginner (White) course, comfortable outdoors attire is fine, but you should wear sturdy running or hiking shoes. Hiking boots with an aggressive tread are recommended for the Advanced Beginner (Yellow) course.

Due to the dry weather, matted leaves, and loose soils, we recommend O-shoes or shoes with cleats for people who expect to visit the "harder" controls on the courses — particularly for people on the Advanced (Silver, Brown, Green, Red) courses.

We also recommend long pants and/or gaiters for those people.

A compass is not necessary, but can be helpful — and can improve safety — so is recommended. We have compasses available for a $1 rental fee.

We time courses with the SPORTident system, so each entry/team needs to have a SPORTident fingerstick. If you don't have your own, you can rent one at registration for $5 (note that there's a significant charge for a lost rental). (Use of the "E-punch" system is easy. You can learn how at the event, or read about it here.)

Courses

The details of the courses are below. Be sure to read the Course Setter's Notes for more information. 

    Course    Length    Climb  Controls  Navigation
    White     1.6 km     80 m     11     Beginner  
    Yellow    2.2 km    110 m      9     Adv. Beginner  
    Silver    1.6 km     60 m     10     Advanced  
    Brown     2.4 km    140 m     13     Advanced
    Green     4.0 km    260 m     18     Advanced
    Red       6.5 km    430 m     30     Advanced

Beginners should be aware that the distances shown are the cumulative straight-line distances between controls. The climb numbers represent the amount of ascending that would be done on the "optimum route" (in the Course Setters' opinion), without regard for any descending. Because you won't travel in straight lines, and might not follow the optimum routes, your actual distance and climb will be somewhat more than what is shown above, and will depend on your route choices (and any errors you make).
We apologize for the absence of an Intermediate (Orange) course. This park and its map do not support an Intermediate course. People with a lot of experience on Orange courses might want to challenge themselves to "move up" to one of the shorter Advanced courses (e.g., Silver or Brown).
The "Silver" course is a shortened Brown course.

Hazards

Steep hillsides: As mentioned above, Huddart is a steep park (the trails are generally fairly tame, although more indirect because of that). Be mindful when planning routes, and be careful when traveling off-trail on slopes.

Poison Oak: Participants on the Advanced (Silver through Red) courses will encounter some poison oak, which you will be able to avoid. There are photos and comments here. Washing exposed skin (as soon as possible), clothes, and shoes with dish-washing soap or a commercial product such as Tecnu is recommended to remove the irritant oil.

Ticks: Although the course setter has not seen any (yet), ticks are found in this area and may carry Lyme disease. Be sure to check yourself after completing your course.

Non-Hazard Items

Horses always have the right of way. If you encounter a horse, you must stop running and respond to the rider's direction.

Request for Volunteers

As always, this event can't happen without volunteers.

We need help with event setup, registration, beginner clinics, starts, and control pickup. If we get enough volunteers it'd be great to have extra people to hang out either at registration or the Finish to encourage our participants. Nothing makes you want to come back more than a new friend with a smiling face!

You can look at this spreadsheet (https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1X8SwuARlxRDYmc68_k0tC1zRrhhfebKJwfzV5ufpRIE/edit?usp=sharing) to see what tasks are available, and to sign up for your favorite one.

It's very easy to help, and it helps us to have an event for everyone to enjoy. Of course, you get to do your course, too!

Not sure what to help with? Just want to help with something? Just contact me, and I can help you find a helpful role.

Please contact me, James Arthurton (), if you have any questions. Reserve your spot before they're all taken! 😉

Driving Directions

From the Bayshore Freeway (US 101) or Interstate 280 on the Peninsula, go west on Highway 84 (Woodside Road). About a mile west of I-280, you will come to a stop sign at the intersection of Mountain Home, Cañada Road, and Woodside Road (near Roberts Market). (Note: 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 TBD Picnic Area. Park in any of the designated areas along the road. (The road loops around the area of the picnic area, with parking available all the way around the loop.)

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