Poster for Morgan Territory event
Morgan Territory Event Poster
(click on it to enlarge)

Table of contents
1 What is Orienteering?
2 Schedule
3 Costs & Registration
4 Location at the Park
5 What to Bring
6 Course Setter's Notes
7 Hazards
8 Request for Volunteers
9 Driving Directions

Morgan Territory Regional Preserve

Date: (Sun.) Mar. 8, 2026
Location: Livermore, CA
Event Director: - 510.407.1876
Course Setter: Nikolay Chukanov
Type: B; CONFIRMED EVENT — Standard 7-course event for beginners through advanced orienteers; 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_60555) Previous Event (2023)

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


After a gap of a couple of years, we finally return to Morgan Territory, with stunning views north to Mt. Diablo and south to the Livermore valley, and a high-quality map from the U.S. individual championships a few years ago. Nikolay Chukanov has designed a full range of courses (White through Blue) for beginners through advanced orienteers, in this beautiful and complex terrain. (See his Course Setter's Notes below.)

Please consider volunteering to help at the event. No matter what your skill set or experience, we can use you! The list of needs is below.

If you're interested in knowing more about Morgan Territory Regional Preserve, the park website is here (https://www.ebparks.org/parks/morgan/).

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. Your course will be printed on the map.

Orienteering is easy to learn, a challenge to master, and incredibly fun! You can read more about orienteering here.

Schedule

Note: Daylight Saving Time starts on Sunday, so don't forget to change your clocks Saturday night.
  9:00 AM – 11:59 AM: Registration is open
  9:30 AM – 10:30 AM: Beginner instruction is available (free)
 10:00 AM – 12:30 PM: Starts are open for all the courses
                   2:00 PM: Everyone must have returned to the Finish
Note: At registration, all juniors under age 18 must be accompanied by parents or legal guardians, or bring with them a waiver signed by their parent or legal guardian. (The registration form is available here [12KB PDF].)

Note that you can register and start on the courses 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 instruction is 15–20 minute, repeating sessions ("clinics") that introduce the sport of orienteering, and provide enough instruction to be able to complete the beginner (White) course.

Note: Beginners are given their White or Yellow course maps at registration. You should get your map before joining a beginner clinic.

Everyone must return to the Finish by 2:00 PM, and then promptly go to the 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.

Costs & Registration

Optional online registration (and payment) is available before the event as described below.

The following fees apply at this event:

  $3 for each junior on beginner (White) and advanced beginner (Yellow) courses
  $8 for each adult on beginner and advanced beginner courses
  $5 for each junior on intermediate (Orange) and advanced (Brown–Blue) courses
$15 for each adult member on intermediate and advanced courses
$20 for each adult non-member on intermediate and advanced courses
  $1 for a compass rental (optional)
  $5 for an E-punch fingerstick rental (if you don't own one; each group will need one to complete their course)
$15 (and up) for 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 Orange course after the Beginner course).
  • Members of other orienteering clubs can pay the "member" fee. (We hope your club would do the same for our members. 🙂)

More information about event pricing is available in the club FAQ. All the prices are also shown on the standard entry form (PDF/12KB), which you can print and fill 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/morganterritory2026) (but keep in mind that others will register at the event).

Location at the Park

The assembly area (E-punch download, registration, snacks, and restrooms) will be at the Morgan Territory Road Staging Area, on the right almost immediately after entering the park from the south side. The driving directions are below.

There are toilets, water, and picnic tables at the assembly area, as well as unlimited beautiful outdoor space, so please feel free to bring along a blanket and a picnic lunch for after the course.

What to Bring

For beginner courses (White and Yellow), comfortable outdoors attire and shoes are fine.

For intermediate (Orange) and advanced (Brown through Blue) courses, leg cover or gaiters are recommended, as well as shoes with some extra grip on the sole.

A compass is not necessary, but can be very helpful. We have compasses available for a $1 rental fee.

We time the 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. (Use of the E-punch system is easy. You can learn how at the event, or read about it here.)

Course Setter's Notes

Join us for an exciting orienteering event at Morgan Territory Regional Preserve, a premier venue offering technical terrain and excellent runnability. The area features soft soil, low vegetation, and outstanding visibility, making it ideal for fast, yet precise, navigation. A small amount of poison oak exists in limited areas, so please exercise appropriate caution (i.e., during and after your course).

The map has been recently updated and provides high-quality, accurate detail. Competitors can expect a terrain that rewards strong technical navigation rather than physical endurance.

We are offering seven standard courses in a Middle-distance format. The courses are designed with an emphasis on technical challenge and relatively-low elevation gain.

Advanced participants looking for additional practice after completing Green, Red, or Blue are welcome to run the Brown course as a second course to further sharpen their navigation skills. This event is a great opportunity to step up from your regular course to the next course level.

One water point will be provided on the advanced courses.

We look forward to welcoming you to a technically engaging and fast-paced day of orienteering at Morgan Territory Regional Preserve. 

                                         Water
    Course    Length    Climb  Controls  Stops  Navigation
    White     2,1 km     40 m      8       0    Beginner      
    Yellow    3,2 km     60 m      7       0    Adv.Beginner
    Orange    4.9 km    135 m     10       1    Intermediate  
    Brown     4.2 km     95 m     11       1    Advanced      
    Green     5.9 km    205 m     13       1    Advanced
    Red       6.7 km    245 m     14       1    Advanced
    Blue      7.4 km    265 m     20       1    Advanced

Beginners should be aware that the lengths 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 Setter's 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).

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

Hazards

Participants on the intermediate and advanced courses should be aware that the park has some poison oak that you will want to avoid. It looks like this. Washing clothes and shoes, and bathing with dishwashing soap or a commercial product such as Tecnu, is recommended to remove the irritant oil.

Request for Volunteers

As usual, we need many volunteers at this event. In particular, we still need people for these tasks:

If you are willing to help, please add your name to this Google Sheet (https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1_TGg2G0haMTBeFl5-mFzMbIcoB2xMe27cyNEpoLzeus/edit#gid=0), or contact , the Event Director.

Driving Directions

The approximate coordinates of the assembly area are 37.8186,-121.7956.

Carpooling is encouraged due to possibly limited parking.

From most of the Bay Area, take I-580 East to North Livermore Ave. After a straight, tree-lined stretch, North Livermore Ave ends at a "T" at Manning Road. Go left and then promptly right on Morgan Territory Road, the first real street, which will ascend into the hills and to the event.

Note: Morgan Territory Road is a narrow, steep, twisty, 1.5-lane road. Please allow more time for the drive than the distance would lead you to expect.

For anyone east of Livermore, do the same, reaching North Livermore Ave from I-580 West.

From the northeast bay (e.g., Antioch), there are more interesting route choices entering the park from the north. Consult your favorite mapping website or app (the coordinates of the assembly area are above).