Registration & Fees:

Because there is limited space at the facilities and limited time for the competition, registration will be capped at ten teams, with two team slots reserved for Cal Poly students. Please use this link to register. Once registration is full, the registration form will become a waiting list. 

Registration closes on Feb. 1, 2025, and registration fees must be paid by Feb. 15, 2025 or the reserved team slot will be forfeited to the waiting list. 

The registration fees are $1146 for two students and one coach and cover lodging, meeting facilities, and event expenses. Additional attendees will require an addition payment of $147.60. Accessibility needs may require that we slightly modify registration fees in the event we need to hire interpreters or provide other accessibility/inclusivity supports. Organizers will communicate with participants promptly regarding any unexpected changes in fees.
If you have registered, please fill out a Supplemental Form Packet for every individual attending—both students and faculty. This is required by our venue, the Yosemite Field Station, and includes a mandatory liability waiver. Attending students and faculty must have completed forms on file in advance of the event. All prospective participants must individually fill out and submit the Supplemental Form Packet by March 15, 2025 in order to participate.

We have arranged to have Yosemite’s park entry fees waived for participants. After your successful registration, you will receive a copy of our Educational Fee Waiver document by email. To ensure your entry fees are waived, please make sure to print and bring a paper copy of the educational fee waiver in every vehicle. Present the fee waiver to the ranger at the entry station and get into Yosemite for free!

Lodging and Facilities:

Four nights lodging and use of facilities at the Yosemite Field Station is fully included in participants’ registration fee. Located in the Wawona area of Yosemite, the Field Station provides furnished, shared cabins with electricity, WiFi, beds, kitchens, and bathrooms, as well as a conference room space. As a University of California Natural Reserve System property, the Field Station is a collaborative and dynamic research environment and participants should expect to potentially share their room with competitors from other teams. This is a research-oriented field station, not a hotel, and participants should be prepared for their Yosemite experience to be engaging, collaborative, and markedly different from a traditional hotel stay. Additionally, please be aware that cell phone service is very limited in much of Yosemite National Park. Verizon may work in some areas of the park, but participants should not expect consistent phone connectivity. However, our primary facility offers both WiFi and landline phones.

Cabins range in size and sleep between 9 and 15 people. Most beds are XL twin size, and individual rooms within cabins have between three and six beds. Please inform event organizers if any participants have room-sharing preferences (couples together, genders segregated, etc.) by March 15th, 2025, in order to ensure student and faculty needs are met. There are enough separate rooms to ensure every participant is able to room with people with whom they are comfortable sharing space; however, event organizers cannot provide a fully private room. (If participants prefer a private room or wish to stay elsewhere, please see “Alternative Lodging Options” below.) 

Cabins supply basic kitchen appliances, dishes and utensils, as well as limited consumable goods such as dish soap, toilet paper, and sponges. Guests must supply their own towels, bedding/sleeping bags/pillows, toiletries, and food. If you cannot travel with your own bedding, we recommend buying a simple sleeping bag and pillow at an inexpensive store such as a Walmart or Target near your arrival airport. Any bedding left behind will be donated.

Alternative Lodging Options:

Alternative lodging options may be difficult to find in the immediate area, as rooms are limited and book out well in advance—as it turns out, people really like Yosemite! Alternative lodging is especially limited this year because the Wawona Hotel is closed indefinitely as it undergoes significant repairs. Those wishing to stay in facilities other than the Yosemite Field Station cabins are advised to first look for AirBNB options in the wider Wawona neighborhood or lodging in the adjacent small community of Fish Camp. The closest full-service modern hotel options are 40 minutes away in Oakhurst and are more plentiful than Wawona-area options. Registration fees do not cover alternative lodging options. 

For those who prefer to camp, we recommend the Wawona Campground. Making a reservation can be difficult; for tips on how to secure a spot, please contact event organizers. Outside of Wawona, nearby campgrounds in the Sierra National Forest are also an option for camping.

We strongly advise participants not seek alternative accommodations within Yosemite Valley, where there is a very real risk of flooding due to snowmelt in late April. In 2023, Yosemite canceled all hotel and campsite bookings in the Valley with only a day’s notice during the last weekend in April due to flooding. We don’t want that to happen to you!

Food and Dining Options:

Food options in Wawona are extremely limited. Participants should plan to bring groceries and prepare their own food for all meals except the Welcome Dinner on Thursday and a restaurant lunch on Saturday. There are currently no restaurants anywhere near the Field Station. The closest restaurant is about half an hour away, outside of the park entrance, and charges $30 for tacos. If you try to eat there, you’ll get stuck in line trying to get back into Yosemite and spend more time in your car than you spent being disappointed by $30 tacos.

Participants should plan to purchase groceries on their way up to Yosemite in Oakhurst, a town approximately 40 minutes from the Field Station. Located on the Highway 41 route into Yosemite, Oakhurt has several full-service grocery stores with a decent selection of items and reasonable prices. Provisioning ahead of time is heavily encouraged, especially for those with specific dietary needs. While Wawona does have a tiny camp-store type market, it is much more expensive than a grocery store and offers a very limited amount of snacks, grocery items, and essentials. Be prepared to provide for your anticipated food needs before you get into Yosemite. Bring groceries. 

There are several restaurants in Yosemite Valley at which participants should be prepared to eat for lunch on Saturday (and possibly Sunday). Vegetarian/vegan options are available. Do not depend on the existence of restaurants in the Valley otherwise, as they are almost an hour drive away from the Field Station.

Transportation:

Participants will need to rent a vehicle to both transport themselves from the airport to Yosemite and to transport themselves to the various tour locations around the park. There is no convenient, reliable public transport between the airport and the park or between the various regions of the park—this is the wilderness. Participants should expect to need to get gas during the event. There are no fuel stations in Yosemite Valley, but there is a fuel station conveniently less than a mile from Field Station in Wawona where gas prices tend to be less expensive than in surrounding communities. Ensuring vehicles are adequately fueled before traveling into the Valley is advised. For more information on how to prepare to travel in Yosemite, please see the UC Merced Yosemite Field Station Visitor Guide.

Although it is unlikely tire chain requirements will be in place, spring in the Sierras is unpredictable. Please check Caltrans tire chain requirements for your projected travel route at https://quickmap.dot.ca.gov/ the day before renting a vehicle. Most rental companies disallow chaining on rented cars, but it is unlikely that Caltrans will require the actual use of chains/cables. In late April, if requirements are in place they will likely be that vehicles must carry chains/cables “just in case.” In this scenario, we recommend choosing to rent a 4WD vehicle with winter tires and purchasing tire chains/cables locally. Any auto parts store or Walmart will sell chains/cables and generally accept full returns if the chains are unused. Event organizers will be monitoring weather forecasts and will be in touch with participants regarding expected conditions as we get closer to the event date.

Participants are encouraged to fly into the Fresno Yosemite International Airport (FAT), which is the closest major airport. Fresno car rental agencies are familiar with the needs of travelers heading into the mountains and should have appropriate vehicles available. From Fresno, event organizers recommend taking Hwy 41 into Yosemite (the south entrance.) This is the most direct route, and the least challenging for those unfamiliar with driving in the mountains. While the 41 is well-maintained, it is a two-lane undivided winding mountain road through deep forest with steep drop-offs on one side.

What to Pack:

• Comfortable clothing appropriate for temperatures from 30F-80F. Layers! Spring in the Sierras is beautiful, but difficult to predict.

• Sturdy closed-toe shoes/boots for walking, water-resistant encouraged.

• Cash for emergencies.

• Medications.

• Sunscreen/a hat/other sun protection.

• Water bottle.

• Flashlight.

• Toiletries such as shampoo, soap, etc.

•  Easy-to-prepare groceries such as eggs, cereal, sandwich supplies, microwavable meals, noodles, fruit, snacks, etc. Don’t forget butter/oil/salt and pepper!

• External phone power source, or small notepad and pen for taking notes in the field.

• Sleeping bag and pillow.

• Camping chair.

• Park entry educational fee waiver.

Alcohol, Tobacco, and Drugs Policies:

• Do not bring federally illegal or non-prescribed drugs, including cannabis. Yosemite is federal land, and cannabis is prohibited. 

• All forms of smoking and vaping are prohibited on facility grounds.

• This event is collaborative and communal and can involve adults responsibly enjoying a drink, but we are committed to ensuring the comfort and safety of all participants as well as complying with the law. All participants will be issued a wristband. Any participants under 21 (and those who do not drink) will wear a red wristband, while other attendees will wear a green wristband.

• Any student who knowingly offers an alcoholic drink to someone wearing a red wristband will be issued a warning. A subsequent infraction will result in their disqualification from the competition and a ban from future events.

• Any faculty or staff member who knowingly offers an alcoholic drink to someone wearing a red wristband will be reported to their institution and banned from future events.

Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion:

• When possible, we will make every effort to accommodate participants with disabilities. There are inherent challenges posed by the outdoor environment in which some event activities may make portions of the event inaccessible or outright dangerous to participants who experience certain types of disabilities, including but not limited to sight and mobility. Participants are encouraged to think deeply about their ability to be safe and comfortable while moving through wilderness terrain prior to committing to this event. 

• All participants are expected to participate in good faith. We will not tolerate harassment, intimidation, discrimination, or other abusive behavior of any kind at this event. 

• We are committed to a welcoming and diverse educational environment and will raise DEI concerns to DEI and Title IX offices and the Deans of Students offices at Cal Poly and participating schools as appropriate.

• https://academicprograms.calpoly.edu/content/academicpolicies/diversity-statement

• https://safer.calpoly.edu/help/title-ix

• https://deanofstudents.calpoly.edu/content/BIRT

The mountains are calling, and you must go!

See you in Yosemite!

Please feel free to reach out to Shane Patrick (theshanepatrick@gmail.com) with any questions regarding travel, logistics, or event details. Please reach out to John Patrick (jopatric@calpoly.edu) with any questions regarding competition format or academic guidance for students.