AHSP policies
Please note that everyone attending the AHSP
is expected to abide by the rules, laws and policies of The
Mountain Institute, NOVAC, and the State of West Virginia.
Anyone who chooses to ignore these policies may be subject
to appropriate sanctions.
1. There shall be no firearms, fireworks, or
chemical weapons of any kind permitted at AHSP aside from
those with specific, prior authorization.
2. There shall be no cutting of trees, branches,
shrubs, or other foliage for any reason, including, but not
limited to, use as firewood.
3. Do not alter, remove, or damage any campground
fencing for any reason.
4. Do not use the sinks in the bathhouses for
any purposes other than those which they are intended for;
prohibited uses include, but are not limited to, the washing
of dishes, utensils and/or clothing as well as bathing.
5. Absolutely no pets are permitted at AHSP.
Individual exceptions may be made for helper or assistance
animals. (See Disability Services.) However, you may see wild
animals around the observation area; they live here.
6. Absolutely no horses are permitted on site.
7. There is a 10 MPH/16KPH speed limit for
all roads within the campground. Use special caution in congested
areas. The posted limits may be too fast for local conditions.
8. AHSP Staff shirts are worn by the AHSP staff
for providing attendees needing assistance with a means of
quick staff identification and are reserved solely to them
for that purpose.
9. Anyone under the age of 18 years (a Minor)
must be accompanied by a parent or court-appointed guardian
to be admitted to AHSP. Emancipated minors shall be required
to produce proof of their status when checking in.
THERE SHALL BE NO EXCEPTIONS
TO THIS RULE.
10. Please note that there are no single-day
admission rates for visitors. This includes family and friends.
Everyone attending AHSP shall pay the full requisite fee from
the date of their arrival until the end of the event regardless
of when they arrive, depart, or how long they stay.
11. No power earth-moving equipment without
the express written permission of TMI, including but not limited
to, power augers and bobcats. Also prohibited without express
written permission are gas generators, gas lawnmowers, weed
eaters, and chainsaws.
12. Any deliveries to the site other than U.S.
Postal Service deliveries MUST be met at
the Registration Desk. Since delivery services can rarely
give you an exact time of arrival this could leave you with
a lot of time waiting. We will not come and find you.
13. If you have brought any single water receptacle
with a capacity of 100 gallons or more, you may not fill it
from the local water supply, nor may you drain it here.
14. Any structure over 7 feet in height may
be required to be dismantled if there are complaints from
neighbors or if there are public safety concerns.
15. NO mopeds or scooters will be permitted on the observing field after dark. ECVs, mountain bikes, and electric wheelchairs are permitted.
16. No trenches, wastewater pits, or fire pits
may be dug.
17. All vehicles over 20 feet in length (including
any attached trailers) MUST be parked in the RV parking lot. Any vehicles over 20 feet in length (including attached trailers) found in the regular parking lot may be towed at the owner’s expense without
warning.
18. Parking in the handicapped parking area
is reserved to those vehicles that have Handicapped Parking
Plates and/or Stickers (see Disability Services office located
in at the Registration Area for more information). Vehicles
found in the handicapped parking area without a proper tag
may be towed at the owner’s expense. (Also see Parking
Rules.)
19. Public address systems may not be used
after 10 pm.
Fire Safety Rules
Please make sure everyone in the camp is familiar
with the use of fire safety devices in the camp and camping
fire safety in general.
1. No open fires are permitted. Only camp stoves
will be permitted for cooking. A fire extinguisher is highly
recommended.
2. ALL fuels for flame-powered devices must
be handled and used according to the following safety requirements:
- Liquid fuels must be stored and transported
in appropriate containers. These are to be kept sealed and
stored at least 20 feet from flame sources.
- Liquid fuels may not be discharged or thrown
onto fires.
- Use manufacturer-approved fuel with flame-powered
devices.
3. ALL flame-powered devices and fires must
meet the following safety requirements:
- Flame-powered light sources must be spill
resistant.
- Elevated open flame-powered light sources
must have shatterproof fuel containers.
- No hand-carried torches are allowed.
4. Elevated open-flame-powered light sources
must be stable and located at a distance equal to their height
plus one foot from any structure or flammable ground cover.
5. NO open flames are permitted inside tents.
Flame or combustion heat sources are prohibited in any tent
or enclosed structure.
Alcohol
The legal age for the consumption of alcohol
in West Virginia is 21 years of age. Attendees of the AHSP
may obtain alcoholic beverage off-site for consumption on-site.
Any violations of West Virginia law may be reported to the
authorities and violators may be evicted from the event without
refund.
Furthermore, no one may offer for sale and/or otherwise distribute
alcoholic beverages without the proper license. Should you
choose to serve alcohol in your group, you do so at your own
risk and are solely responsible for ensuring that you conform
to the laws of West Virginia. Drinking to excess will not
be permitted and at the discretion of the AHSP staff will
be grounds for expulsion from AHSP.
Alteration of the Camping Area
No alterations of the site are allowed. This
includes the digging of holes, cutting of trees, or the installation
of man-made structures.
Entry and Re-entry into TMI
Each visitor to AHSP shall be issued
a badge at the Registration Area when they arrive. This badge
is your personal receipt and access pass to the AHSP event.
Each badge issued is designated to a particular individual;
the badges are not transferable. All visitors
attending the event shall wear their badges at all times and
shall produce their badges for Staff members upon request.
Please ensure that you take your badge
with you when you leave the observation site for any reason.
Anyone attempting to re-enter without a badge will have to
go through the Registration Area process again and pay the
appropriate fees.
Enter the site only through the designated
entry/re-entry areas. Do not cross or remove fences to enter
or re-enter the site. Anyone attempting to enter or re-enter
the AHSP event without a badge, by crossing or removing fences
and/or by transferring badges shall be evicted from the site
without refund.
Mail and Package Deliveries
Mail deliveries for individuals via the
United States Postal Service will be available at the Registration
Area. You must produce sufficient identification in order
to obtain your mail (please note: your site badge will NOT
be sufficient). Remember that the Spruce Knob address should
only be used for emergencies and NOT for routinely forwarding
you mail while attending the AHSP.
Deliveries via private carriers (non-USPS)
to individuals will be held at the Registration Area. It is
the responsibility of each individual expecting a delivery
to check with the Registration Area during the office's business
hours. Any package or mailing not collected by close of the
Registration Area on Sunday, August 27, 2006 may be returned
to the sender or disposed of at the discretion of TMI management.
All other deliveries to the event that
do not fit into the previous categories (i.e., pizza) must
be met at the Registration Area. The Registration Area will
NOT attempt to locate anyone or accept any items on your behalf
when a delivery arrives.
It is solely your responsibility to be
at Registration Area at the correct time to accept your delivery.
Minors and Children's Regulations
The following policies are IN
ADDITION TO THE SITE RULES.
A parent or court appointed guardian
must remain at the event for so long as the Minor remains
on site. No Minor may be left unattended at the site.
Anyone attempting to circumvent this
rule may be charged with trespassing and/or other applicable
civil or criminal penalties.
NO PROGRAMS, ACTIVITIES, OR EVENTS TAKING
PLACE AT AHSP ARE INTENDED AS A SUBSTITUTE FOR THE PROPER
ADULT SUPERVISION OF MINORS.
Picnic Tables, Folding Tables, and Folding
Chairs
No one may "claim" or relocate
any picnic tables. Please recognize that there are not enough
picnic tables for everyone to have one. Folding tables and
chairs that are located in the public areas ARE NOT to be
removed from those areas.
Quiet Hours
Quiet hours shall be enforced between
11:00 PM and 7:00 AM at the event. Please be considerate of
your neighbors and refrain from loud talking and playing loud
music at all times.
In addition, only very quiet portable generators (<60 dBa @ 10') may be operated from the hours of noon till 7 PM. Any attendees who wish to operate a generator louder that this must park their vehicles in the RV parking area and are still limited to the hours of noon till 7 PM. Extremely loud generators will not be allowed to operate at any time in either observing area.
Garbage Disposal and Recycling
As this is a remote location, no regular
trash service is available. For this reason there will only
be a limited number of trash receptacles located throughout
the campground. These are only to be used for normal garbage
and trash. Please separate and take your recyclables home
with you as there won’t be recycling facilities on-site
and these items may not be deposited in the trash. The use
of disposable eating utensils is discouraged and if used the
attendee must take this trash with them when they leave. Under
no circumstances may garbage or refuse be burned.
Please be sure to remove all personal
property from the site by noon on Sunday, August 27, 2006.
Anything found after that time shall be considered abandoned
property and may be disposed of by the Event Staff and/or
The Mountain Institute management. Do not leave any large
items (furniture, mattresses, old tents, etc.) in your encampment
when departing, even if you intend to abandon them. Each individual
is solely responsible for removing all such large items from
the campgrounds; AHSP will not remove such large items on
your behalf.
Personal Messages
The ability to take personal messages
for individuals at AHSP is severely limited. Please remind
your family, friends, or employer that there is only one incoming
line for messages in the campground. In order to get a message
to you, we will need the name of the person the message is
for. BRIEF EMERGENCY MESSAGES ONLY will be relayed to attendees.
If you are expecting a call for any other reason, please check
with the Registration Desk daily to see if there is a message.
Smoking Policies
There is no smoking permitted in any
building or public tent (including, but not limited to, dorms,
bath house, session tents, or meeting room). If your neighbors
are offended by cigar or cigarette smoke, you may be asked
to smoke in a location designated as a smoking zone.
Please dispose of cigarette or cigar
butts in a proper receptacle and be courteous of others when
smoking in public areas. Dropping butts on the ground is dangerous
and is not permitted.
Utilities
Under no circumstances may the existing
utilities be altered and/or modified in any manner. You may
not access or tie into any water lines or electrical boxes
in order to install new or additional connections. Anyone
attempting to alter and/or modify any of the existing utilities
may be evicted from the site without refund and shall be responsible
for any and all damages resulting from their actions.
No personal washing or bathing is permitted
at the water spigots. Please be courteous when using showers.
Please try and conserve water whenever possible.
Technical Service Request
AHSP Technical Services asks all AHSP
attendees to help us keep AHSP running smoothly. Event Staff
will be using a limited number of FRS channels, which other
FRS users will be asked to avoid. In particular, channels
1 and 2 will be reserved for emergency and staff uses only.
Other channels requested for the sole use of the Event Staff
will be identified in your onsite program. Please make a note
of those channels and choose alternatives for personal communications.
Thank you in advance for your cooperation.
Access to AHSP
Here is information concerning what is
needed to get you through the Registration Area as quickly
as possible:
1. A positive form of ID. We need something
that has your photo, name and birth date on it. Most drivers’
licenses meet those criteria, as do most government-issued
ID cards.
2. If you arrive with a minor who is
not your own child you will need proof of legal guardianship
for that minor This proof must be in the form of a copy of
legal guardianship papers SIGNED BY THE JUDGE who appointed
the guardianship. You will be required to sign a waiver in
the child's name before admittance—remember that lying
on these waivers constitutes fraud and will result in your
family's expulsion from the campground. Emancipated minors
must show legal proof of emancipation, in addition to the
ID mentioned in section one.
3. No daily visitors. There are no provisions
for single-day entry. Do not invite anyone to visit you for
the day; they will not be allowed on site without paying the
full fees. Space at the event is limited.
4. If you are getting a ride from someone
who is not staying, they are not allowed to enter the campground
without an escort and we are always short of those. So plan
on an extra delay while we try to find a volunteer to act
in that role.
5. We cannot refund pre-registrations,
but we can transfer them to another person prior to the start
of the event. So if you are unable to attend AHSP and are
already pre-registered, you need to request a pre-registration
transfer from NOVAC prior to August 24, 2006.
6. NO PETS. This includes but is not
limited to ferrets, dogs, cats, birds, rabbits, and snakes.
7. We WILL NOT give out personal information
at the Registration Area. This includes who is on site and
where they are located. This is a privacy issue; please respect
it.
8. For information about accommodating
the needs of the disabled at AHSP, please send an email to
info@ahsp.org.
Traffic & Parking Policies
All Vehicles shall be removed to the
parking areas as soon as possible after registration check-in.
Attendee vehicles may not be left in event coordination areas
and may be towed at owner’s expense.
There is a 10 MPH speed limit for all
roads within the campground. Use special caution in congested
areas. The posted limits may be too fast for local conditions.
1. LATE-NIGHT ARRIVAL
Vehicles that arrive on site during quiet hours or after dusk
will be parked for the night at a special lot away from the
observation area until 8 am the next day. However, once morning
has arrived the vehicle must be moved to the parking area
in accordance with standard policies.
2. OVERSIZED PARKING
There is a separate parking area for trailers and oversized vehicles (trailers, trucks, buses, campers, RVs, etc.); please park such vehicles in these specially marked areas. All oversized vehicles and trailers must be parked in these lots or they will be towed. This is to allow the large number of anticipated vehicles to fit in the parking lots this year.
3. HANDICAPPED PARKING
Those wishing to park in the handicapped parking area will
be required to have a valid state/provincial handicapped plate/tag
on their car. There will be no separate AHSP parking tag this
year. (See Disability Services.)
4. MOTOR VEHICLES IN OBSERVATION
AREAS
Motor vehicles may be parked on the observation field. However
all vehicles parked in the observing field must take measures
to eliminate white lights from the interior or exterior from
disturbing fellow observers when accessing your vehicle. Acceptable
measures include covering all lights with red transparent
tape or plastic, removing the fuse for these lights, or covering
these lights with opaque material (duct tape works well).
Vehicles may not be moved from the observing field after dark
except in the case of an emergency. You may live and sleep
in a motor vehicle located in an observation or parking area.
5. RV CAMPING
RV's over 20’ long will be parked in a separate parking area. There is no electricity and no hookups of any kind, but there is water nearby. You may set up your observing gear in this area or the middle observing field.
6. UNATTENDED VEHICLES
Vehicles left unattended for any extended period of time are
subject to towing.
7. NO VEHICLES MAY BLOCK SITE
ROADS OR FACILITIES
If a vehicle cannot be moved into a camping site, it must
be pulled completely off the road. Vehicles found blocking
and/or parked in the road will be subject to immediate towing.
Roads must be available for emergency passage at all times.
Vehicles that block access to the port-o-sans (portable toilets)
will be immediately towed.
8. USE THE PARKING LOT IN A FAIR
AND COURTEOUS MANNER
In the lot, please park only within the designated rows or
as directed by parking staff. NOVAC and TMI reserve the right
to tow all illegally or improperly parked vehicles.
9. NO VEHICLES MAY BLOCK THE
PUBLIC ROAD
Please remember that the road is a public thoroughfare; do
not block this road to local traffic for ANY reason. Blocking
site access is cause for eviction from AHSP.
Common Sense
We've tried to enumerate items of potential concern in our policies, but in the end it all boils down to this: we expect AHSP attendees to exercise good judgement, courtesy, and common sense. We think you'll find AHSP to be a warm, friendly event--and we'll do our best to be flexible and accommodating whenever it's possible to do so.
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