RCA Dark Sky Camp at OMSI's Camp Hancock

April 5 - 7, 2013 - Friday 3pm until Sunday Noon

Registration CLOSED
however, contact me and perhaps we can make arrangements.

Want to check and see if your registration has been received? Check the Registration Confirmation Page HERE.

The facility fee is $45 per night, per person, meals included.
RVing, Camping or Bunkhouse, same price.
Why just one price per person, per night?

WE HAVE BEEN ASKED NOT TO ENTER BEFORE 3PM ON FRIDAY!

Camp Hancock is an OMSI sponsored field station for the promotion of science education, located 2 miles east of the John Day river in NE Oregon in the Clarno Fossil Beds.

Hancock’s facility is well-equipped but rustic. Most of the buildings were built in the late 1960s and are wood with cedar shake roofs. It is a rustic youth camp with bunkhouses, mess hall, bathrooms (hot water and showers), and limited camping area. There are no planned activities except viewing, eating. napping, chatting, reading, napping, hiking, and did I mention an afternoon nap? The science buildings are not open to us and we have no activities planned for kids.

Children are not allowed without parents and must be under parental supervision at all times.

Both the men's and women's rest rooms have hot and cold running water, showers, heat, and electricity. In addition, there are two outhouses on site, which we are encouraged to use as a way to conserve water.

In the event of an emergency, Hancock’s phone number is 541-763-4691, but be aware that it will go to an answering machine and may not be answered promptly. There is no cell phone service at Hancock Field Station, but there is a pay-phone in the dining hall for outgoing calls.

Smoking is allowed only in the campfire ring area, never, never, never in the mess hall or cabins or anywhere else on the grounds at Hancock.

Because of OMSI requirements we do NOT allow drop-ins or visitors, except those that are registered and spending at least one night.

Camp Hancock Guidelines:

• if camping, Camp stoves only, no open fires
• NO smoking except at the fire pit
• NO PETS (this has been an issue in the past, please respect the Camp’s rules)
• No Bicycles in camp or on trails
• No camping or parking on the surrounding park service land

Here is a old PDF file with more information from OMSI about Camp Hancock (a teacher's guide).

Why just one price?

Hancock has changed their pricing and we are now being charged just a flat facility fee per person, per night for use of Hancock, the facilities and food.

The Hancock facility is nice because we have two elevated viewing areas with AC power available, you can set up and leave your gear up all weekend, the only people there are other astronomers, Hancock cooks the meals, there are actual restrooms and hot showers, off the beaten track, no traffic nearby, free internet service, no bright lights, very dark skies, dry buildings if the weather is not cooperative, and not accessible to the public, plus they let us have the camp to ourselves and adjust the meal times to suit our hours.

Camp Hancock fees are more in line with going to an attraction/convention/resort where you are paying per person to use and enjoy the facilities, rather than renting a space to park your vehicle. The charges are not ours, but are what we are charged by OMSI for use of the facilities and staff. We are charged per person per night whether you are bunkhousing/RVing/Tenting and/or food/no-food and there is a minimum charge that we have to meet or exceed. Our registration charges for Camp Hancock have always covered our OMSI fees in the past and there have so far been no subsidies from RCA funds.

When we go to Hancock in October, the fee will be per person per night. All meals and bunk included. If you wish to bring camping gear, RV or trailer, the charge will be the same per person per night. If you wish to bring and cook your own food, or go out for food, the charge is the same.

Other groups like ours (non-kid-summer-camp/do-your-own-thing) are charged $65 and up per night per person and must be registered and paid 30 days in advance (RV/tent/bunkhouse/food/no-food are all the same price), plus extra for RVs using electricity, plus extra for internet service, plus higher minimums, plus extra for...etc. etc. In addition they sometimes have to share the camp with another group. Because of our long history of supporting the Hancock astronomy programs and equipment, and our relationship with OMSI, they allow us special pricing and the camp to ourselves.

Driving Directions

The camp is about 150 miles (as the crow flies) from Portland and you have two routes to choose from:

1) Take Hwy 26 east over Mount Hood. Turn left onto Hwy 216 (approximately milepost 72), and go through Pine Grove and Wapinitia and it will will take you to Hwy 197 just west of Maupin. Turn right on Hwy 197 and go through Maupin and take it south to it's junction with Hwy 97. Turn left onto Hwy 97 and take it to Shaniko.

(Note: there is an alternative from Maupin. At the bottom of the hill as you cross the river just at the end of the bridge over the river is Bakeoven Road. It's a 180 degree turn from the bridge to get onto it and it comes out 1 mile east of Shaniko.)

2) Take I-84 east from Portland to Biggs Junction (exit 104), exit and head south on Hwy 97 to Shaniko.

Then at Shaniko, turn south onto Hwy 218 (Shaniko-Fossil Hwy) and continue through Antelope and east towards Clarno near the John Day River. Look for the entrance to Camp Hancock EXACTLY two miles east of the John Day River.

Plan on a 3.5 hour drive from Portland via Highway 26, and 4.5 hours via Highway 84, plus any stops you may make. Don't forget to gas up, it can be 50 miles between gas stations out here.

A map with the layout of the bunkhouses, restrooms, etc. at Camp Hancock is here (81kb).

The center of camp is located at:

44 degrees, 55 minutes,
120 degrees, 25 minutes,
at an altitude of 1585 feet.

Camp Hancock is within the National Park Service Clarno Fossil beds. For NPS information look here.

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Weather:

Weather is almost always better on the east side than the west side of the Cascades.

The expected temperatures are expected to be around 50-70 in the daytime and 30-40 at night. But then Venus runs about 800 degrees and Mars about -200 degrees, so in the astronomically immediate area, Camp Hancock is always balmy.

Bring warm clothing, it will be very cold at night no matter how nice the day is.

The clear sky clock for the next 48 hours predicts:

However, the weather is usually better than predicted.

Because we have a contract with OMSI to use Camp Hancock we never cancel due to any weather related conditions.

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Viewing:

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Meals are included in your registration fees :

The dining hall is enclosed, has screened windows, and heat. We all assist with setting the tables before meals and the clean-up after. OMSI prides itself on having meals that are nutritious and homemade. Vegetarian options are available.

Included is breakfast, sack lunch, and dinner for our event from Friday dinner through Sunday Breakfast. Dinner Friday - 6pm Breakfast Saturday - 9am Lunch fixings Saturday - 10am - Make your own sack lunch, Keep in refrigerator or take with you. Dinner Saturday - 6pm Breakfast Sunday - 9am Meals are served family style and we all help with the setting up of the tables, serving, cleaning up and doing dishes. Coffee Pot and Hot Water during the night, bring your own midnight snacks (microwave and refrigerator available). Meals are NOT available other than at designated meal times. There are NO soda or snack machines in the camp and snacks MUST be kept in critter-proof containers (or you will have four legged visitors).

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Lodging: There is NO RESERVED lodging except for extraordinary circumstances.

Bunkhouse Lodging is per night per person - meals included

We are in shared bunkhouses first-come, first served (generally we average about 2 people per cabin). When you show up, find a bunk in one of the large bunkhouses and please check off your name on the clipboard in the Messhall to indicate the nights you are in camp.  The Cabins are one room A-frame buildings that are set up as a bunkhouse with built-in bunks, mattresses, limited heat, and limited electricity and you will be sharing the bunkhouse with others. (The heaters are on a 60 minute timer to take the chill off in the morning).
Bring a warm sleeping bag (and extra blankets, if needed), and pillow. 1 Large bunkhouse with 16 bunks 5 Large bunkhouses with 14 bunks each 2 Medium bunkhouses with 8 bunks each 7 Small bunkhouses that each have only one bunk, and three mattresses on the floor
Camping is per night per person - meals included Limited RV parking (Limited electrical hookups - so it's best to plan on being self contained) Tent camping area with two teepees. NO camping South of the Water Tower, that area is National Park Service land and is not part of Camp Hancock. There are Bathrooms with showers, flush toilets and hot water. The Ladies bathroom is at the west end of the Dining Hall. The men's bathrooms are near the office. There is both men's and ladies pit toilets near the viewing area. Bring your own towels, shampoo, etc.  Return to Top

Registration:

Registration: CLOSED - welllll, email or call me and we'll work it out.

• When you come to Hancock Please make sure you have the following with you.

If you have any further questions you can email us.

Registration Form or Paypal form

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