All the photos uploaded so far can be found at the gallery.
Some Last-Minute Updates added on April 22:
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I need to know if you are checking out on Saturday or checking out on Sunday. Please email me or post a note.
- Some noncachers (girl scouts, middle schoolers, orienteerers, etc.) will hopefully join us for the CITO - please make them feel welcome!
- Make sure you sign the logbook and get a nametag.
- Make sure you get a raffle ticket at the start of the day. There will be some small but very cool prizes to be given to lucky geocachers after the CITO, back at Loop C when we eat lunch. Head back there after 1pm.
- Whether you are camping or not, let's all plan to eat lunch together on Saturday, soon after 1pm. (You were gonna eat lunch anyhow, right?) BYOFood. Location somewhere at Loop C.
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Could someone volunteer to be the Official digital picture taker?
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Very important for the campers: Your sites are, in fact, reserved and free. Don't let anyone tell you otherwise. :-) Drive up to the booth, and tell them you are a geocacher here for the clean-up event, and tell them your site #. They should then just wave you on with a smile!
- Bring your FRS radios, if you have them. Look for us on Channel 2 (plain old 2, no special code).
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If there are ideas floating around in your head, please share. I am probably forgetting something.
- Please review this entire page, just to refresh the old noggin ...
The General Plan:
Let's clean up French Creek State Park on April 24, 2004. Please post a "will attend" note on this page if you plan on helping out.
There are some photos in the first log below. They are of the dumpsite that the Ranger has been wanting to clean up for years. It is along a well-paved road, and people have gotten used to pulling off to the side and just throwing their trash here. I'm told that it is pretty easy to not feel bad about dumping your garbage in a place that is already littered with tires and appliances. Once we clean it up, it will definitely be easier to keep the area clean ... we hope.
Please wear sensible shoes and clothing. This will be a rough-and-tumble sort of day. The Great Pennsylvania Cleanup has promised to provide us with free gloves, vests, trash bags, and maybe even free landfill space. If you have an FM Radio, it will come in handy (channel 2). Lime green is the official Pigment Sponsor of this CITO event, so if you've got anything in that hue, bring it along. 
The Schedule:
If you are camping, you are welcome to arrive on Friday or arrive on Saturday. Friday night will be unscheduled time to use at your disgression.
Saturday morning: Eat a very large breakfast.
It will be wise to carpool from the campsites, as there will be little room for vehicles after we park the giant dumpster at this location. If you are not camping, it would still be good to meet us at the campsites and carpool from there. Ask the person at the little booth where you should park to be near Loop C. The dumpsite is about a 5 minute-drive from camp. If parking places are simply not available anymore, we can set-up a car shuttle at that time.
CITO will begin promptly at 10 am on Saturday April 24, at:
N 40° 13.490' W 075° 46.456'
We will continue until we are done, or until the dumspter is full. There is a secondary dumpsite about a quarter of a mile north. We may go there if we kick the first dump's bum so quickly that we have time to do this one. I drive a small pick-up truck that can haul trash from this place back to the dumpster.
When we are done (who knows when, but likely close to 1pm), we can head back to the campsites and do whatever you want: eat a late lunch together with the group, cache, sleep, sit around and chat, fish, play disc golf, go boating, sign the logbook, drive home, or just plain relax. We will, of course, take a moment or two to celebrate the excellent job we will have accomplished together. Meet us back at Loop C, Site #10.
The Accomodations:
The Asst. Park manager (Lew) has graciously offered a limited number of free campsites at Loop C (what an amazing coincidence that letter is). I don't actually know how many free sites are available: methinks he is waiting to see what our turnout is like. First come; first served. Please contact MissJenn to see if there are spots still available. I'll need to know what site you wish to have. update: I now also need your name, phone # and address, since the DCNR needs that for anyone camping. Check the Loop C map for options. Each site is allowed to have up to 5 people so site-sharing is a nice possibility.
Do not call 888-PA-PARKS to reserve a spot, unless you prefer to pay for it (which is a nice way to support the DCNR). Just let me know what site you reserved so I can place you on our map.
Pets are not allowed at Loop C, but they are allowed in a nearby loop. Public showers and potable water are available.
Loop C starts at: N 40° 12.936' W 075° 47.061'
The Park Office, in case you need it, is at: N 40° 11.881' W 075° 47.582'
Ten furnished modern cabins, nestled among the hardwoods, offer a pleasant alternative to state park camping. Each cabin features sleeping for six, electric heat, kitchen, private bath with shower, and wall to wall carpeting. Call 888-PA-PARKS for more info.
The Sister CITO Event:
Be sure to visit Left Nothing; Took A Dump just a week before this one! Another chance to clean up and help support the parks in Pennsylvania! Thanks so much to Team VaxCave and The Leprechauns for letting us, uh, "franchise" this cache name.
The Tshirts:
Would anyone be interested in a group order of CITO Tshirts? The t-shirts will be $6.99 each, in adult (S-3xl) and youth (S-XL) sizes. I can place one big order, and save on shipping, if you contact me and tell me how many, what size, etc. update: Payment and pickup can be made to TaranWanderer on Friday or Saturday.
The Other Stuff:
If you have additional thoughts on how to Pump Up this event, go for it! Let us know what you're thinking.
More details to come as they shape up. Please put this cache on your Watch List so that it's easier to contact y'all.
Let's surprise the Park's staff by having LOTS of people there!
Thanks so much to IV Warrior for inspiring me to contact my local State Park in the first place.
update: If you would like to join the Forum thread, that'd be cool, too.