Tips for Arriving at the Gathering

Are you a first time gatherer or someone coming to the annual gathering for the first time?

First off, make sure you have snacks and 2 gallons of water per person in the car before you pass the last town. (You will need the snacks and one gallon of water for your first day. The other gallon and snacks, you will leave in the vehicle for when you hike out on your last day).

When approaching the Gathering site, remember that you're coming as friends in somebody else's back yard. Treat the local folks with the courtesy, respect and concern that they deserve as members of the Family of Humankind. Be Loving and Kind. Don't be rude, steal, trash the town, disturb the Peace, or try to "shock" people. Be mindful of others' sensitivities. Remember the original Golden Rule when dealing with BOTH Babylon AND Rainbow: Treat Others the Way you want to be treated! Please, make your journey a safe one. Don't be under the influence while driving.

If you stop in the local towns for supplies, please treat the local community with all the respect due them, no matter how they may behave. When you spend money, introduce yourself and say you are here for the gathering.  Make sure the local town's folks know we help local economies. 

If you see family panhandling or loitering, get them out of town and into the gathering. We are our siblings keepers.  We want our impact in the local towns to be positive. Food and medical care is available for all people at the gathering, so there is no need to panhandle the locals.

Keep in mind, that it can take you 3-6 hours to hike your gear from where you park your car to the spot you want to camp -- and that's if you know where you are going. We will be at elevation and if you don't normally live in the mountains, it will take you time to adjust to the altitude.  Trust me on this. Plus you will be making friends along the way, talking to people, etc.

If this is your first gathering, you probably don't know where you want to camp and so you will need time to explore and find a place where you connect with your neighbors.  Check in with INFO for a map of the gathering and recommendations. On the trail, ask people to point you to INFO.

Again, the aforementioned water and snacks will come in very handy while you're trying to find a spot for your tent, learning where to get food and water, and finding those neighbors that will become your lifelong friends.

If you are planning on doing anything with fire, check in at the Fire Safety Station for the latest guidelines.  Remember community fires only. Check out the Rap on Fire Safety in California.

If you plan on driving, make sure your car and driver is 100% legal-all lights work, valid insurance and registration, seat belts, car seats for children. Our government assumes that we are criminals. Please try to arrive during daylight hours as the roads into gathering sites can be tricky and we want you to arrive home safely. If you can make space in your vehicle for a rider or you need a ride, ride share is happening at your local craistlist.org or on Facebook. Please note there are multiple places on the internet where ride share can take place. Explore on your own but make sure to read the following recommendations.

When you are within 30 miles of the gathering, drive like you are taking a driving test, and go a few MPH under the speed limit. Make sure to read Getting into the Gathering without Getting a Mandatory Court Appearance Ticket.

*Always* say no to requests from law enforcement to search your vehicle or your person, no matter what they tell you. It is not illegal for cops to lie to you, and they often will do so to get your consent to search. "You might as well give us permission, because if you do not, we will go get a warrant and you will be here for hours." This is a bluff. Don't fall for it. Their time is much more valuable than yours.

If they insist on searching over your objections, don't prevent them physically in anyway - but continue to repeat "I do not consent." Ask for names and badge numbers, write down time, place, and what happened in detail. Every little thing matters in a court of law, even the things that don't mean much to you or me. If you can, take pictures, videos, and/or audio recordings.

Also, if they ask you if you have contraband, and tell you that if you have just a little bit and give it to them that they will not search you, tell them no. Never, never, never incriminate yourself. That means don't consent to anything, don't give them anything but your license, registration, and proof of insurance, don't admit to anything.

The gathering will be in a national forest and as such federal laws and regulations will be enforced. Don't matter what the state laws are, once you're on federal property, FEDERAL LAWS APPLY. WEED IS NOT LEGAL ON FEDERAL LAND.

If you will be sharing a ride, please meet the folks you'll be riding with at a local coffee shop, make sure you feel comfortable traveling a long distance with them, and establish the ground rules. If you are coming via bus, plane or train, try to connect up with a ride from your destination before you get there. If you are planning on hitchhiking, please travel with a buddy, only bum rides during the day and if you get a bad feeling from a ride, PLEASE don't take it. There will always be another one.


I strongly recommend you plan on arriving home in the morning - the earlier the better. If you are coming home and it's late, my best recommendation is you kick it at a campground, roadside rest area, or motel as you desire. Then get up at dawn and come on home.  The roads into the gathering can be challenging, the signage can disappear, and you will be tired. 

Keep in mind that your journey really begins once you park your car. From there you'll have to hike into the gathering with your gear and try to find a place that meets your needs -- very hard to do after dark.  It can easily take 3-6 hours from the time you park your car until you have your tent set up. Doing it in the daytime is fun, doing it at night when you are exhausted is not my idea of a good time.

Once you pitch your tent, know where it is! Make sure you know what larger camp you are near, mark your space with something as many people will have the same cheap tent from the big box stores.  Don't be the person wandering around at 2 AM trying to find your camp.

NEVER LEAVE YOUR CAMP WITHOUT WATER, A SNACK, A FLASHLIGHT AND A JACKET. You may think you will be gone for 15 minutes, but the reality is things will happen and you may not make it back to your tent for 5 hours.

Let's all get home safely.

DRIVE SAFELY!
Ignore all rumors of cancellation or organization!
Live Lightly with the Land and People!