These notes were updated on April 7 at 12:05 pm. Changes are in blue.
They are subject to change and addition up until packet pick-up at the Pig.
Model Area open on Friday
All maps are 1:10,000, 5 meter contour.

Saturday
course         length     climb     controls
White             2.1          100      11
Yellow           3.2          130        9
Orange          3.9          180      11
Brown           3.3          160        8
Green            4.7          260      11
Red               6.4          380      14
Blue               8.7          450      16

Sunday
course          length     climb     controls
White           1.4             60        7
Yellow          3.1          120        8
Orange          4.1          240      11
Brown           3.9          290      13
Green            5.1          360      15
Red               6.7          370      18
Blue              9.7          550       27

Course / Map Notes
by Mike Minium

The Mounds of the Hopewell - Ohio's answer to Stonehenge!

        Fort Ancient is a pre-historic earthworks consisting of nearly
6000 meters (over 18,000 feet) of earthen walls enclosing a relatively
flat hilltop area of 50 hectares (126 acres).  Outside the walls, the land
slopes away steeply on all sides.  The walls range in height from 1 to 7
meters (3 to 23 feet).  They are believed to have eroded several feet
since their construction by the Hopewell people approximately 2000
years ago.  Therefore, it is absolutely forbidden to climb, walk or run
on top of or over these walls.
        There are gaps or gateways in the walls.  You must always use a gap
when passing through the walls.  Orienteers seen crossing over a wall will
immediately be disqualified and may also be subject to citation and fine
by park rangers.  This applies even when you are not on your course.
Parents, be sure to go over this with your children.  In some places, there
are faint (but unmapped) paths on top of the earthworks and you may see
children or general public ignoring the frequent signs asking visitors to keep
off.  Please help preserve this unique site for future generations (and future
access for orienteers) by showing maximum respect for the earthworks.
        On Saturday, only red and blue courses will enter the earthworks area.
On Sunday, all courses will pass through the earthworks.  In a few cases, your
map may have the purple X “forbidden route” and purple )( “passage” symbols
marking the walls and gaps.  Also, in some places, the walls will be blocked
with a row of streamers.  However, we could not mark every possible place
where you might possibly want to come inside or outside the walls.  You are
responsible for staying off of them.
        You should also remember that it is unlawful to take any artifact
(arrowhead, pottery, etc) from this property or to disturb any plants or animals.

Property

         You will cross several different properties on Saturday and Sunday.
Thanks to the various land owners:
                  Ohio Historical Society - Fort Ancient
                  Salvation Army - Camp Swoneky
                  Athletes In Action - King’s Domain
                  Ohio DNR - Little Miami Bikeway and Scenic River Corridor
                  Morgan’s Canoe Livery

Course Notes

        The Fort Ancient area contains some of the steepest terrain you will find in
Ohio.  While OCIN’s Flying Pigs have a reputation for roosting in rugged country,
this area is especially steep.   Then there is the soil.  It is ancient, one of the oldest
soils in Ohio (Illinoisan Glacial Till).  (See Matt Bond's Friday Course Notes on
the MVOC site for more details about soil types).  This means that it is very
fine-grained and hence more slippery than most.  These hills are tough to climb in
the driest of times, and should it rain or snow, controls may be accessible only with
the assistance of porcine wings.
        Ravines?  Yes, there are places where the sunlight never reaches.  Be sure you
have planned your exit strategy before descending into these depths.  If you are not
a Flying Pig or other winged creature, spiked or studded orienteering shoes are a
must.  Crampons and ropes might even be desirable (just kidding, well maybe not much).
In his Friday notes, Matt declares himself the "King of Pain" because of the steepness of
the terrain at Camp Whip-poor-will.  Saturday and Sunday will make the King's
courses seem like a casual stroll up Mount Sunflower (the gentle knoll which happens to
be the highest point in the state of Kansas).
        After the sheer steepness of the terrain, ruined fences are the most likely hazard
you will encounter.  Please be careful; the woods are full of old fences.
        You will cross roads.  Every course crosses park or camp roads on both
Saturday and Sunday.  Traffic on these roads should be light.  Orienteers, please
drive slowly inside the park and camps and yield to runners.  Blue and Red courses
will cross Ohio Route 350 on one or both days.  This highway passes through the
earthworks from east to west, then descends in steep, sharp hairpin curves to the
Little Miami River.  You may choose your crossing point and may even choose to
run along the road (although it is narrow, with no shoulders and steep drop offs),
but please be extremely alert when doing so.
        On Saturday, some courses (including white) will come close to Interstate 71.
Do not cross the right-of-way fence.  If you feel like you want to cross it, you had
better re-evaluate your route choice because there is no reason to approach the highway.
Some courses will get very nice views of Ohio’s highest bridge, the 239 foot (70 m.) high
Jeremiah Morrow bridge, where it crosses the Little Miami River Valley.
        Additionally, courses may use or cross the Little Miami Bikeway.  This paved trail
gets very heavy use, especially on pleasant weekends.  Watch out for cyclists, runners,
walkers, skaters, roller bladers, etc.  If you don’t get enough exercise orienteering, this
flat rail-trail is more than 120 kilometers (75 miles) long.  You may also find hikers in
the woods and if you really want more exercise, follow the blue blazes of the Buckeye
Trail for a nearly 1300 mile circuit of Ohio!  If the river is not too high and the weather
mild, Morgan’s Canoe Livery (on Oh 350 at the river) may be open and you can
take a float down the Little Miami State and National Scenic River.
        Green across the map is generally over-mapped for this season.  You should
not be afraid to go through light or medium green, in most cases you will not notice
much difference from the white.  The notable exception is in the north central portion
of the map where vertical green lines show logging slash that is pretty tough to get
through.
        On Saturday, you will encounter some logged area.  There may be some fresh
logging tracks and cuttings.  This is a relatively small area in the north-central portion
of the map (The King's Domain Camp).  King's Domain is currently for sale.  If you
have about $1.8 million and would like to own a beautiful camp, already mapped for
orienteering ( and unsuitable for residential or commercial development because
Ohio Historical Society owns the access corridor), look into this one!
        In a few places, you will see shingles, aluminum siding or pieces of plywood in
the forest, primarily in the southern parts of the map, mainly Sunday.  This debris was
dropped in the aftermath of a tornado in 1999.  This came from the Blue Ash area of
Cincinnati, some 15-20 miles to the southwest and the tornado was well above the
ground at this point, so there is very little direct storm damage (broken or uprooted
trees) on the map.  See "The True Story of Paula the Flying Pig" below.  Sometimes
truth is truly stranger than fiction.

Wildlife and Natural Hazards

        No known venomous snakes at this site, although a very rare Copperhead can
be found in nearby counties.  Ticks are possible, but probably not common this early
(none seen yet, although a warm week before the event could change that).  There is
poison ivy, but it should not be very big yet, so you probably won't encounter any.
There are various thorn plants and trees, but very little thorny vegetation compared
to most midwestern maps.

Special Notes for White and Yellow

        Saturday White course will have a partially streamered leg from your control #8
about 30 meters or so to a nearby indistinct path.  Once you get on the path, you
should be able to stay on it.  Expect pink or orange streamers.
        On leaving control # 1, Sunday Yellow course will have to follow a very indistinct
trail through a gap in the mounds.  There will be a few yellow survey flags stuck in the
ground to mark this trail.  Sunday Yellow runners will also have one place where
they might consider a long route using Ohio 350.  My advice is don't.  Use the stream
and ravine system to guide you instead.  It is much shorter and much safer.  350 is a
very dangerous road.  If you must use it, be sure to walk / run on the side facing
oncoming traffic.

The True Story of Paula the Flying Pig

        In April, 1999, a tornado destroyed many homes in the Blue Ash and
Montgomery areas of north-east Cincinnati.  Directly in the path of the storm
was the home of then OCIN President Tom Murphy.  Living in Tom's
backyard, in her own little house, was the Murphy's pot-bellied pig, Paula.
        Paula's house was lifted several meters off its foundation and badly
damaged.  Paula survived, apparently uninjured, but almost certainly
became the first genuine Flying Pig in Cincinnati.  Murphy's house itself
was not badly damaged other than a broken window and one of their cars,
which was hit by a falling tree.  Many of their neighbor's homes and the woods
behind their property were totally destroyed.
        As it travelled on to the northeast, the tornado dropped debris many
miles away, including some of the junk you see in the woods around Fort Ancient.
Who knows, maybe that old piece of plywood you just stepped on came
from the home of OCIN's original Flying Pig.  Fort Ancient manager Jack
Blosser tells me that several hundred pounds of debris was picked up from
within the Fort, but on the steep hillsides, you can still find remnants, including
entire sheets of siding and plywood!
        When the Murphys moved to Montana last year, Paula was given to
another owner and now lives on a farm, as a companion for a blind pig.  The
last I heard, she was still alive and healthy.

Excerpt from OCIN Newsletter: June-July, 1999:
When Pigs Fly

        Orienteering Cincinnati is known for its annual "Flying Pig"
Orienteering meet, but the name took on a new, literal meaning last month
when the killer tornados raked through the area.  The property of OCIN
president Tom Murphy sustained major damage, although the house itself
received only minor damage to shingles and a window.  Not so, however,
for the house of Paula, the Murphy's pot-bellied pig, which was blown
several meters off its foundation and badly damaged.  Paula was uninjured,
but now can truly be named the club's official "Flying Pig".  Paula even got
some free publicity when her story aired on Channel 5 news later in the week.
Unfortunately, orienteering was not mentioned.
 
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