Join us up in the North Country as we pay homage to the adventures of Ulysses from Homer's The Odyssey (or of Leopold Bloom, if you're a follower of James Joyce's Ulysses) as he winds his way home to Ithaca from Troy and the end of the Trojan War. Wolf Lake State Forest has some challenging and beautifully intricate terrain, with stunning rock outcroppings and copious amounts of water. Can you navigate through the perils of the Wandering Rocks, escape the allure of the enchanting Calypso, or avoid having your wits scrambled by the Lotus-Eaters? Route choice will be critical in executing your plan to find as many controls as possible and return home to Ithaca within the six hour time limit. Seldom has a straight line been so ill-advised as the fastest route between two points.

Date: Saturday, September 8, 2018, and limited to the first 100 paid registrations.

Start/Finish: Base camp will be located at the Curran Landing Parking Area — Beaver Pond Trailhead (44.36795°N, 75.310758°W) at Wolf Lake State Forest. Facilities will be extremely primitive: 1 porta-john. Water in gallon jugs will be available.

Race logistics: Teams of 1-4 may participate. Check-in is between 8:30 am and 11 am, at which time you will receive your map. You may spend as much or as little time as you like studying the map. You may start anytime between 8:30 and 11 am, but can only stay out on the course for six hours. All participants must be back by 5 pm. When you are ready to start, you will receive a passport and your start time will be recorded. Evidence of control location will be by manual punch on your passport.

The map will have the location of 24 controls. All controls will have pictures depicting some aspect of the event's theme attached to the flag. Some of these controls will have on the backs of their pictures the location of one or more satellite controls, indicated with a bearing (in degrees) from magnetic north and a distance in meters. These satellite controls will be within 600 meters of their base controls but will not be marked on your map. There will be about 12 satellite controls. Finding these controls is optional.

Point values will be ten times the tens digit. For example, control #52 = 50 points. You lose 20 points for every minute (or fraction thereof) you are late. After 30 minutes late, you are disqualified. No matter your finishing time, you must check in with race organizers before leaving the area. This is to make sure everyone is safely out of the forest by event's end.

Provided: Each participant will receive a topographic map (at 1:15,000 to 1:20,000 scale), a map case, and a passport. There will be gallon jugs of water at base camp and at two other locations on the course. Snacks and beverages will be provided after the race.

Mandatory equipment: Whistle, which will have to be presented prior to receiving your passport.

Highly recommended equipment: Compass (with degree dial), water bottle(s)/supply, watch, writing utensil for marking satellite controls on your map.

Suggested equipment: Clothing and footwear suitable for trekking through the forest, climbing rocks and traversing streams (and beaver dams); extra clothing and footwear (as you will probably get wet) for after the race; insect protection: long-sleeve and long-leg, chemicals, scents, netting (deer flies can be rather aggressive, but should be on the wane in September; ticks can be abundant in the area); food and liquid; personal first aid supplies; day pack. No GPS or altimeters are allowed (except data loggers without displays).

Accommodation: Primitive camping is available in the State Forest. Camping is prohibited within 150 feet of any road, trail, spring, stream, pond or other body of water except at camping areas designated by the department. There are four lean-tos: at Huckleberry, at Wolf, and at Moon lakes, and along the northern stretch of beaver ponds. Check out the DEC website. There is also designated camping at Lake Bonaparte, at Greenwood Creek State Forest, and at Streeter Lake. Watertown is to the southwest; Ogdensburg, Canton, and Potsdam are to the north.

If you are considering camping out please indicate the number, location and dates of occupation on the "Additional Info/Requests" line on the entry form. The NYS DEC would like to get a head count.

Weather and terrain: Temperatures have ranged from 40 to 90 degrees Fahrenheit in early September. Terrain includes rocky hills and ridges, steep cliffs, pine and deciduous forest, lakes, and numerous beaver ponds, swamps, and marshy areas. Great care should be taken in navigating through this area. No (intentional) swimming.

Cost: $25. Register on or before August 31st to avoid a $10 late fee and to guarantee yourself a pre-printed map.

Questions: Questions concerning payment and registration should be sent to the registrar (see below for email). All other inquiries should go to the race director (jshayka1 @ gmail.com).

Waivers: Minors will need a liability waiver signed by a legal guardian. On-site registration by minors will require the presence of a guardian to sign the waiver if the form has not been filled out in advance. All participants will be required to sign a liability release waiver.