NOVA Annandale | Geology | Bentley | Shenandoah planning essentials
GOL 135: Geology of Shenandoah National Park, Virginia
meeting time and place

Gather at 7:45 AM in the parking lot behind the CT Building, Annandale Campus (red dot on map). If the weather is inclement, move to indoor stairwell. (Directions to the campus) After completing a couple of medical & liability forms, we will depart the parking lot at 8:00 AM, sharp. If you show up at 8:01 AM, you will miss the trip
weather

Field trips go on the original planned date or on the rain date. The instructor will e-mail students at their NOVA e-mail accounts if he decides to postpone the trip until the rain date.

what to bring
Notepad and pen / pencil.
(I recommend Rite-In-The-Rain waterproof field notebooks, especially if you're planning on taking more geology field trips in the future. Buy them from the Rite-In-The-Rain website, or Amazon.)
Water or other beverage
A bag lunch. (Be sure to consider the durability of the lunch items before you stuff them into your daypack!)
Hat, rain gear, & shoes suitable for walking on slippery or rocky terrain.

Sunglasses & sunblock

Clothing appropriate for the expected temperatures in the region. If you are susceptible to poison ivy, be sure to wear long pants and a long-sleeved shirt.

A copy of your current medical insurance card.

travel

Student carpools (+ NOVA vans), organized at the meeting place. Note that we do a lot of driving in the morning on this trip, a solid 2 hour chunk of roadtime before our first stop.

extra fees

Shenandoah charges an entrance fee, typically $8 per person (for a week). I usually secure a waiver from this fee, but it's better to come prepared to pay it. In addition, if you are riding in a private vehicle, contributing towards the cost of gas will be appreciated by the driver.
time of return

Around 7 p.m.
collecting Shenandoah National Park is a protected area, and no sample collecting is allowed within the park.
note The field trip is an open-air class. It involves moderately strenuous exercise and requires attention to a spoken commentary. Only registered students may attend. Do not bring pets, children or other companions.
withdrawing If you enroll in this class but then do not show up on the day of the trip for whatever reason, you should un-enroll from the class (by logging into MyNOVA and withdrawing) before midnight on the day of the trip. Unfortunately, if you do not withdraw before midnight on the day of the trip, the computer system will not let you withdraw at all -- attempting to do so will result in an automatic "F" being assigned as your grade by the computer. By signing up for this class, you take responsibility for withdrawing yourself in the event that circumstances prevent you from attending the trip.

Shenandoah trip | Callan Bentley