Unit Leaders Guide-Transportation and Parking

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Guide for District Unit Leaders

III. Encampment logistics

Transportation and Parking.

Transportation of campers to Mount Vernon on Friday

a.	General principles. All campers (both youth and adult) participating in the MVE should arrive with their district units at prearranged times on Friday evening. Because parking will be scarce, district unit leaders should arrange carpools and vanpools that will enable campers to come with as few vehicles as possible, and those vehicles ideally should be driven by parents or other adults who will take the vehicles home as soon as campers and gear have been offloaded. At no time during camper drop-off on Friday will drivers be able to leave their vehicles; as soon as vehicles are unloaded, they must be removed. Police will be present to ticket drivers who leave their vehicles unattended or who do not move them off the estate when requested. The only parking available for campers on Friday evening and Saturday will be at a school about a mile away from the campsite, so adult campers parking their vehicles will not be able to participate in the initial set-up of their unit's campsite.
b.	Directions to Mount Vernon. A link to this page provides access to directions to Mount Vernon from all directions. All drivers will be coming on one of three routes (George Washington Parkway from the east, Mount Vernon Highway from the north, and Mount Vernon Memorial Parkway from the west) that converge on an intersection beside a large traffic circle in front of the Mount Vernon Inn. From the four-way stop sign, circle about 40% of the way around the traffic circle (passing the Main Gate to Mount Vernon on your right) and bear right to enter the public parking area. Proceed to the right aisle through the parking lot until you reach a gate where you will make a sharp turn to the right to proceed on a road that parallels the brick wall you passed on your way through the lot. Toward the end of the road will be designated areas where campers and gear should quickly be unloaded. Unit leaders will be given gate passes for all drivers by November 1. Those passes must be used by drivers when they bring campers and gear. (Separate passes will be required for those drivers seeking to park their vehicles at Mount Vernon High School.) The gate passes will indicate the drop-off area that the unit will use. Drivers should proceed to the drop-off area and have campers unload gear quickly and carefully. As soon as gear is unloaded, drivers should drive straight ahead the same road, following directions of MVE staff to exit the estate through a different gate.
c.	Designation of targeted camper drop-off times. In order to facilitate smooth unloading of gear, units are asked to arrive at Mount Vernon during one of three time periods. In general, those districts closest to Mount Vernon should arrive at Mount Vernon during the first time periods (6:00-6:15 PM), those districts somewhat farther away should aim to arrive during the second (6:45-7:00 PM), and those farthest away should aim to arrive during the third (7:30-7:45 PM). A link lists tentative drop-off times for all districts. Districts seeking to alter their times should contact MVE Traffic and Security Director Richard Kline as soon as possible to request a change. (Richard may be reached by e-mail at r2kline@gateway.net or by phone at 301/856-1230 (home) or 703/808-3012 (work).)
d.	Drop-off of gear earlier on Friday. Those units wishing to drop off gear (but not campers) earlier on Friday may do so after 2:00 PM if they have obtained a special pass by Monday, November 1, from MVE Traffic and Security Director Richard Kline. Units choosing to bring gear early should be aware that it must be unloaded and placed in a drop-off location when it is brought to the campsite, and it will remain open and unattended until the unit's campers arrive that evening. (Admission to the estate will be restricted, but we cannot guarantee the safety of any gear brought early.) As soon as the gear is unloaded, the vehicle that brought it must be removed from the estate. No vehicles or trailers may be left on the estate or in any of the public parking areas.
e.	All drivers and riders must use seatbelts. In accordance with BSA policies, all individuals bringing Scouts and adults leaders to and from the MVE must wear seat belts at all times that the vehicles in which they are riding are in motion.

Transportation of campers from Mount Vernon on Sunday

a.	General principles. The pick-up of campers and gear on Sunday morning will be handled in a somewhat similar manner to the Friday evening drop-off, although there will be some crucial differences, foremost of which is the fact that units will be expected to move their gear to designated pick-up points in the eastern public parking area (the parking area that vehicles passed through when they dropped campers off on Friday). No vehicles will be allowed onto the estate on Sunday, excepts for limited cases based on special medical needs for which prior approval has been given by MVE Traffic and Security Director Richard Kline.
b.	Designation of camper pick-up areas. Each district will be assigned a designated drop-off area in the East public parking area. Campers will move their gear to these areas after the closing ceremony and will form pack lines designed to allow vehicles to be loaded quickly and efficiently. Drivers bringing vehicles from home (and those retrieving their vehicles from nearby schools) should drive to the designated pick-up areas during designated pick-up times, with vehicles loaded and driven away as quickly as possible.
c.	Designation of targeted camper pick-up times. Three time periods will be designated for the pick-up of campers and gears based on the location of the district. Those units that had to travel the farthest distance to Mount Vernon should aim to pick up campers and gear at 9:30 AM; those in an intermediate ring should aim to arrive at 10:00 AM for pick up, and those closest to Mount Vernon should arrive at 10:30 AM. All campers and gear should be loaded and heading away from Mount Vernon by 11:00 AM.

Parking at Mount Vernon

a.	General principles. No campers will be able to park vehicles on the estate grounds or in public parking areas at Mount Vernon during the MVE, particularly on Friday evening and all day Saturday. District unit leaders should do everything reasonably possible to arrange for transportation to and from Mount Vernon in vehicles that do not require parking near the estate. Those vehicles that campers must be leave near the estate during the weekend will be parked by their drivers at the Mount Vernon High School parking lot, which is about one mile north of the estate. Shuttle vans/buses will carry drivers between those lots and the estate during set hours on Friday evening and Sunday morning. Drivers leaving their vehicles must display a parking permit in the front windshield while it is parked in a school lot.
b.	Parking at Mount Vernon High School. Campers seeking to leave their vehicles at the Mount Vernon High School must obtain parking passes through their District Encampment Coordinator, who will obtain them from MVE Traffic and Security Director Richard Kline.
c.	Shuttle vans/buses between Mount Vernon and Mount Vernon High School. Shuttle bus service will be offered between the encampment area at Mount Vernon and Mount Vernon High School on Friday evening from 6:00 to 9:30 PM and on Sunday morning from 7:30 to 10:30 AM. Shuttle vans/buses should only be used by the drivers of vehicles parked at the school; passengers should remain at the estate.

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This site is provided as a service to Scouts and Scouters by the Colonial District, NCAC, BSA, which includes George Washington's Mount Vernon. Although not an official site of the NCAC, BSA, or Mount Vernon, the site is maintained by Tom Baerwald, who has been appointed by the NCAC to direct the Mount Vernon Encampment, so information should be reasonably accurate.