This is a weekend-long trip, with a mandatory pre-trip meeting on Tuesday, Feb 18th at 7 pm in person at the MITOC gear office. There will also be trip-specific pre-trip meetings (TBD depending on the trip). Please only sign up if you can commit to the full weekend and pre-trip meetings. Please don't sign up unless you're sure you won't have to drop after the lottery runs, late drops make logistics difficult and take spots away from people who otherwise could have attended

The lottery will run on Sunday, Feb 16 at 6 pm and we will notify those on the trip. If you are on the wait-list we will notify you if space becomes avaliable. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

What's a winter circus? Have you been wanting to get outside since winter school? Want to come hang out with some awesome people? Then join us for an open cabin weekend at Camelot from Saturday, Feb 22nd through Sunday, Feb 23rd for two days of hiking, xc skiing, and fun!

Winter Circus works differently from a summer circus. Trips are all planned in advance and most logistics will be trip specific. However, everyone will sleep at the cabin Saturday night, and we'll have a group dinner and a chance to hang out and see friends! Everyone will either help cook or clean, and we'll have plenty of time to hang out, meet new people, and enjoy the Camelot cabin.

We'll be out in winter conditions and following all our normal winter condition rules. Trips will be determined at a MANDATORY pre-trip meeting, on Tuesday evening Feb 18th. You will know both your trips before you leave for the weekend and will be able to plan gear accordingly.

Logistics Circus will be around 30-40 people depending on how many folks want to sleep outside. Trips will be mainly B level hiking and xc ski trips. We might also have some chill skill focused fun trips (think, building a show shelter, sledding, etc). We don't expect to have any AT ski, Ice, or above treeline trips. All participants must have attended the two mandatory lectures, and at least one winter school trip, this past year. Leaders will decide what trips they want to run and then everyone will be able to self-sort into trips at the pre-trip meeting.

Rideshare We'll coordinate a rideshare, you'll most likely drive up with your Saturday trip and down with your Sunday trip. Most trips will choose to leave from Boston Saturday morning. Depending on the timing and location of your Saturday trip others may choose to drive up Friday night and start from Camelot.

Costs If you are selected by the trip lottery, pay the trip fee. See the table below to determine your fee. You can pay it here: https://mitoc.mit.edu/pay. If you have desk credit, you may also pay using that.

• All students -> $30
• Non-Students -> $50
• If you are a driver driving others both to and from Boston and/or if you are actively organizing and leading a trip -> Subtract $10 from your fee (up to $20 if you're doing both)

The fee helps to cover: group gear, WS fee, personal gear rentals, breakfast food and dinner on Saturday, cabin upkeep, and White Mountain National Forest permits.

Note: All gear rental is included in your trip fee, as long as you return the gear during office hours the week after circus. You will still need deposit checks to rent anything.

*There are no refunds, so paying is a commitment to join the trip. Don't pay your trip fee until you are guaranteed a spot! *

Please also budget $20-35 each way ($40-70) total to split between your drivers, to reimburse for gas, toll fees, maintenance, etc. If you are an MIT undergrad, we now have the ability to help with gas costs, please reach out if you’d like to take advantage of this assistance.

Please do not let cost be a reason not to attend. MITOC is committed to making the outdoors equally available to all our members and has waivers for the trip and membership fees. Contact the Circus chairs if you would like to request a fee waiver.

Camelot Camelot is a rustic cabin near Rumney, NH. It has limited electricity, a wood stove for heating, and no running water. Please bring plenty of water - we recommend at least 5-6 L for the weekend.

Sleeping Camelot can sleep about 20 people in the heated portion of the cabin (it gets very warm) a few folks can fit in the unheated kitchen, and there is plenty of room to camp outside if you'd like to try out your winter sleep system.

We may have someone organize a "learn to sleep outside in winter" crew if there is enough interest.

Questions If you have any questions or comments email Dheepak, Janey and Eva at circus-chair@mit.edu