Come spend a weekend in New Hampshire hiking, climbing, eating, roasting marshmallows, and hanging out around a campfire!

What's a Circus?

Circuses are a weekend of hiking and climbing trips based out of MITOC's Camelot cabin in Groton, NH. It's a great way to meet fellow outdoorsy folks and check out the White Mountains. We will provide breakfast Saturday and Sunday, dinner Saturday, s'mores materials, gear rentals, and volunteers to lead trips on Saturday and Sunday.

I'm interested! Now what?

1. Become a MITOC member if you aren't one already. Benefits include being able to rent super-cheap gear, stay in our cabins, come on trips like this, and more. You become a member by signing a waiver and paying the annual membership fee ($15 for students, $20 for MIT affiliates, $25 for others.) You can do both here.

2. Sign up for the trip on this page before noon on Tuesday, September 19. Signups will be done using a random lottery, so it doesn't matter whether you sign up now or right before the deadline. The number of people that can join will depend on the number of leaders who sign up and the number of people who own or are willing to rent cars.

3. Show up to the pre trip meeting on Wednesday, September 19 at 6pm in the MITOC office W20-461. We'll discuss logistics, then you can rent any gear you need. If you're renting gear, please bring a checkbook to put down a security deposit. If you don't have checks, find a friend who does. All gear rental is included in your circus fee, as long as you return the gear during office hours the week after circus. The meeting will be required if you have not been to a circus before and optional for everyone else.

4. Pay the trip fee. The cost is $20 for MIT students, $30 for all others. It covers gear rentals, breakfast Saturday and Sunday, dinner on Saturday, cabin upkeep, and White Mountain National Forest permits. MITOC does not profit from circus trip fees. 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! You can pay the trip fee here. Please do not let cost be a reason not to attend. MITOC is committed to making the outdoors equally available to all of our members and has waivers available for the trip and membership fees. Fill out this form if you require a fee waiver.

Schedule

Friday, September 21: Carpool up to the cabin. It takes about 2.5 hours to get to Camelot without traffic, so most people will leave between 6 and 7 PM. Everyone should plan to be at the cabin by 10 PM, when we meet to plan hiking and climbing trips for Saturday.

Saturday, September 22: Hiking and climbing trips in the White Mountains! Yay! Everyone will return to the cabin Saturday night, and we'll cook dinner, roast marshmallows, and plan trips for Sunday.

Sunday, September 23: Clean up the cabin in the morning. More trips. You return directly to Boston/Cambridge after your Sunday trip; return time varies depending on the length of your trip.

MITOC is not a guide service. We are an all-volunteer organization dedicated to helping the MIT community enjoy the great outdoors. Circuses are possible due to efforts from volunteers, trip leaders, drivers offering to carpool, and flexibility from everyone.

Questions?

Contact circus-chair@mit.edu