2002 NSS CONVENTION BID

CAMDEN, MAINE

Prepared by:
Peter Jones, NSS #11412
Kevin Harris, NSS #16868

Anemone Sea Cave
Acadia National Park
Mt Desert Island

PROPOSAL

To host the Annual Convention of the National Speleological Society on the week of June 24th through the 28th, 2002 on the campus of the Community School District High School, to be built in time for the 2001-2002 school year on a site on State Route 90, near Camden and Rockport, Maine. Enthusiastic support from the Northeast Region, Boston Grotto, and Camden/Rockport chamber of commerce has already been forthcoming.

LOCATION

Camden is in the scenic, mid-coast area of Maine, on the West side of Penobscot Bay, approximately half way between Maines largest city, Portland, and Acadia National Park on Mt Desert Island. The combination of low, but rugged, mountains, coastal islands, large bays and rivers, and quaint coastal towns makes the Maine coast one of most popular summer vacation destinations in Eastern America. Popular summer recreational activities include boating (white water, sea kayaking, windjammers, day sailing), hiking, antiques and outlet mall shopping, cycling, photography, fishing (both fly and deep sea!), windsurfing, whale watching, golfing and, of course, sightseeing. The late-June schedule is timed to precede the start of the traditional summer season on the 4th of July, with its higher prices.

AVAILABLE FACILITIES

CSD High School

Construction is now proceeding on a large, modern, high school designed to support Camden, Rockport, and 3 other nearby towns. It is located near Rockport and Camden, on Rt 90, about half way between the intersection with Rt 17 and the intersection with US Rt 1, close to a large number of fine motels and B&Bs.

The campground will be located at the spacious Union County Fairgrounds, on Rt 17, about 10 (fast) miles from the school, surrounded on 3 sides by a large stream tributary to the scenic St. George River. The fairgrounds boast a large and level site, with several large structures that can be used for a variety of purposes.

The Howdy Party will take place at the Camden Snow Bowl, with full use of the chair lift to the top of Ragged Mountain, 1050 feet high, with panoramic views of the islands and windjammers in Penobscot Bay.

  1. Classrooms

    The CSD school plans call for approximately 30 ordinary classrooms with 30-50 seats each, a band room, and a wrestling room, each of which can seat 150, and several small classrooms (20 seats) on two floors.

  2. Lecture Halls

    The plans call for an 800 seat auditorium with a large stage, lighting and sound facilities that will serve the needs of the whole community in addition to the school. The auditorium can be used for the popular sessions during the day, as well as the Photo Salon, Auction, Great Debate, and films in the evening. If the auditorium use incurs extra expense, we may try to limit its use to only large events. In addition, there is a large stadium-style classroom that seats 100.

  3. Registration Area

    The main registration area will be the lobby area of the school, which will house the preregistration and daily registration during the week. There may be satellite on-site registration station at the fairgrounds with a computer link to the main site manned during the weekend preceding.

  4. Gymnasium

    The school plans call for a large gymnasium with foldable bleacher seating for several hundred directly adjacent to the auditorium. This should be ideal for the vertical sessions, training and contests.

  5. Photo Salon Facilities

    The main auditorium will be ideal for the photo salon as it will seat 800 and the stage is large enough to accommodate a rear projection system.

  6. Banquet Facilities

    We plan to hold the banquet in the High School gymnasium. The school cafeteria and kitchen can be used for preparation and cleanup. It is only a few steps to the auditorium for post-banquet films or slides.

  7. Secured Rooms

    All of the classrooms are lockable and we will have the services of a janitor full time for securing the rooms used by the vendors.

  8. Exhibition Areas

    The school plans show that hallways, lobbies and extra classrooms will have sufficient space to accommodate the print salon, cartographic salon, and SpeleoArt displays near the sessions and vendors.

  9. Hotels/Motels

    Over 300 rooms in full service motels and hotels are available in the immediate area, with hundreds more within an hour's drive. In addition, 29 quaint Bed and Breakfast inns were operating in the Camden area in 1998, with more opening every year, encompassing over additional 200 rooms. The price range for the corresponding week of the 1998 ran from $65/night (double room in a large motel) to $350/night (suite in a 3 star beachfront resort hotel). While this is expensive compared to many previous conventions, it is modest for an oceanside resort area in the Eastern US. We plan to negotiate a block of rooms at a wholesale rate at one of the larger motels.

  10. Dorms

    Because there are no dormitory accomodation available in the immediate area, we are researching the possibility of offering sheltered housing in some private homes for modest fees.

  11. Campground

    The Union County Fairgrounds is 10 miles west of the CSD High School site. It has an area of approximately 50 acres enclosed on 3 sides by a tributary of the St George River. The site is level, firm, 15 to 20 feet above the stream, with mixed wooded and open areas. It includes 4 large covered structures that can be used by the satellite registration, outdoor vendors, Howdy Party (in case of rain), and bands or slide shows for evening entertainment. There are 50+ RV hookups with water and power for an extra charge of $10/night.

    The fairgrounds owners may choose to provide a limited food service for campers and staff. In the absence of such service, we will solicit other fundraising groups (Rotary, Lions, etc.) to provide limited meals on-site. Additional telephone service will be provided as well. The site does not currently have shower facilities, however the owners have mentioned the possibility of building some during the intervening years. In case these are not complete, we anticipate the need to construct temporary shower facilities instead. The CSD High School showers will be fully available during the week.

    In addition to the fairgrounds, there are several commercial campgrounds in the area which provide more amenities than those available at the fairgrounds.

  12. Eateries

    In 1998, there were 10 take out restaurants and 32 sit-down restaurants in the Camden/Rockport area, many featuring world class seafood and panoramic views of the scenic harbors, with gift shops, antique shops, and galleries only a few steps away. Several local microbreweries operate in the area and are available at many restaurants. Several fast food restaraunts are within a few minutes drive of the CSD High School, and most restaurants in the area are within a 20 minute drive. We will be examining the possibility of offering a meal plan in the cafeteria of the CSD High School itself when the school construction has progressed farther.

  13. Transportation

    Bus service will be provided between the fairgrounds and the High School during weekdays and evenings when events are held at the school. The plan is to run a round trip every 30 minutes on weekdays, with additional hourly service to a central point in Camden itself. Buses between the Snow Bowl and the fairgrounds will run before and after the Howdy Party.

  14. Weather

    Early summer weather can be expected, with extended daylight due to the recent summer solstice and northern location, about 16 hrs per day. Temps in the high 70s in the daytime with lows in the high 40s at night are common. One or two days of rain can be expected, as well as some coastal fog in the early mornings.

  15. Environmental impact

    Pre and Post convention caving camp organizers will be responsible for landowner relations and cave conservation in their areas.

    Very low impact is expected at the campsite, since this site is frequently the source of large gatherings of people and animals. Water pollution will be prevented by the use of portable toilets at the fairgrounds. Trash cans will be distributed around the campground and trash will be collected daily. In the event that we build temporary shower and bathroom facilities, we will obtain any necessary permits for the greywater discharge.

  16. Caving

    Contrary to popular opinion, Maine does have caves! One notable example, Inman Cave (160, and a rope drop), exists right in Camden itself, on the slopes of Mt. Battie. There are scattered lenses of limestone containing small caves in several parts of Maine. There are noted sea caves along the coast, especially in Acadia National Park. In addition, a unique geologic phenomenon, post-glacial uplift, can be seen by exploring former sea caves that now lie several hundred feet above sea level, due to the rebound of the land in response to the removal of the glacial ice 9000 years ago.

    We plan to provide several pre and post convention caving camps along the travel routes to Maine in the Northeast, featuring the nicest and most well known caves. Current plans are to include at least the following areas Cobleskill, NY (limestone), Western MA (limestone and marble), Central VT (marble), NH (tectonic), Maine (limestone and sea), and Eastern Canada (limestone).

  17. Other activities

    We have a letter of intent from the skipper for exclusive use of the windjammer "Northwind" for a series of 2 hour cruises out of Rockland on Penobscot Bay during the week of convention as an official convention activity, included in the cost of registration.

    Almost every form of indoor and outdoor summer recreation can be found within at most a couple hours drive. Camden is an ideal vacation spot for the whole family.

  18. Officers

    and

  19. Staff

    Map showing the route from Augusta to Camden, courtesy Mapquest, Inc.

    The Union Fairgrounds is off Rt 17 approximately at the Rt 131 label. The CSD High School is on Rt 90, just right of the "West Rockport" label.

Budgets