Mount Laguna

  • Date Fri 29th May 2026 - Sun 31st May 2026
  • Time 5:00PM PDT
  • Location Mt Laguna, California
  • Price $10.00 - $30.00
  • Races 7 races

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Event summary

Get ready for an unforgettable outdoor adventure at the Mount Laguna Orienteering Event, taking place from May 29 to May 31, 2026, in the breathtaking Mt. Laguna area of San Diego County! Just an hour east of downtown San Diego, this stunning venue offers a perfect blend of cool pine forests and sweeping mountain views, making it an ideal backdrop for orienteering enthusiasts and nature lovers alike.

Participants can experience a variety of thrilling courses, including the Mountain Bike Orienteering (MTBO) Score-O on both Friday and Saturday, the Traditional Middle Courses on Saturday morning, and exciting Night Courses in the evening. Cap off the weekend with the "Laguna Lark" Score-O on Sunday morning, which promises two hours of navigation challenges. With course options ranging from beginner-friendly to advanced levels, there's something for everyone, whether you're a seasoned orienteer or trying it for the first time. Enjoy camping on-site for a true outdoor experience under the stars, or simply join us for the courses. Don’t miss this chance to embrace the great outdoors and enhance your orienteering skills at the Mount Laguna event!

Organiser's Description

Nestled in the scenic highlands of San Diego County, Mount Laguna is about an hour east of San Diego. It offers sweeping views, cool pine forests, and crisp mountain airan ideal setting for adventure and escape. Our free group campsite puts you right in the heart of this natural beauty, just steps from the orienteering courses. Spend the night under the stars and make the most of your time in the great outdoors. Dont just come for the eventstay for the experience. Camping is available on-site Friday and Saturday nights, or you can just attend the courses.

We have four exciting courses for you:

* Fri & Sat, May 29-30th - MTBO 1-HOUR SCORE-O (Mountain Bike Orienteering)
* Sat, May 30th, 11am - MIDDLE COURSES (Traditional)
* Sat, May 30th, 8pm - NIGHT COURSES (Classic & Motala)
* Sun, May 31st, 10am - "LAGUNA LARK" (2-hour Score-O)

Whether you're a seasoned orienteer or a curious newcomer, there's a challenge waiting for you. Sign up for one, two, or all four courses!

EVENT TEAM:

* Event Director: Tad Gallistel
* Course Setters: Mark Prior, Michael Noblett, Sergey & Misha Biryukov (LAOC), Julien Ouellet

* Visit the Volunteer page [https://runsignup.com/Race/Volunteer/CA/MtLaguna/MountLaguna] to learn how to help with the event.

* See "Volunteer" at the top right of the page.
* Volunteers get up to a $30 credit towards their race registration fee for each event they volunteer for. Register to help all events, your weekend is free.
* Volunteer roles explained in detail [https://www.sandiegoorienteering.org/roles#day-of-event-roles]



FRIDAY, MAY 29TH

MTBO COURSE (Mountain Bike Orienteering)

* Starts: 5pm-6pm
* Format: Score-O MTBO - Mountain Bike Orienteering (see Formats [https://www.sandiegoorienteering.org/formats] for details)
* Map Scale: TBD
* Contours: TBD
* Time Limit: 1 hour
* Course Setter: Mark Prior



SATURDAY, MAY 30TH

MTBO COURSE (Mountain Bike Orienteering)

* Starts: Available 9am-5pm Saturday
* Format: Score-O MTBO - Mountain Bike Orienteering (see Formats [https://www.sandiegoorienteering.org/formats] for details)
* Map Scale: TBD
* Contours: TBD
* Time Limit: 1 hour
* Course Setter: Mark Prior

THE MIDDLE

* Starts: 11am - Noon
* Format: Traditional (see Formats [https://www.sandiegoorienteering.org/formats] for details)

* Map Scale:

* 1:7500 for Beginners
* 1:10000 for Intermediate and Advanced

* Contours: 5m

* Courses:

* Beginner: ~2km
* Intermediate: ~3.3km
* Advanced: ~4.5km

* Time Limit: Two-hour limit - all competitors must return to HQ and download by 2pm so we know you are safe. If you don't check in before you leave, volunteers will search the course to ensure you are not lost - so please check in before you leave.
* Course Setter: Michael Noblett



SDO SKILLS CAMP

Sharpen your orienteering skills between THE MIDDLE and NIGHT courses! We've got hands-on table activities at HQ and short skill-building courses in the field all designed to make you a better navigator. Drop in anytime between 2:00 and 6:00pm.

TABLE ACTIVITIES AT HQ (200PM)

Swing by the activity tables and try your hand at three fun challenges:

* UNDERSTANDING CONTOURS Build small sand hills to match contour shapes on a map. It's surprisingly satisfying (and surprisingly tricky).
* CONTROL LOCATION MATCH Study photos of control flags and match them to the right spot on a map snippet. Train your eye to read the terrain.
* TRAFFIC LIGHT ROUTE PLANNING Plan your route choice on longer legs from courses around the world. Color-code your plan: green for fast running with minimal navigation (like cruising along a clear trail), yellow for moderate pace where you're reading the map more carefully, and red for slow, detailed navigation off-trail near the control.

All three activities come in a range of difficulties great for beginners just getting started and intermediate orienteers looking to level up. The route planning activity also includes some advanced (Red and Blue level) legs for experienced orienteers who want a real challenge.

SHORT SKILL COURSES (STARTS 230PM | COURSES CLOSE 6:00PM)

Head out on four short courses, each focused on building a specific navigation skill. All courses are 11.4km, start and finish at HQ, and use detailed 1:5,000 scale maps.

* ATTACK POINT (TWO COURSES) Find a solid feature near the control, navigate to it, then use it as your launching pad. Take a bearing or navigate through your attack point to nail the control.
* CONTOUR ONLY Every feature on the map is stripped away except contours. Can you navigate using only the shape of the land? There's only one way to find out.
* BEARING Take a compass bearing from each control to the next. Controls are close together and a straight-line route works best pure compass work.

Pick up your map at HQ and talk through your plan before heading out. We recommend groups of 3 or fewer so everyone gets the most out of the experience. Controls have a manual punch you can use on your map if you like. These courses aren't timed it's all about learning, not racing.

Do as many courses as you want within the time window! Beginners, we recommend starting with one of the Attack Point courses first.

warning Please sign yourself in and out at HQ for each course so we know everyone's safe.



NIGHT COURSES

* Starts:

* 8pm Night Classic (Beginner) mass start
* 8:15pm Night Motala (Advanced) mass start
* Note: It's worth having a good headlamp, regardless of the course level.

* Format: (see Formats [https://www.sandiegoorienteering.org/formats] for details)

* The Beginner - Classic - course is suitable for less-experienced orienteers who just want to dip their toes into Night Orienteering without being intimidated by true forest darkness. This Beginner's course will start at dusk and will mostly follow footpaths around the camp.
* Advanced - Motala - recommended for experienced orienteers. The Advanced course will start at sunset in near darkness - a truly key component of Night O.

* Map Scale:

* 1:5000 for Beginners
* 1:7500 for Advanced

* Contours: 5m

* Courses:

* Beginner: ~2km
* Advanced: ~4.5km

* Time Limit: Two-hour limit - all competitors must return to HQ and download by 10:15pm, so we know you are safe. If you don't check in before you leave, volunteers will search the course to ensure you are not lost - so please check in before you leave.
* Course Setter: Sergey & Misha Biryukov (LAOC)



SUNDAY, MAY 31St

LAGUNA LARK

* Starts: 10am mass start
* Format: 2-hour Score-O (see Formats [https://www.sandiegoorienteering.org/formats] for details), with handicap scoring based on age, so everyone has a chance to win!
* Map Scale10000
* Contours: 5m
* Course: One course, all controls worth 1 point. Handicap scoring based on your gender and year of birth. The overall winner will be determined by the percentage of your target score achieved. See the TABLE for the target score based on gender and year of birth.
* Time Limit: Two hours, 2 points deducted every 5 min after 12pm. Course closes at 1pm and all competitors must return to HQ and download. If you don't check in before you leave, volunteers will search the course to ensure you are not lost - so please check in before you leave.
* Course Setter: Julien Ouellet



************************************************

ADMINISTRATIVE DETAILS

* Scoring: Electronic punching [https://www.sandiegoorienteering.org/epunch] will be offered. All participants must bring or rent one. Controls will be AIR+ enabled.
* E-punches: If you don't have your own E-stick, rental electronic punches will be available for $5. (use "000000" when registering).
* Clinics: An introductory clinic will be offered 15 minutes before each event starts. An experienced orienteerer will teach you the basics.
* Registration: All participants must pre-register. All standard SDO registration policies apply.

* Fees:

* If you sign up for all 3 foot events, you get a 20% discount.
* Adults are $30 per foot event. Juniors (under 21) are $15 per event.
* Early bird adults are $25 per event. Juniors (under 21) are $10 per event.
* Early bird discount through midnight, Saturday, May 16th.
* MTBO is $10 for adults, $5 for Juniors. No early bird discount. No multievent discount.

* Closes: Registration will close at 9pm on Thursday, May 28th.
* Entry Limit: Each foot event is limited to 150 participants (MTBO is limited to 40).

DIRECTIONS:

* HQ / Camping location: Wooded Hill Group Campground [https://www.google.com/maps/place/Wooded+Hill+Group+Campground/@32.8507718,-116.4343194,553m/data=!3m1!1e3!4m6!3m5!1s0x80d97977b5da9395:0x81b61a0ae09099ad!8m2!3d32.8510651!4d-116.4333059!16s%2Fg%2F11g0jdpgq_!5m1!1e1?authuser=0&entry=ttu&g_ep=EgoyMDI2MDMxOC4xIKXMDSoASAFQAw%3D%3D]
* Camping Availability: starting late Friday afternoon. Must depart by noon on Monday.
* Parking: plenty of free parking at the campsite area



SAN DIEGO ORIENTEERING: HOME PAGE [https://www.sandiegoorienteering.org/] | EVENTS [https://www.sandiegoorienteering.org/events]

Races

  • MTBO - Mountain Bike Orienteering

    Fri 29th May 2026 (5:00PM PDT)

    $10.00

  • Middle - Beginner

    Sat 30th May 2026 (11:00AM PDT)

    $30.00

  • Middle - Intermediate

    Sat 30th May 2026 (11:00AM PDT)

    $30.00

  • Middle - Advanced

    Sat 30th May 2026 (11:00AM PDT)

    $30.00

  • Night Classic - Beginner

    Sat 30th May 2026 (8:00PM PDT)

    $30.00

  • Night Motala - Advanced

    Sat 30th May 2026 (8:15PM PDT)

    $30.00

  • Laguna Lark Score-O

    Sun 31st May 2026 (10:00AM PDT)

    $30.00

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Location

Wooded Hill Rd, County Rte S1, Mt Laguna, 91948, CA, United States

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