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Field Trips: General Information and Instructions

 
The field trips planned for ARARA 2011 Conference will be conducted in coordination with the BLM Idaho Falls Field Office, the Salmon-Challis National Forest, the Idaho National Laboratories (INL), a private land owner, the city of Pocatello, and the Shoshone-Bannock Tribes. Rock Art sites in Southeastern Idaho are generally spread out over considerable distances and frequently consist of small sequestered remote locations with only a few images that have not held up well to the natural elements. In arranging for the 2011 tours we have worked to find those sites that are larger and within reasonable driving distance for Idaho Falls, and have an interesting array of figures. For this reason we will not offer as many trips as in previous conferences.

Access to most of the sites is easy to moderate. Vehicles with high clearance will work best on the dirt roads. Car pooling will be a necessity. Weather may be “iffy,” so plan on layers, rain gear, and good sturdy shoes, and remember your hat, sunscreen, and camera. Walking sticks may be helpful. Participants are responsible for bringing along plenty of water to ensure healthy hydration. Lunches for day trips will be up to the individual. Box lunches can be purchased by ordering ahead from the Shilo Inn.

All of the 2011 Field Trips are in Shoshone and Bannock ancestral territories and reflect their cultures. We have met with the Shoshone-Bannock Culture Committee regarding our trips and they have been invited to join us if they choose. They do have concerns regarding the increasing traffic many of their sites are experiencing. They would like to keep this problem to a minimum. Therefore we have agreed to have all our field trip attendees sign an agreement to keep all directions and location information confidential, and to refrain from placing any directions or images from the field trips on any social network sites such as Facebook.

Each listing specifies Difficulty Levels as follows: Easy: walking with some rolling hills. Moderate: walking with some steep hills and rocks. Difficult: steep hills and rocks that need to be maneuvered.

PLEASE NOTE that ARARA holds no responsibility or liability for those participating in Conference field trips. Attendance at a pre-trip orientation meeting is required by all field trip participants, where completed liability waiver, medical consent, and site confidentiality forms will be turned in. Each trip roster will be finalized upon completion of waiver and consent forms by participants. Pre-Trip Meeting is Thursday evening, May 26, for Friday Field Trips. Pre-trip meeting for Monday field trips will be announced at the Conference.

Last but not least: if your plans change and you cannot attend your confirmed field trip, inform Carolynne Merrell via e-mail (gamerrell@att.net).