Appalachian Gathering 2012: For those flying to the gathering

Where in the Appalachian Bioregion are we going?

Where in the Appalachian Bioregion are we going? The consensus was for the White Mountain National Forest (in the Northeast), or the Appalachian states of Kentucky, North Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia, Georgia. Spring Council selected a site in North Eastern Tennessee.

If you're not familiar with the gauntlet on the road into the gathering, and want to avoid a mandatory court appearance ticket click here.

For the Howdy Folks and directions to the gathering, click here. For the United States Forest Service Incident Command website with groovy maps and updates, click here.

Tuesday, May 22, 2012

For those flying to the gathering

I have it from a reliable source that flying into Knoxville, Tennessee would put a person within a few hundred miles of the sites that are under serious consideration for this year's gathering. Keep in mind that I used plural as in multiple sites are still under consideration. The location of Spring Council is not finalized yet and may be a bit further.

As always, Spring Council could go wild and wacky, but ......

Updated 6/13/12
Yup, Knoxville is the closest major airport at about 150 miles from the site. There is a regional airport about 100 miles closer called the Tri Cities Regional Airport in Tennessee and they have a website.

3 comments:

AnonymousMay 24, 2012 at 5:26 AM
ah yes! driving to tennessee tuesday! hopefully ill be close when the spring council location is announced. getting antsy! :) thank you for the update!!!!

ps if ANYONE can help two lovely ladies drive from signal mountain, TN to spring council please call me ! 561 665 1456
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RickMay 31, 2012 at 2:16 PM
Hi Karin,

With spring council in Monongahela, are you still recommending flying into Knoxville for the gathering? Charleston seems much closer.

Thanks.
Rick
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Getting into the gathering without getting a mandatory court appearance ticket

Getting into the gathering without getting a mandatory court appearance ticket
Every year the United States Forest Service Law Enforcement (USFS) Incident Management Team (the cops) attempts to write as many tickets to family coming home as they possibly can to justify their presence. They give out tickets for broken tail lights, failure to use a turn signal in a deserted parking lot at 2 AM, lack of seat belts, controlled substances (even just a trace amount), beads hanging from your rear view mirrors, prescription medications if the label doesn't clearly have your name on it and you can't prove who you are, dogs off leash, a vehicle missing a front license plate even if you live in a state that does not issue a front license plate and a lot more violations of the letter of the law.

However, these tickets are not the type of citation you would probably receive for any of these issues in your hometown. These are mandatory court appearance tickets. There will be special court dates set up just for us, so we can go to the local courthouse, fire station or visitors center and go before a magistrate. In the past, charges have been reduced, fines were often minimal and the court has allowed people to make payment plans ranging from 90 days to pay $75 to 18 months to pay $25 depending on the hardship cases people have expressed.

If you do not show up for your mandatory court appearance on the date indicated on your ticket, a Federal Bench Warrant will be issued for your arrest. Then the USFS LEOs will come into the gathering looking for you. If they find you they will arrest you and put you in jail until the next court date. If this happens on a Friday afternoon, you will be in jail until Monday. If they do not find you at the gathering, the next time a law enforcement officer for any reason stops you, your ID will be run through the database and you will go directly to jail.

Of course, everyone is free to manage this situation as they wish but I strongly recommend you go to your court date. I have seen people charged with crimes that could potentially result in a six years sentence walk out with a $500 fine and three years’ probation. Keep in mind that every year the dynamic is different and these results may not always be available. There are lawyers at the gathering (I am not a legal expert) who attend the court dates and will assist as best they can although I recommend you catch up with them before your court date to gain a better understanding of your specific charges and strategies to get the charges dropped or reduced. If you do not know these people personally, go to INFO and let them know you received one of the magic tickets and you need legal assistance.