The Hoosier Woodlands Meet will be held on the Story West map in Hoosier National Forest.  This is a bare-bones OUSA-sanctioned National Ranking Event with full range of competitive age-class long courses plus Recreational Open long courses (white, yellow, orange).  

Location:  Nebo Ridge North Trailhead in Hoosier National Forest near Story, IN.  888 W Elkinsville Rd, Nashville, IN 47448

Course Setters:  Mattias and Alex Eriksson

Mapper:  Robert Minto

Event Director:  Brenda Blacklock

Registration Fees and Dates:  To come

Course Details:

Course Classes           Length (km) Climb (m)   Map Scale

White F/M-10, F/M-12,         1.5 km       50 m 1:10,000

Open/Rec White

Yellow F/M-14,             3 km 50 m 1:10,000

    Open/Rec Yellow

Orange F/M-16,             4 – 5 km       140 m 1:10,000

Open/Rec Orange

Brown F-18             3 – 4 km 120 m     1:10,000

F-55+, F-60+     1:7,500

F/M 65+, F/M 70+

F/M 75+, F/M 80+

Green M-18, F-20

F-35+, F-40+, F-45+           5 – 6 km     160 m           1:10,000

F/M-50+, 

M-55+, M-60+

Red F-21+           8.5 km       330 m             1:10,000*

M-20

M-35+, M-40+, M-45+

Blue M-21+           10.5 km   500 m             1:10,000*

*  1:15,000 scale maps will be available for National Team members upon request.  Please make a comment in the registration comments.

Mapper Notes:

The Story West map was mapped as a COVID project beginning in 2020 by Robert Minto and has been updated in early 2025 to include vegetation and point features to the 2017 ISOM standard.  

• Mapped at 1:10,000 with 5 m contours

• Rootstocks, generally over 1 m in height, are mapped (symbol 115 - brown triangle) 

• Old rootstocks with minimal root wood exposed are mapped as dot knolls.

• A dashed green vegetation boundary frequently indicates edge of largely pine forest.

In the cooler months of the year, Story and Story West are fun, generally open running.  Most of the deeper woods and steep hillsides of Hoosier National Forest are white or light green.  The transition from white to light green is often very subtle; this map was created with an eye to the runnability in September or early May when areas with saplings will impede your vision. 

Southern Indiana forests typically have more than a bit of greenbriar, infrequent raspberry/briar patches, and uncommon multiflora bushes (thorn-resistant leg cover is a way better plan than shorts).  Mapping of the sharp vegetation with green bars focused on areas where it was less avoidable and mostly knee-high or greater.  Where it might significantly affect choices on ridges and in valleys, it is mapped with vertical green lines.  In some of the more dense areas of vegetation, briars are indicated in two ways.  First, scattered bushes are shown as green bars.  Denser patches, occasionally head high, are shown by tight green bars; they collect tariffs in blood.  Areas of dense medium and dark green vegetation has the potential be spiky too!  Fight and double green bars will definitely lower your fun quotient!

Contours (5 m with some formlines) are smoothed partially redrawn, KP contours from 2017 state LIDAR.  Shallow ditches and reentrant basins that have active erosion tracks but are dry, except in heavy rain, are dotted ditches.  Gullies are occasionally used for steeper sections of ditches/reentrants.  Intermittent streams are rockier and will be wet in the spring.

Earthbanks along streams were rarely mapped, and only if they were large and too steep to pass.  The N edge of the map is bordered by Salt Creek.  Unless it is flooded, it has very high unmapped earth banks and a very mucky bottom.  Stay out of it!  Many of the flowing streams also have unmapped 1-2 m banks, particularly at bends.  

Expect that rock features, cairns, and erosion gullies are often much smaller than standard.   Small rock bands were mapped if they were distinct, even if they are minor.  Although most of the cliffs are small, the E edge of the map has some that we don’t want you falling off!

The forest has patches of transitional forests with pines planted for erosion control reaching their lifespan; also, the area has had several major wind events in the past 5 years.  Most rootstocks, mapped as brown triangles, are >1 m high.  Many recently fallen treetops appear as medium to dark green patches.  Dot knolls may be small hills or the mostly earthy remains of rootstocks and may only be 0.5-m high on the leading edge.

Brown County has had many homesteads prior to 1940 disappear into the woods.  It is good land for orienteering but a tough life for a farmer!   There may be faint ruins, beds of daffodils, and wells.  Mapped deep wells and cisterns (blue squares) are generally covered; show care around the many smaller mapped wells, which have narrow openings.  Black X is used for old junk piles, large tires, cars, and substantial but solitary fence posts and survey markers.  Ruined fences are not navigable but can be trip hazards.

Tick season comes early to southern Indiana and we’ve already seen ticks in Indianapolis.  Treating shoes, socks, and other clothing with permethrin is the best way to avoid them.  Always do a tick check after your run.

Volunteers: We're always looking for help at our meets. The bigger the volunteer pool, the more events we can host each year. If you can lend a hand, please contact us at info@indyo.org.