Who May Participate

Teams must register on-line. A team is a family unit consisting of at least one adult and one minor 16 years old or younger. We encourage the entire family to participate in all Park Quest activities. Registration is limited to 1,000 Teams. Team members may not be employees or dependents of employees of the Maryland Department of Natural Resources or Park Quest corporate sponsors in order to be eligible for prizes. The facilities and services of the Maryland Department of Natural Resources are available without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, national origin, or physical or mental disability. It is the participant’s responsibility to have the necessary skills, and equipment for a safe and environmentally sensitive visit.

Park Quest Season

The Park Quest season for 2012 will be from May 26, 2012 through September 3, 2012.

Cost

There is no cost to participate in this program. Teams who are planning overnight stays in state park campsites or cabins must pay the appropriate reservation service charges. Overnight accommodations in Maryland State Parks can be reserved through this website at: http://reservations.dnr.state.md.us.

Registration

Registration for Park Quest 2012 will begin on May 14, 2012. Complete all registration materials on-line at the DNR website at www.dnr.maryland.gov/parkquest.

Teams must agree to the Liability Waiver and Photo Waiver on-line prior to completing registration.

Questions may be addressed to:
Barbara Knisely
Maryland Park Service
E-mail: bknisely@dnr.state.md.us
Phone: 410-260-8169 (Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.)

After submitting the registration on-line, teams will be issued a Park Quest Passport. Upon receipt of the Passport, teams will write their team name on the Passport. The Passport provides teams access to the Park Quests sites and activities.

Park Quest Passport

The Passport is presented upon arrival at any staffed Park Quest site to gain access to materials needed to complete the Quest. At self-directed sites, place the Park Quest Passport on your dashboard in plain view (remember to take a pen and paper with you at self-directed sites so that you can record clue information to be written in your passport). The Park Quest Passport provides the team with free access to day-use facilities on the day of the team’s Quest. For additional services such as camping, teams will be subject to applicable service charges. You must maintain and present the original Passport issued upon registration with all applicable endorsements to be eligible to register for the Rendezvous events.

Quests

There are 23 Quests for 2012. Quest instructions can be downloaded from the DNR website beginning in late April. Teams must complete their Quest by following the Quest instructions and answering all the questions on the Quest form. Completed Quests are verified by Maryland Park Service staff and the team’s Passport is endorsed. Participants will then log their successful completion of a Quest on the Park Quest website located at www.dnr.maryland.gov/parkquest. The local Maryland Park Service employee will log the team’s name and number, acknowledging completion of the Quest on the facilitie's Park Quest log. Quests can be completed in any order.

Park Quest Rendezvous

Teams that successfully complete 10 of 23 Quests by September 3, 2012 are eligible to compete in the Park Quest Rendezvous on September 29, 2012 in the Pickall Area of Patapsco Valley State Park, located in Howard County. Teams must present their original Park Quest Passport and have all endorsements and applicable activities to verify completion of 10 Quests in order to register for the Rendezvous events. Finalists will be notified by email of their eligibility based on the logged number of completed Quests on the Park Quest website. A completed Passport must also be presented at the Rendezvous registration as the final factor confirming eligibility to compete in the Rendezvous activities.

The Rendezvous event will include a mixture of physical and memory-oriented competitions, festival activities, vendors, and family oriented programming. Tickets will be given out for a select number of competitions and programs, to be entered into a raffle for prizes. The number of tickets submitted determines the odds of winning. Teams will only be able to compete in an event once during the Rendezvous. In addition to competitions, door prizes will be awarded during the Rendezvous event. Teams must be registered for the Rendezvous and be present as a team on-site to be eligible for the door prizes.

Accessibility

Park Quests can be physically challenging. Persons with disabilities can be accommodated with advance notice. Contact the facility directly at least one week prior to the day you want to complete your Quest and request assistance.

Photos and Team Entries

Park Quest teams are invited to document their Quest experiences on the Maryland Park Service "Park Quest" Facebook page. All photos and entries become the property of the Maryland Department of Natural Resources (DNR) and may be used to promote or document the activities of the Maryland DNR and/or the Maryland Park Service.