Arrival & Departure Time - Gate Hours The main gate will open at 12pm on Friday August 22nd. We will have multiple staff members there to get you checked in as swiftly as possible. We strongly encourage everyone to arrive between 12pm - 9pm on Friday. The gate will close at 9pm and open again from 10am - 2pm ONLY on Saturday August 23rd. All guests must depart by 8pm on Sunday. Leave No Trace Our host has asked us to make sure everyone attending understands the importance of not leaving a trace. Everyone attending System Activate needs to keep the space 100% devoid of litter. Everything you bring and don’t consume needs to leave with you. Let's create a culture of not littering when we party. We’ll have a dumpster available for the end of the festival to drop off your trash bags. What should I bring? - Tent, sleeping bag, pad, pillow, tarp - Headlamp and extra batteries - Bug spray, sunscreen - Any essential medication or vitamins - A good pair of sneakers and a pair of hiking-like boots - Clothes for about 3 days - Good quality ear plugs - Rain jacket and a light sweater - Reusable water bottle - Food supplies for 3 days - Portable ashtray if you smoke - A blanket or pad for the reintegration - Trash bags to keep your campsite tidy What shouldn’t I bring? - Glitter, feathers, anything on your person that could fall off and be left behind - Firewood - we have a strict no-fire policy, you may not make your own campfire at this event. - Pets - Children - this is a 21+ event Can I drive up to the camping area? No, everything will have to be carried uphill into the forest. If you have an accessibility issue please feel free to contact us to arrange help getting your stuff up into the forest. Will there be parking? We will have two lots for the event. One close-ish to the entrance and the other up the street. Please purchase a parking ticket for the event. Only one pass needed per car. Will food be served? We have secured some lovely food vendors for the event, but only one vendor will be open at a time, and only during certain hours (see below). Please bring enough food & drink for you to make it through the weekend. Small butane camp stoves are allowed at your campsite, but no grills or open fires. There is one hand-pump water spigot on-site and there will be water coolers near the main dance-floor. We strongly encourage every attendee to bring 1-2 extra gallons of water per person or extra water bottles. We will have the Maharaja Spice Food Truck onsite Friday night from 6pm - 9:30pm. This local VT food truck will be crafting their menu to have a delicious majority vegetarian & vegan menu. On Saturday morning from 10am - 2pm we will have Big Boy Bagels serving fresh handmade sourdough bagels & cold-brew. On Saturday night from 5pm - 10pm NYC/Western Mass based PEAK will be serving rice bowls with fresh, local produce and will have a veggie-focused grill and snacks peakramen Eris Drew has been crafting a seriously delicious menu of non-alcoholic drinks & tonics to keep you raving strong all-night long with her Go Liquids! Drink station. Go Liquids! will be open during peak raving hours to fuel & replenish, from Friday 10pm - 4am and Saturday 10pm - Sunday 8am. We are purchasing wifi hotspots so vendors can take card payments, but just in case of technical issues, we encourage you to bring cash. Is anything nearby? Yes there is a small market and a couple of convenience stores maybe a 25 minute walk away plus a grocery store 10 miles away. It’s best to drive to these places. What’s the link to the Discord server for a rideshare? Click here :) Refunds? All ticket sales are final. You are welcome to transfer your ticket to someone else. We will not offer refunds because of rain or cold weather. The event will happen rain or shine. What are Smart Drinks? At the early raves alcohol-free drinks were offered to provide hydration, energy, essential vitamins/minerals, and mental enhancement. The purveyors called them Smart Bars. At System Activate we hope to have (in limited quantities) some combination of maté beverages, fruit juice, protein, electrolytes, vitamin C, B-vitamins, L-theanine, and cacao. It won’t be fancy but we hope our Smart Bar will help enhance your experience. What’s the System Activate policy on alcohol? We want this event to be more like raves in the 1990s at which alcohol was not sold, served, promoted, or used to fund the event. People can bring with them what they like, but we strongly suggest that you try raving without alcohol at System Activate. The Motherbeat raves Eris hosted before Covid were alcohol-free and all the more special for it. The point of this event is in no small part for it to feel different than your typical party, club night, or festival. Does this party intend to serve any particular types of people or communities specifically? No. It is a rave open to all kinds of people. We only ask that you come with empathy for others, an awareness of your own limited perspective, and kindness towards this endeavor in your hearts. If you care what the person next to you looks like or dresses like, this isn’t the event for you. If you don’t want to be around people different from you, please don’t come. The core team is trans but we count among our friends and peers many kind souls that do not share our lived experience. Let us be clear, however, we will have a safety team. They will be there to help address any inappropriate conduct quickly and seriously. We reserve the right to ask you to leave if you are making anyone uncomfortable or doing anything lousy to a person or group. Tickets are expensive, what are you doing with the money? - DJ Fees, transport, and lodging - Site Rental (including staff and volunteer headcount) - Porta Potties - Equipment including generators, lighting, tarps, etc - Staff including sound team, front of house, light crew and safety team - Polaris Rental - Insurance - Smart Drink ingredients and equipment for brewing and storage - Graphic designer / artist Any remaining funds generated over our budget will be completely re-invested into next year's event. Is there Wi-fi / cell service? Phone service is a bit spotty at our location, we wouldn’t count on having service. There will be no wi-fi available. How do we treat plants and animals? The forest is their home not ours. If you see a bug let it live. Please don’t stress out the trees by pulling on low branches or climbing on delicate branches. If you see moss on a rock don’t step on it unless you must for safety reasons. Please don’t swim in the creek. Are there ticks in August? Ticks are present in these forests. If you get one immediately go to the safety team area. There are two types, only one is dangerous (because of lyme disease). The faster you get it off you the better so periodically check yourself and your friends (including their scalp). If you don’t have a friend you are comfortable asking, just stop by harm reduction and we’ll give you a “once-over.”