Please pass this notice on to any researchers you feel might be interested!

Crop Circle Investigators' Pre-planning Meeting (2004 Season)

April 2-4, 2004 (Friday after 3:00 pm - Sunday at Noon)

The Crop Circle Investigators Pre-planning Meeting (2004 Season) for all interested crop circle researchers will take place starting at 3 pm, April 2, 2004 through noon, April 4, 2004 at Woodland Altars, located 7 miles northeast of The Great Serpent Mound State Memorial in Locust Grove, Ohio. Woodland Altars is located in an area that is central to the locations of three of last summer's authentic crop circles in Ohio: Locust Grove (near Serpent Mound), Bainbridge (near Seip Mound), and West Union. Woodland Altars is also centrally located to many other Native American sites including Fort Hill, Fort Ancient, Mound City, Leo Petroglyphs, the Miamisburg Mound and many more. Cost is only $65.00 per person for 5 meals, 2 nights stay, talks, local tours, and much more. Anyone with an interest in doing field research of crop circles is invited to attend, though priority is given to researchers on a first come basis since the trip is designed to accommodate only up to 50 people.

Among the topics to be discussed will be: Basic Protocols and Standards for Field Research, Discussion and Workshop of Research Equipment, Review of 2003 USA Crop Circles, A Discussion of the Range of Phenomena Experienced, Discussion of Potential Research Ideas and New Equipment Needs, The organization of the new ICCRA (Independent Crop Circle Researchers Association) network and research center, and much more!

Please join us for what will be a rewarding, collaborative experience to prepare the crop circle research community for this season's crop circle investigative research!

To attend, or for further details, please contact: Jeffrey Wilson (734-891-2689) jeff.wilson@asmnet.com or jwilson10369@comcast.net.

The Woodland Altars "School of Discovery" has been providing quality outdoor education since 1974. The Woodland Altars "School of Discovery" is located on a four-hundred fifty-acre campus which includes a variety of natural habitats. Ecological investigations of a forest, meadow, thicket, prairie, stream and pond are the backbone of the program. Students who come to Woodland Altars learn about the natural world and its processes through observation, discovery and hands-on investigation.

Event Highlights

FRIDAY, April 2:

-Researchers arrive at Woodland Altars any time after 3 p.m.; check-in at Heritage Lodge.

-Facility set up, accommodation arrangements, and social gathering Friday night.

-Dorm stay-over - Dinner 7:00 p.m..

-Coffee, tea, hot chocolate in dining area.

SATURDAY, April 3:

-Breakfast served at 8:30 a.m.

-Workshops and presentations

-Lunch served at Noon.

-Talks and discussion groups.

-Dinner served at 5:30 p.m.

-Evening show: Larry Newnam of New Land Films has agreed to provide a screening of an extended version of the new, feature-length crop circle documentary: CircleSpeak - A Journey To The Heart Of Crop Circle Country This film was three years in the making, and has not yet been released! A one-of-a-kind treat! For more details, go to: http://www.circlespeak.net/

SUNDAY, April 4:

-Breakfast served at 8:30 a.m. for anyone still moving :>)

-Clean up

-Departure from Woodland Altars around 10:00 a.m. for driving/field tour of last year's crop circle sites and notable local Indian Mounds.

Other Notables....

ü The Woodland Altars' Heritage Lodge dorms offer comfortable beds and bathroom facilities but you will need to bring:

-sleeping bag and pillow...there are beds, just no sheets

-towels and toiletries...the showers are hot, just no linens

ü Researchers, you should bring a notebook and writing materials, your research equipment (any meters, devices, gadgets, etc...), and of course, your opinions and ideas - be ready to collaborate, educate, and participate in discussions! Optional items to bring include telescopes, binoculars, cameras, playing cards, snacks, pop, etc... Peebles, Ohio is about 10 minutes from Woodland Altars and offers a delicious selection of restaurant food if you need your fix.

Maps To Woodland Altars: (for those not driving, flights can be made into Cincinnati, Dayton, or Columbus, Ohio airports).
33200 State Route 41
Peebles, Ohio 45660
(937) 588-4411

Also, details of this new network organization for crop circle researchers will be developed at this pre-planning meeting:

Independent Crop Circle Researchers Association

(International) [ICCRA]

The Independent Crop Circle Researchers Association (International) [ICCRA] began as a small cooperative group of individuals in the Midwestern United States who have long pursued serious research into the crop circle phenomenon with the principle of open collaboration. This 'team' of researchers has steadily grown in number, and has now included contributions from members of the crop circle research community from around the world. Although all the researchers in this association are considered independent (and thereby retaining individual ownership of their work), the investigative community has recognized that the study of the various complexities and aspects of the crop circle phenomenon are beyond the abilities and resources of any one researcher or local group to study in sufficient depth. Hence, the need for a cooperative association and network dedicated to the widest and freest possible collection and dissemination of crop circle research.

The ICCRA recognizes the need in the research community to collect and make available as much objectively verifiable knowledge and details about crop circles as possible, and so will continue to study and document crop formations using a scientific framework.

The ICCRA is committed to working cooperatively with local farmers, respecting their property and conditions for granting permission and access to their fields, and can provide experienced consultation as to the ways they can cope with the existence of having a crop circle in their field. We are also committed to working cooperatively with law enforcement agencies to assist them in assessing and investigating reported crop circles, exposing the vandalism of crop circle hoaxers, and assisting with advice on the management of visitors to the crop circle sites.

The ICCRA began as a 'core' group of individuals cooperating as a rapid response team reacting to reports of local crop circles in order to study and document them. The ICCRA has recognized the need to expand the response network to include as many interested researchers as possible. To facilitate this network, the ICCRA has begun a researcher directory so that when a crop circle is reported, the closest local investigators will be notified. This will provide the best opportunity to investigate and document the site, and also gives the wider, international community a contact-resource for information and interaction in real time.

The ICCRA's highest priority is the sharing of information and research with the wider research community. Reporting and sharing of news and field reports of formations is being carried out through www.cropcirclenews.com. To help standardize report information, researcher access to a worldwide crop circle database with professional-level GIS mapping capability is also being developed at this website which will not only document and share the information collected in a systematic manner, but will also provide new research opportunities. This research center will also serve as a depository of information collected on historical sites, scientific reports, photos, previous field reports, the researcher directory, and links to further crop circle resources. Many independent researchers have amassed valuable files over the years regarding this phenomenon. We encourage all such researchers to use this opportunity to enrich the wider community with your archived knowledge, while at the same time retaining ownership and credit for your years of effort. Through the partnership of CropCircleNews, of which a moderate ownership stake has been made available to the ICCRA, limited funds may possibly be made available for primary data collection and documentation of crop circle sites (fieldwork), and subsequent lab work.

All interested researchers, and both new and previously established organizations and networks are invited to join this cooperative and collaborative effort to locate, study, document, and share information about crop circle formations, regardless of each individual's personal hypothesis regarding the source cause of the authentic crop circle phenomenon, or their affiliations with any organizations.