Multi-cache Means Never having to Describe Your GZ

April 21st, the day after the cachtastic cachathon on the 20th, was just as exciting as the day before. Unfortunately both Colette and myself had work so we couldn't stay out as long as we wanted, but the weather was fantastic and we had a good hike! My mother came with us on this outing and I believe this was the straw that has resulted in her getting her own GPS for geocaching!

Hog Island Fun
Our first stop was another cache hidden at a boat launch. Like I said in our last post we all really enjoy these and this one was no exception. As opposed to all the other caches we've found at boat launches this one was magnetic which made finding it tricky. After we picked it up and Co signed it we made our way to the edge of the water and did some skipping.

Pieces of Rail and Goldilocks and the three...oops..TWO Bears
Way back up north in Alburgh we stopped to the Recreational Rail Trail to attempt two multi-caches. This would be the first attempt at these since we stumbled upon them the first time we went caching. The basics of a multi-cache are simple. The coordinates in the GPS do not lead to the cache itself, they lead to step one. Step one is either coordinates to another location or a puzzle piece that, once solved, gives you the coordinates. Multi-caches can be any length but the two we did today were five and three steps. Typically the purpose of a multi-cache is to show the cacher the area or help them explore the terrain. These two caches took us on the majority of the rail trail and we clocked in close to five miles.

It's kind of hard to describe the events that took place because most of it consisted of walking on a very well defined and maintained trail, but we did see some interesting wildlife. We started Pieces of Rail and half way through it started Goldilocks. Pieces of Rail consisted of several puzzles where we had to use the environment to solve them. Goldilocks was more traditional, as it had us go to another coordinate where we found a cache that led us to the next. Both caches were very fun. Pieces of Rail also resulted in us logging our first Benchmark.
Benchmarks are markers or metal discs that surveyors use. Each has it's own serial number and as a result discovering them can be tracked on Geocaching.com. None of us knew much about them, but that didn't matter because Zoey ended up finding it! The final Goldilocks cache was full of goodies, unfortunately Pieces of Rail was not. While the swag is not the reason we go caching it is fun to find interesting stuff. As a result we've decided to start carrying more things with us so that others can have great swag to choose from!

Super Cachetastic 2: The Vermontining

April 20th was a big day of caching for us. No 400+ cache runs for us, but plenty of neat places to visit. After crossing the lake we ended up in Vermont. No time to delay, there's caches on them there islands!

Arguably "The Best Sunset"
We've noticed that a lot of caches are hidden near or in boat launches. There's nothing wrong with that, because there's lots of good things about them being hidden there. There is typically not many muggles around, there is always parking and they're right next to the lake! The cache's name is about a debate between the cache owner and their friends about who's lake sunset is better. Unfortunately we didn't get to see a sunset, but we did get to see a geocache!

Gateway
Before getting to Gateway we stopped by the Grand Isle Rec Park and tried to get a cache there. There was a muggle there the whole time, cleaning his lawn mower right next to the cache. We decided that we would try a nearby area first and then come back.

Gateway is located on the gate to Grand Isle State Park. It's a micro and didn't take us too long to find it. By this time Zaiden was strapped to my back so Co did most of the searching. This also makes two consecutive caches in a row with no picture. Frowny Face :(

Juniper Thicket and Cedar Grove
There's a trail in Grand Isle Park that has a neat name that I do not remember. On this trail is two caches that are hidden but not hidden. They're hidden as in they can't be found without looking, but they're not hidden as in they aren't hard to find once you know where to look. Both of these caches reside in areas based on their names. As such you can not see the actual cache from the path. Colette tried her luck with the first cache and was successful. The trees are so thick that it took her longer to get to and from the cache than it did to sign the log book and swap swag.
The same goes for me when I went after Cedar Grove. My time spent bushwhacking in times past came in handy for this cache. It's just like riding a bike! We saw some really cool things on the trail as well. The peak of the trail is on an exposed rocky region. There was also animal trails from deer and probably coyote. At the end there was a tower with a beautiful view of the nearby mountains. This entire hike was very enjoyable!

Tree Island and High and Dry
There is a road that runs from West to East through Grand Isle State Park. Unfortunately the road was blocked off, which I guess they do during the off season. So we packed the kids onto the stroller and started hoofing it. Both sides of the road are pretty well covered with trees, until the right side opens to a large field. In the open field is a small cluster of trees. An island of trees, if you will. According to the cache's log there is a Letterbox right near it and they warn cachers to not mistake it for the cache. Letterboxing is similar to Geocaching. They consist of logs and a rubber stamp hidden in a box somewhere, but as opposed to geocaching a GPS is not used. Instead hints are given as to the letterbox's location and that's how you find them. Once you've found it you stamp your log with the box's stamp and do to same with your stamp to it's log. Fortunately for us we didn't look hard enough in the wrong spot and only found the cache we were after!

The second cache was just down the road from the first. I tried to find it first but the GPS just didn't want to cooperate. Colette then gave it a shot and was successful. She said that since the GPS wasn't cooperating she decided to read the description again. Based on what was said as well as her geosenses she was able to locate it.

This is Vermont: Grand Isle
Back now to the Grand Isle Rec Park. This time only a mugglette was there, but he was obviously waiting for others to arrive. I knew I didn't have much time so I quickly made my way to where I knew the cache would be. While I was playing in the bushes two more cars pulled up and several more muggles piled out of them. I signed the cache's log and got the information we came for and made my way back toward the car. I decided to tell them what I was doing, rather than look like a pervert hiding in the bushes. They seemed genuinely interested in my story and we were soon off.

A Grand Old Hyde
I really enjoyed our next stop. After gassing up (gas in Vermont is substantially cheaper than in New York) we stopped at the Hyde Log Cabin. According to the plaque the Hyde Log Cabin is possibly the oldest building in the country, as it was built in 1783. It has been restored over the years and is in excellent condition. The cache's log mentions tours being available but they were not running during our visit. The cache wasn't too far from the cabin and Colette signed the log while I took pictures. I love getting to explore history first hand!

Vermont's Only One
Here is another cache where the place is also very cool. This cache is hidden just over the hill from the last remaining active draw bridge. According to the log the bridge raises every half hour during the summer months. Since we visited the area during the spring it was not operating, but I would love to come back when it is and get some pictures. This was the first time that Colette deployed her "take a picture into the hole" cache finding method. Rather than stick her hand into various tree orifices she snapped a photo. The method payed off and we hopped back into the car.

Island Crossing
This cache was a quick boat launch micro. We like to make the most of our stops so we spent some time skipping rocks. Zoey expressed her concern for the environment and did some CITO while we were there and Colette grabbed a hand full of large skipping rocks to decorate and leave in caches in the future. As quick as most boat launch micros are I will probably never get tired of them!

36 Views of Camels Hump XXX
Apparently this one is part of a series, but I haven't looked into it just yet so I'm not sure what the name of it is in reference to. Regardless this cache calls a cemetery in North Hero home. I pulled up right next to its location. While Co was filling out the log I noticed a beautiful view of the mountains across the lake. Unfortunately my current lens could not do the sight justice so I was not able to capture it. I will without a doubt remember this spot for when that changes in the future!

Pelot's Gas Saver, Pelots Find and This is Vermont: North Hero
I decided to put all these caches together because they all reside in the Pelot's Point Nature Area/Trails. Pelot's Point is in Northwest North Hero and is an excellent set of trails. Pelot's Gas Saver is named as such because it is right next to parking area and serves as a quick find as well as a thank you for stopping to such a beautiful place. Farther into the trails (there are three) is Pelots Find. This cache is an ammo box and is well hidden. This is where I decided that going through the forest would be a great idea. Zoey thought it would be fun to follow me and we both regretted it. The trail soon looped back around and we were back on the right path. Colette found this one and Zoey got to trade swag. The last cache was another part of the Grand Isle County series. We have all been really happy with the different shapes and sizes of these caches. Inside was a travel bug attached to an old ford car. His mission is to meet old cars like him and he has been all over Quebec. Aside from the great caches the trails were also fantastic. They were built around a sugar farm operation and a lot of the stuff for it is currently active. There is also information plaques dedicated to the flora and fauna of the area. We all had an awesome time!

Cachetastic: Part One: New York Edition

On April 20th both Colette and myself had the day off. Since we try to work opposite shifts this doesn't happen very often. As a result we planned the day to consist of caching, caching, and more caching. On my way home the night before four caches had been published, so the idea of our first FTF (First to Find) was sitting in our minds. While we're not in the game for the speed of the find, we both liked the idea of getting a FTF.

Take a penny, Leave a penny
Our first cache of the day was a micro just north of Plattsburgh. The description of the cache mentions that it wasn't big enough to hold swag, but the cache owner thought that taking and leaving a penny would be a fun idea. We pulled up to the end of the dead end street and I got out, armed with our camera, a pen and a penny and headed into the woods. After about 10 minutes of searching and looking at the hint I wasn't able to come up with anything. I turned to go back to the car to let Co try and I noticed that she was talking to someone. He left as I returned but Colette told me that he was curious as to what we were doing. She explained, and fortunately for us he knew what geocaching was and had noticed 4+ other groups of people doing the same thing since the night before. Colette then headed back out while I decided to fire up the internet browser on my phone and be disappointed to see that someone had already logged the FTF. Upon loading the page I found that the cache owner had disabled the cache. He thought that it's placement was too difficult and wanted to move it. I got out of the car to go tell Colette that it was disabled and to never mind and I discovered her signing the log on our very first FTF! The prize for FTF was a nice handmade trinket.

Jport's Cumberland Micro
The next stop was on Cumberland Ave. There we searched, and searched and searched. Every nook and cranny we could find but to no avail. We also tried back later and still did not find (DNF) it. Maybe next time!

Jport's Story Cache
This was a very cool cache. Not only is it on a trail that we didn't know existed, it also has a neat concept. Inside the cache is index cards. On the first index card is the beginning of a story. The idea is that each person to find the cache can contribute to the story, then later the cache owner is going to email everyone who donated to the story the completed project. We were the first ones to find it (FTF!) and so we got to add the second page. I'm really looking forward to seeing how the story turns out.

Kentucky Fried Cache
Can you guess where this cache is hidden? That's right, by the KFC in Plattsburgh! Both Co and I tried several times to find this cache but ultimately we were unsuccessful. To be honest I wasn't really sure what I was looking for. Besides, the entire area could be the center of a Cache In, Trash Out (CITO) mega event. There was more garbage nearby than in the dumpster on the hill! We'll give it another try later since it has been found since we searched.

After our second DNF for the day we decided to take the ferry from Cumberland Head to Vermont. I'm sure we'll have more luck there!

its good to be blue and not blue

Colette and I have been soaking up tons of information about geocaching. The community as a whole is stronger than it has ever been and that makes for some good reading, listening and watching.

Blueline Geocachers
Not too long ago there was an organization in our area called Northern New York Geocachers or NNYGeo. Unfortunately they disbanded just before we started caching. I was looking for a group in the area that may host events or we could discuss topics with and I came upon the Blueline Geocachers. Apparently they welcomed the previous members of NNYGeo, even though their original area only consisted of the towns within the blue line (the area on the map that the Adirondack Mountains are marked off as). If anyone in the Adirondack or Northern New York area is interested in or is getting into geocaching please become a part of this community. They have the webpage above as well as a page on Facebook by the same name.

Geocachng Podcast
This is one of my favorite places for geocaching information. They do their show every Tuesday night at 9:30est and I've been listening for several weeks. The shows are about 30 minutes long so they work well during rides to work. They cover a different topic every week and listeners can call in live during the show and share their experience and knowledge. You can also subscribe to the podcast on iTunes and the Zune Marketplace.

Geosnippits
This is a fine place for anyone who is new to geocaching or isn't quite sure what the whole thing is about. Head Hard Hat has done many 5 to 10 minute geocaching snippits to use as tutorials for the uninitiated. He has a ton of experience and is entertaining to watch.

As always I'll have these links on the right side of the blog so they're easily accessible!

kicking it old school

If you check out geocaching.com and look at the caches in our area you will see that there aren't any in Champlain, Chazy and Rouses Point. This is unfortunate because we live in Champlain, Chazy is directly south of  us and Rouses Point is directly east of us. So when a cache popped up in Chazy on the 17th you can imagine how excited we were. One of the benefits of being a premium member on Geocaching.com is notifications. You can have the system automatically notify you of several different things based on specifications that you choose. I decided to have it tell us whenever a new cache is published within 30 miles of our home location. So that Saturday morning I got an email on my phone that a cache had been published in Chazy. Unfortunately I was at work and couldn't go after it.

Miner's Vision
Two days after the cache was published, on the 19th, we finally had the opportunity to stop by and pick this cache up. Our hopes of being First to Find (FTF or F2F) had been long squashed so now it was just for the fun of the game. Also, the cache was posted by mcgillz and it's always nice to do the caches from the same person. After doing laundry this morning and then visiting our grandmother we headed off to Chazy for some caching and a stop at the Chazy Rec Park. This cache is named as such because it resides not far from the Alice T Miner Museum. The cache is a nano and it only took us a few minutes to find it. Unfortunately it's near a busy shop so it was difficult to be discreet.

During our stop at the rec park we scouted out a couple locations for geocaches. We're hoping to hide our first cache soon and get more of the local cachers to stop in our area.

park at the park

After our recent bout of quick stops Co thought it would be fun to go to a spot that required more hiking. So on April 14th we got the critters in the car, invited Justin, and headed out early to Point Au Roche state park. My only previous experiences with the park was going to the beach during the summer when I was younger, so we started there. We found out later that that wasn't the best choice.

Geo Cache 101
Not far from where we parked was our first cache of the day. This was one of the first times that we had done several caches on a series of trails and this cache in particular taught us a very valuable lesson. Stay on the trail until you know for sure that the only way to get to the caches is to start bushwacking! We spent about 15 minutes going through all sorts of fauna and later found that the path curved around not far from where the actual cache is. This was Zoey's first find. She ran right to where it was hidden and proudly shouted "Treasure!".

DownTheMiddle
Having never been on any of the trails in Point Au Roche park I didn't know what to expect after our first cache. The next stop was on the opposite side of the beach and I knew that were was a trail that headed that way so off we went. The park consists of several peninsulas and the next cache was toward the end of the first one. When we arrived at the GZ (Ground Zero) Colette and Justin snapped into action searching for the cache. Unfortunately Zoey wasn't able to find this one due to the fact that it was on the side of a hill, way too close to the water. Colette soon picked up the cache and we dropped off a monster and picked up some stickers. Zoey really wanted to play with them, but she would have to wait... there was more hiking and more caching to do!

Booty Point-less
Just north of the previous cache was our next stop. The trail we had to take to get to it was very cool. There were several spots that had worn away and we had to go across them one at a time. During the walk to the cache we found a large rock and took some pictures of Co and Zoey sitting on it. For the past couple of weeks Zoey has been determined to defy the good picture gods and look away or simply refuse to smile when we're trying to take pictures of her so it was nice to see that this one came out so well. Not too far from the large rock was the cache. This too was down the hill so Colette went down and retrieved it. We were pleasantly surprised to see that the cache was an older one and still in good condition. It had a great hiding spot which Co returned it to before we headed out.

Its a Moot Point
Our fourth and final cache of the morning was in an area far east of where we had originally started hiking. There are recreational trails that were donated by a family whose name I neglected to get. Now, of course, had we known that this are had it's own road access as well as a trail head and parking we would have parked here in the first place. Fortunately we can use that knowledge in the future when we return to get the other two caches we didn't get to. This was a quick and scenic trip on a well maintained set of trails. It didn't take Justin too long to find the cache so we could head back to the car. In total our trip was a little over four miles and we were quite tired when we got back to the car. We celebrated our day with ice cream from a local restaurant which was fantastic.

there's always time for caching!

Monday, April 5th wasn't as nice as the day before. The temperature had gone back down and it was gloomy outside. Colette came up with the idea of heading into the city and walking around in the mall, picking up some odds and ends, and maybe stopping at one of the parks. I really liked the park idea so I drove to Penfield Park in Plattsburgh first. The kids had a great time! It was the first time Zaiden had been on a swing and he really got a kick out of it. Of course, during the time the kids were playing, Colette was right on the GPS looking for a nearby cache. We let the kids play for a while, when finally the chilly wind forced us into the car.

Child's Play
Colette wouldn't tell me where we were headed, just that I'd really like it and to follow the directions. After a quick hop onto the north way we were in South Plattsburgh on a few roads I hadn't traveled yet. A couple turns later we were at the South Plattsburgh Park. They had a lot more traditional playground toys that most newer parks don't bother with. Among them was a turn-about! Zoey knew exactly what it was and hopped on double quick. I decided that since Zaiden had mastered the slide earlier he shouldn't have a problem holding on if we didn't spin it too fast. As I was putting him on Colette tells me that the cache is located in the park. We both started searching and soon found the cache nearby. Colette quickly opened and signed it and stealthily as possible because of the nearby city workers getting the park ready for this summer. As a result we were unable to get a picture of it, but this was definitely one of our favorite caches!

Roadside Cafe
Our second and last cache for the day was on our way back toward Target. This cache is located right near the airport. According to the cache's log you can access other caches along a nearby trail from this cache. Unfortunately the path was blocked by a locked gate. We figured it was seasonal access, fortunately it didn't stop us from quickly grabbing the cache. We're looking forward to going back later and doing the caches on the trails!

little peter cottontail hopping down the caching trail

Sunday, April 4th was Easter. Easter is a time of many strange occurrences; saviors rise from the dead, rabbits lay eggs, and Target is closed. Due to our place of business being closed we had the opportunity to have a family get together. During these events we, of course, had an easter egg hunt. We have to keep our little cachers in shape! We also celebrated Zaiden's first birthday, our little boy is growing up so quick!

This is Vermont: Isle La Motte
With our bellies full from Easter lunch we set out to enjoy the weather, geocaching style! Our first stop of the day was a previous DNF. Between today and our last try at this cache the cache owner posted that the cache had migrated and he put it back where it belonged. At first Colette and Justin went searching for the cache, because the kids were sleeping. During this time I took some pictures of the surrounding area. The water was fairly calm and the birds were out. Once the kids woke up I got them out of the car and we chased after Co and Justin. Colette and I switched places because the cache was located in some tall grass and trees that were home to some barbed vines. After another fifteen minutes of searching Justin found the cache hidden in a spot we all swore we had checked more than once.

Goodsell Ridge Fossil Preserve
Next on the list was the Goodsell Ridge Fossil Preserve, which was also located on Isle La Motte. This was our very first earthcache. An earthcache is different than a traditional cache because the reward is not a box but rather the location itself. You can learn more about earthcaches at their website. To be able to log an earthcache as a find you have to answer questions provided by the cache owner, as well as take a picture of their request. We wrote down the answers we found on the information board located at the preserve and then walked around the provided trails and examined even more fossils.

J&B's Island Fever
After enjoying the path at the reserve as well as the fantastic weather we popped the GPS back on and headed for the next closest cache. J&B's Island Fever is named as such because it's on one of the many islands that make up the northeastern coast of Vermont. When we arrived at the location, which was at the end of a pier, there was a muggle couple enjoying the lake and skipping rocks. We got to the end of the pier and, I assume, scared them off, because they left not long after. Zoey resumed her rock tossing and Colette unsuccessfully tried her hand at skipping stones. Once the muggles were out of site Co started looking for the cache while I made sure Zoey didn't get too close to the water. After a moment Colette came running back to me, gibbering on about a giant spider. As a result I went down and started looking nearby, waving to the giant spider, and ultimately finding the cache not far from where she was looking. The cache was well placed but was still wet inside. I decided to sign the log but not take or leave anything. We all skipped a few more rocks and then headed out.

East Alburg Pizza
The Alburgh Recreational Rail Trail that I talked about in one of our first posts runs for 3.5 miles through a significant portion of Alburgh. During out first time on the trail we only traveled about half of it. Toward the end of the rail trail is two geocaches that we had seen but not tried due to weather. Seeing that it was so nice today I thought it would be great to give them a shot. This cache owner was nice enough to add a waypoint to the cache that showed where it was best to park. We pulled up, got the kids out, and started down the trail. Unfortunately the area was littered substantially, probably due to the residences nearby. We had forgotten bags to do some CITO (Cache In, Trash Out) so were unable to clean any of it up. After a few minutes walking on the trail Colette exclaimed that we had already passed the cache. She turned and walked right toward the tree that would ultimately be the home of this particular cache. She signed the log and placed it back, then we started down the trail to the next cache.

Not too long after we continued down the rail trail we heard a dog barking. I looked up to see a very large dog, barking and coming toward us. Colette started to become uneasy but I just continued walking. The dogs owner wasn't too far behind, but that doesn't make up for the fact that he was unleashed considering how large he was. Unfortunately this wasn't our only obstruction, because right after the house with the large dog thr trail got very, very muddy. We decided to turn back, feeling as if hurdles were suggesting we do so anyway. Later on I found out that the cache owner decided to temporarily disable the cache due to, oddly enough, muddy conditions and unleashed dogs!

IN BETWEEN (Tt-06)
Ah, IN BETWEEN, my arch nemesis! This would be attempt four at this cache. As I mentioned previously our GPS became very inaccurate when near the buildings that this cache is situated amongst. This time since we were going during a holiday, and the nearby businesses were all closed, there were absolutely no muggles to be found. Colette, determined to make me look bad, took Justin and they started looking. After a few minutes I re situated the car away from the building and pointed them in another direction. A moment later, success! Colette finally found the cache we tried for on multiple occasions! She opened it up and signed it.

It was a great day for caching!

where the wind blows, new york edition

Our adventures on March 28th started early in the morning. The GPSs juice had run dry so we needed to stop home and recharge it. During this time we got some lunch and also picked up my brother, since we planned to do more caching once the GPS began cooperating again.

Wave to Grandpa and Grandma!
The first stop of our second time out today was in West Chazy. The cache's was called Wave to Grandpa and Grandma because the cache owner's grandparents lived across the river by the cache. Just as before the wind was blowing pretty hard so the kids and Colette stayed in the car while Justin and I went searching. I followed the GPS to the coordinates and we began looking. After ten minutes of searching and readjusting our location I noticed a block that seemed out of place. Lo and behold there was the cache, hiding under it. I signed the log, put it back, then we cut across the courtyard back to the car.

Bee Cottage at the Sign of the Frog
This stop resulted in a did not find. We pulled up right next to the garden that is suppose to be home to the cache and all took turns looking around. This was the first time that we had stopped to a cache that was on private property. The cache's description mentioned that the Bee Cottage is a bed and breakfast, but that it also was not open at the time that we stopped by. We decided to move on for now and come back when the place is actually open. I hope that caches being on private property are not a theme, it was very unsettling!

Forever Grateful 2
In Beekmantown, which is south of West Chazy, there is a memorial trail that was built by eagle scouts. On this trail there are plaques that offer information about various wars our country has been a part of. The intention of the trail is to pay respect to those that died or were assumed dead. The trail is beautiful and very well maintained and also leads to the Beekmantown Rec Park. The tree coverage there was also sufficient enough so that the kids could enjoy the trail as well. Oh! I almost forgot to mention, there's also a cache here! :) About half way through the trail the GPS had us enter the woods and Justin found the ammo canister cache. Inside we found our very first travel bug. Travel bugs are similar to geocoins in that they're tracked online. The difference though is that they are like dog tags that you attach to something important or interesting to you, like a toy or a souvenir. Some people give them missions or stories, to make them even more fun. The one that we got was a pig that we would later find out was named Mademoiselle COCHONNE which in english is Miss Piggy! We plan on helping her find her Kermie in due time!

IN BETWEEN (Tt-06)
This marks our third attempt to find this painfully cleverly hidden cache. Justin and I both took a look but we were unable to locate it, yet again. My GPS had a habit of bouncing around a lot near the buildings, which I believe made things even more difficult.

this weather blows, literally!

We planned the 28th to be a geocaching day earlier in the week. As with all plans we ran into a few snags. The first snag was that we (re: I) forgot to charge our various rechargeables, such as the cameras and especially the GPS. So we figured we would let them charge and get some breakfast. During the trip to and from breakfast we noticed they very strong winds. Not to be discouraged we continued on without hesitation. On this day we tried our luck with more caches in Vermont. 


Play "Around" and This is Vermont: Isle La Motte
There is a cluster of geocaches near Swanton that we hadn't tried yet so that seemed as good as place as any to start. On our way there we stopped just north of Isle La Motte in search of the Play "Around" cache. This cache's clever name is due to the fact that it is set not far from a golf course. The parking was very close to the lake and the wind was causing the waves to crash into the shore.

I ventured out solo, the wind would be too much for our little adventurers. Fortunately it didn't take long for me to the find the cache. Colette is holding the cache in the photo because we forgot to snap a picture of it the first time and this was our return visit; I was determined to get pictures of our finds! Not surprisingly there were several golf balls which we traded for one of. We decided to leave the second geocoin we found since it was such a great spot and we had promised that it would be going to Vermont.

Just down the street from the first cache is This is Vermont: Isle La Motte. The "This is Vermont" series is an attempt to bring caches to each town in Vermont. Each of the caches have information about the location they are set in. The spot where this cache is located is a memorial and would be a great spot to visit in better weather. Both Colette and I took turns searching over the course of 20 minutes but were unable to find it. On the plus side we got some really cool pictures. The lake/wind combination was cold enough to leave ice on the shoreline!

Fishing Frenzy

After our Isle La Motte sidetrack we headed toward Swanton. We passed by several caches in Alburgh that run along a trail (not the recreation trail from the previous posts) and the wind was just too much for the kids. Fortunately the bridge leading out of Alburgh shielded us from the wind enough that we could make a second attempt at Fishing Frenzy. Armed with the knowledge I had gained by actually reading the log entry, Colette sat with the kids on the pier and I made my way into the rocks around the base of the bridge. By shear luck I found the cache, which was very well hidden using magnets. Colette signed the log and I returned the micro to it's proper place. I can safely say one of my favorite things is finding a cache we missed before!

Lest We Forget #1 and Lest We Forget #2

Both Colette and myself are fans of caches that have a theme. So it was only natural that we worked on the first two Lest We Forget caches. As I mentioned before, the caches are dedicated to those who came before us. To show respect to people who may not have a place in history, but affected our lives today. Like the the third, both of these caches are micros that are hidden near a cemetery. We got to where the GPS pointed us for the first cache and I had to do some creative parking so that Colette could try and find it. The road that the graveyard is on has no shoulders and deep ditches. After a few moments I noticed an entrance to the field that was behind the cemetery and did a little off-roading to get to where we needed to be. Suffice to say my muddy Baja adventure took longer than it took Colette to locate the well placed micro. She signed the log and ran back to the car.

I decided to try for the second cache. The cemetery where this cache was located is a very large and well maintained one. Unfortunately I didn't pay attention to where Colette had found the previous cache, so it took me longer to figure out where this one was. But ultimately I did find it and signed it's little log book.

50 States = 50 Micros - South Dakota and Missisquoi River Cache II

These were two fairly quick micros. During our stop and search for the first cache Colette tried to find it but was unable. As she was returning to the car two teenage boys road up on bicycles and stopped right next to where I was sure the cache was located. I watched as one pulled something small and  black out of his pocket, quickly check it, then return it. I thought maybe they were geocaching as well, but this was not the case. Neither of them had any idea what I was talking about, but did offer some insight into popular sightseeing locations. After we parted ways I quickly snatched up the cache and signed it.

The next stop resulted in another quick find. Co mentioned reading that others found it quickly during the winter. I figured it you could find it in snow it must be an odd color. As soon as I looked forward I spotted the small micro in a tree knot. Colette signed it and we continued our quest.

Missisquoi River Cache

As we moved into Swanton we followed the GPS to a small park/boat launch by the river that runs through it. Colette and I were discussing the large amount of broken trees and driftwood that was blocking the launch when I noticed what turned out to be what was left of a deer. As a result the kids were once again forced to stay inside the car while one of us ventured out in search of the cache. This was very unfortunate, as the surrounding houses and trees cut the wind down to almost nothing. The path that lead to the cache was also very nice. I Signed the log and we swapped a monster with a little pink character. Colette and I both commented that we would like to visit this place again in the summer, hopefully sans-decaying wild life!

Part two of todays adventure will be available soon!