Be Visible to Hunters
Posted October 21st, 2003 by RJ
I was on my way to find a geocache hidden north of the Twin Cities. My friends and I parked where suggested and started to get ready to go on the walk. We saw signs that said hunting was allowed so we started having second thoughts. As we were standing there, a truck pulled up and two hunters got out, dressed from head to toe in bright orange. Needless to say, we didn’t spend much time there.
It would be a good idea, especially this time of year, to be aware of the increase in the number of hunters in the woods around Minnesota and beyond. Being visible while walking or hiking through any land where hunting is allowed is always a good idea. Some people wear a bright orange cap to accomplish this. There are bright “hunter orange” shirts and jackets available at many sporting good and outdoor stores. Maybe the most important point to be made is to be aware of your surroundings and the land that you are exploring, while geocaching and otherwise.
I have never hunted and don’t know the details about where it is allowed and when certain seasons begin so here’s the link to the Minnesota DNR hunting regulations webpage. I do however know that it is smart to make myself more visible when in certain areas. It could be just wearing a bright yellow shirt or hat might do the trick.
Geocaching at a Twins game
Posted September 23rd, 2003 by pogopod
Sometimes everything just seems to come together…. just right.
On Tuesday evening, September 23, a group of Minnesota geocachers attended a non-event at the Metrodome in downtown Minneapolis. I may miss someone, but I saw Centris, towlebooth, Jillibean, King Boreas, Marsha and Silent Bob, RJ, Rickrich, DYL1231, Kitch, KCOQEE, Joelcam, Timbrewolf, and maybe CAG. The non-event was organized by Centris and celebrated the convergence of two moving caches in the Twin Cities. (Check out Going to a Twins Game and Going to an Indians Game caches.) We all posed for the web cam at the Take Me Out To The Ballgame cache, traded many bugs, autographed baseballs, signed the cache logs, and then went inside the dome to watch the Twins beat the Cleveland Indians. At the same time the Yankees were beating the White Sox and the lowly Detroit Tigers were crushing the KC Royals. Net result? Twins win the Central Division!
Geocachers wear many hats, but tonight we cheered for the Twins and had a lot of geocaching fun. I hope to see you at the next Minnesota Geocaching Association event, or non-event.
October 2003 Cache of the Month
Posted September 23rd, 2003 by towlebooth
In our first month of voting for the cache of the month we had a three way tie! Thanks to all who submitted nominations and all who voted.
Here are the they are, in the order they were submitted:
Stillwater Surprise by towlebooth (nominated by pogopod)
Part of the joy of geocaching is the element of surprise, part is enjoying the beauty of nature, and of course part is the thrill of the hunt.
Stillwater Surprise comes as close to satisfying these three elements as any cache I have searched for in Minnesota. In addition, it is located in an area that is rife with history, near many opportunities for other outdoor activity, and close to its namesake town that itself provides many caches and lots of other things to do.
Without giving away the surprise, let me say that I have lived less than twelve miles from this area for the last twenty-five years, and never knew it existed. A hidden access makes even the beginning of the search interesting. A beautiful walk on little used paths takes you nearer and nearer the cache. Suddenly, you are there and it all becomes obvious. The vista would not be out of place on the North Shore near Lake Superior, but here it is a real surprise.
Heavy tree cover in summer makes this one a bit difficult. Be prepared to scramble a bit due to steep terrain, but you can’t get lost. Take care not to disturb the foliage in the area too much and, oh yes, most of the year don’t be surprised if you get wet feet. Although I have not visited early in the year, I bet this is a terrific cache in Spring when the snow melts.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Barn Bywater by Kimbastoat (nominated by Moe the Sleaze)
My nomination for the October cache of the month is 'Barn Bywater' (GCE681). Although apparently hidden by a non-active cacher (no finds and only this one hide) it is one of the standouts of all the caches I have found.
Hidden high up on Barn Bluff overlooking both the Mississippi River and the city of Red Wing, hunting this cache requires a hike of almost a mile and many feet of climbing to reach. Once you arrive at the coordinates, you are rewarded, not only with a challenging hide, but also beautiful vistas.
I visited this cache in March and was in awe of the scenery. I can only imagine what it will be like in the peak of autumn colors. Take a drive down to Red Wing and treat yourself to this treasure.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Veterans Park by Bobhiker (nominated by Kitch)
If you're looking for a cache that is suitable for young kids but still a challange then this cache is for you. I have a 3 year old little girl and sometimes the Bushwacking can be a bit hard with out prior knowledge of skill levels required. I'm also looking for more to do then just a quick visit to a cache.
Veterans Memorial Park is a 108-acre community park that includes over two miles of walking path through woods and marsh. The park also has a volleyball court, an informal playfield, and playground equipment. The park is also home to Adventure Gardens which offers 18 holes of golf on a challenging, hilly course with numerous water hazards, split greens, and trick angles. In terms of golfing in general, this is the spot for those who like to play the game without all the tiring exercise that comes with a walk of 500 yards rather than five feet. And as mini-golf goes, this is the way it was meant to be played. With a beautifully landscaped course featuring pines and a waterfall, a concession stand no more than a hundred feet away, and lights for night putting, there's little more the recreation-bound mini-golfer could ask for. But, since you asked, there's also the added bonus that this mini-golf course is located at Veterans Memorial Park, where there are also water slides and an ample picnic area for a day-long outing.
The cache itself is not that hard to find but the clue will make it simple. I hate to give any hints or clues at all. The only word of advice is this trust your GPS skills and remember it is kid friendly. On the FLIP side you can make this a totally differnent experience and the level would become extremely hard. Just go at night.
September 2003 Featured Cache
Posted September 15th, 2003 by towlebooth
A very special geocache has recently been placed in the Grand Rapids area. Team Hooligan's youngest member, and one of the most enthusiastic, has put out her very own Birthday cache.
What makes this extra special is it was placed on September 10 for her golden birthday. Turning ten is usually exciting enough but she had been looking forward to placing this cache for nearly a year. It was hidden in the appropriately named Golden Anniversary Forest. We hope geocachers passing through Grand Rapids take the time to find this one.
She also started "B's Birthday Build a Bug" TB. It is a tag with a birthday ribbon attached and its goal is to travel around and return in a year. During it's travels we ask that people add small trinkets to the chain. The cache was placed on the evening of her birthday in a light rain, which shows her dedication to this fun sport.
Next month: the first "Cache of the Month" as voted on by you. Nominations now being accepted. Details here.
August 2003 Featured Cache
Posted August 29th, 2003 by Site Administrator
I was getting somewhat concerned that we were not getting any new Featured Caches but then I thought it wasn’t fair to expect the webmasters to have to write all of these. Heck, they have caches to locate themselves. Why can’t a mere mortal write one of these? So here is my cache of the month.
I always love history lessons so Jabs Farm by King Boreas is tough to beat. Although it is a virtual cache so it is not very hard to complete, the trek out to the farm and the history learned is one not to miss.
It is quite a hike out to the cache, about 1 1/4 miles if you stay on the right trail. It might be a good idea to bring a mountain bike. But the scenery and the wildlife is well worth the extra distance. When you near the river bed, you feel like you are entering into a strange wasteland, with all the dead trees from floods.
You then approach the cache site and you are walked through a short narrative of the history of the farm using several placards. When I went there no one else was around and it kind of made you feel like you were back in the old days on the farm. Wondering what it would have been like living out there and trying to make a living. Or having to go get your old, feeble grandma down at the river catching fish.
Also, in the same park is another cache, Old Road to Louisville by Bobhiker. I had trouble and was unable to locate this cache, but I am told it is still there.
With these two caches being in the south metro, all Twin Cities area Geocachers should put these on the top of their list.
July 2003 Featured Cache
Posted August 23rd, 2003 by towlebooth
With the Moving 123 cache, Rock Johnson, aka R.J., has given central MN and Western WI one of the most activly pursued caches in the area.
Officially a "traditional" geocache, seekers quickly find that this one is anything but. The goal of this cache is not only to be found, but also to be moved by the finder from place to place. The other twist that R.J. has placed on this one is that it can only be moved to a city/town/township once. This encourages it to move greater distances.
This cache has been from Albertville, MN to River Falls, WI and many points in between. Nice job R.J.!!
Magellan's GPS Treasure Hunt Comes to MN
Posted July 22nd, 2003 by rickrich
...Comes to the Twin Cities
The week of July 15 to July 19, Magellan's GPS Treasure Hunt came to the Twin Cities metro area. According to Magellan:
We are on the verge of uncovering the keys to a "mystery" that famed explorer Ferdinand Magellan was believed to have taken to his grave: the secret locations of treasures he hid but never reclaimed while exploring North America.
On our fictitious journey, Thales Navigation has recovered an ancient journal belonging to Magellan. To our amazement, researchers working tirelessly to restore the weathered pages and worn text of the journal have reported that they believe the pages contain clues, and even the exact coordinates, of these treasures.
Thales Navigation is offering a reward to anyone who helps find these lost treasures. As our team of researchers successfully restores the ancient manuscripts, we will post them on this website. With the rapid progress the researchers are making, we expect to provide new clues almost daily. Legend holds that there are 31 treasures in all.
The first finder of each of these caches would be rewarded with a prize ranging from a Color GPS to a vacation. The next 25 finders would get Magellan caps.
With valuable prizes on the line, the team of rickrich, dyl1231, and Abby decided to hunt for Treasures of the Lost Voyage. That would be me (rickrich a.ka. Dad), and "kids". Since the clues and the final coordinates could be posted to the website at any time over the next 2 to 5 days, the first business at hand was to develop a short script to poll the website for any changes and notify me of the changes via email, and by SMS message to a cellphone when the coordinates were posted. Since I will not use any products from a convicted monopolist, the magellan-contest.sh shell script was written to run on the Linux operating system.
The clues were posted one at a time from Tuesday to Friday night. I found that the clues were not particularly helpful in pinning down the final location of the cache...
Hint 1: We believe Magellan was describing a region for yet another hiding place somewhere that seemed to be a central region of North America with caves, beaches, waterfalls, and more. While there he caught and ate many fish and enjoyed making camp in the wilderness and looking up at the stars.
Hint 2: The only new information we've gleaned from the manuscript is a statement Magellan made referring to the area as the land of 10,000 lakes. We are investigating this lead and will keep you informed of any new developments.
Hint 3: Our research team has concluded that Magellan was undoubtedly referring to Minnesota when he wrote about the Treasure of the Lost Voyage. In fact, we believe the treasure may be somewhere near the twin cities.
Hint 4: The treasure is definitely somewhere near Minneapolis. We are working to decipher the meaning of the letters L B P. The only other journal entry that we think could possibly be linked is a statement that says, "Start on one side to get to the other."
The letters "L B P" and "Start on one side to get to the other"? Many Twin Cities area geocachers racked their brains on Friday night to figure out what location that could be, in order to get a jump on other geocachers when the final coordinates were posted. Popular among the guesses were "L" for lake, and "P" for park.
Perhaps the guess that best fit the clues given was Shingle Creek Park, in the shadow of the KLBP radio towers:
KLBP 1470 kHz
Format: WW1- standards // KLBB 1400
ID: Brooklyn Park MN
Owner: Minnesota Public Radio
Co-owned: WMNN, KLBP, KNOW-FM, KSJN
Web Site: http://www.klbbradio.com/
Facilities: 5000w/5000w
Transmitter: 45° 5' 17" N 93° 22' 59" W
With the MnGCA Summer Fling scheduled to begin at 9AM Saturday morning, I came to the conclusion that a good nights sleep was necessary and hit the sack at midnight. I placed the cell phone next to my bed, in case the coordinates were posted in the wee hours. I felt fairly certain that the coodinates would be posted in the wee hours of Saturday, or Saturday-Sunday night. My feeling was that Magellan would not post the coordinates so as to conflict with the MnGCA event.
At 7:49AM on Saturday, I awoke to the ring of the cellphone. An SMS message was waiting with the coordinates of the cache. I quickly surfed to the map of the location and determined that the cache was in Baker Park Reserve.
Baker Park is only a few miles west of our house, so we had a real shot at being FTF and getting a Color GPS prize. I got the kids up and let the dog out to do her morning business. Meanwhile, I plugged the coordinates of the cache into the MySQL database used by the GpsDrive open source navigation system.
We got everyone into the car by 8AM and were off to the cache. dyl1231 worked the GpsDrive map display on our laptop. We knew the area well, since just two days earlier we logged a FTF on Aspen Inde.
The traffic going west on 12 was uncharacteristically slow. We pondered the Magellan clues along the way. We could not figure out what the "L" in "L B P" meant. The "Start on one side to get to the other" clue seemed to imply that we should park on the other side of the road from the cache, in the park patron parking lot. I pulled into the gates of the park, told the ranger what we were up to, and asked her if it would be OK for us to park at the employee parking lot across the street and nearer to the cache. The ranger said we could not park there and pointed us to nearby patron parking.
We locked up the car and started running back towards the road. Dyl1231 commented that it was the first time he had ever seen his Dad run. We crossed over the road and headed down the trail. The cache was very near. As we crested a small hill, we could see Nicole from TeamCNJC standing on the trail. That meant that at least one geocacher had beaten us to the location. As we got to the location, we could hear two people rummaging around in the bushes. We started into the bushes, which were very thick and we had to turn back to find an entry that wouldn't require bushwhacking. As we came out, we heard Craig from TeamCNJC yell to Nicole that he had found the cache.
We headed into the bushes again at a better place and passed Craig on the way out, carrying his certificate for the Color GPS. Oh well. We ran into moleson and agreed to let each other know when we found the cache. A minute or so later I located the Treasure Chest and we became the second finders, good for a Magellan hat.
We walked out with moleson and headed home to get our stuff for the MnGCA Summer fling. We arrived about an hour late to the event, but it was an exciting way to start our day of geocaching. I was also thankful that the Magellan cache had been found so that I could get a good nights sleep on Saturday night.
MnGCA Spring Trash Out
Posted June 10th, 2003 by Jillibean
On April 27, eight Minnesota Cachers gathered at Fort Snelling State Park in Saint Paul for the trash-out event. We collected several big bags of trash, everything from tin cans to office chairs. We even found an old truck and wood-burning stove, both from the 1930's - of course, these were impossible to trash out!
Currently, the DNR doesn't allow geocaches to be placed on State Park land. Hopefully with gestures of goodwill like this trash-out event and our continuing dialog with the DNR, this policy can be changed in a way that satisfies everyone.
Many park patrons that we passed thanked us for cleaning up the park, and everyone involved enjoyed leaving the park cleaner than we found it. The event was a success, and we plan to host another trash-out event near Earth Day next spring.
April 2003 Featured Cache
Posted May 1st, 2003 by towlebooth
When 'caching in the Duluth area you will soon find that one of the most active cache hiders is the IBcrashen team. Having grown up in the Duluth area I thought I knew it quite well, but IBcrashen has shown me many great places that I had not been to before. I'm going to show you just two of them this month, but let me assure you that their caches are consistently high quality.
The first is Above Skyline. Overlooking the St. Louis River and Southwestern Duluth, this spot offers great views - and that's not the best part. I will not give anything away here, but the best part of the cache is getting there and the container. This was probably my favorite find of last summer.
I feel the need to post a second cache this month for two reasons: the terrain difficulty of Above Skyline may keep it from some geocachers and the abundance of great caches by IBcrashen nearby. A short and beautiful drive Northeast of Above Skyline is Enger Tower. Enger Park is a great park topped by a classical tower. Great for the kids as well as the adults. The cache itself offers nice views of Lake Superior and Duluth.
Thanks to IBcrashen for these two!
Midwest Summer Events
Posted April 6th, 2003 by towlebooth
There are a lot of great events around the midwest this summer. Hope to see you at some of them!
April 13 - Eau Claire "Here We Come" Event, Eau Clair, WI.
May 10 - SLAGA Spring Picnic, Busch Wildlife in Weldon Springs, MO.
May 16-18 - WI Geo-Campout 2003, High Cliff State Park, WI.
June 20-22 - MiGO Caching/Camping weekend, Fort Custer Recreation Area, MI.
Please send me others as they get planned and I will add them to this article. Don't forget our MN events in additions to these!
