Anyone going Geocaching this weekend? **NEW CACHERS...POP IN!**

[SplshMtn99]

Me too.

 

[MiJo]

Hi Everyone!
Just checking in as we haven't had any time recently for caching.
Welcome SplshMtn99! You'll enjoy this thread.

Sandy: Our DS arrived at Navy boot camp last night sometime. We thought he would be arriving around supper time but his plane didn't land in Chicago until nearly 9:30 PM (eastern time)! The recruiter told him they would be arriving at night so the new recruits couldn't figure out how to get back to Chicago if they decided to go AWOL! I don't remember that when I was in. Anyway, he should start all of his pre-boot examinations today.

I guess that's it. Hopefully, we'll get to do some caching this weekend!
Good caching!
Mike

 

[Pin Wizard]

LOLOL!! Maybe they had too many recruits go AWOL after your time, Mike! Good to hear that he got there, is settling in, and starts his adventure today!

We were after a cache yesterday in Norfolk. BEAUTIFUL view of a couple ships! Not sure which they were, but it was a sight to see. Just wish we found the cache. Some of these can be so irritating. We were in a park, and my GPS had "the numbers" not far from a bench at the edge of the path. The hint said don't go on the rocks. Okay, that's maybe 35 or more feet away! Grrrr. And the ground was covered in ivy. We couldn't find an ammo can in this. LOL! So I e-mailed the owner and asked if we actually have to go through the ivy and trees and out onto the grassy area right by the rocks...and water. Told them I might not be searching that cache with a 13 year old if that's the case. Sheesh. There was also someone who found it a week or so ago and came out of there to find a police officer on a bike waiting for him. LOLOLOL! He explained to the officer that he was geocaching and something was "back there." The police officer assured him that NOTHING was back there, and it's not a place anyone should be. Hmmmm.

I took off work yesterday and today to get out there a bit. We were in Norfolk and VA Beach yesterday. Not sure yet where we're headed today. Tomorrow will be the Richmond area. Don't want to go out there with rush hour traffic to battle on a Friday.

Hope you get to do a bit of caching soon!

Happy caching!

 

[SplshMtn99]

MiJo, thanks for the welcome, but I've popped into this thread severals times before. I just prefer to talk geocaching on the GC forum instead....particularly the New England forum.

 

[Pin Wizard]

That's too funny. I don't use their forum at all. We do have to sign in to that one separately, right? I remember thinking it was a pain and never went back. I'm not even sure what I signed in as or a password. I do go to a couple of them on Yahoo. I have to say, the Central VA Geocachers are a real friendly bunch. I think they're friendlier than the bunch in my area. Could be why I head to Richmond!

 

[SplshMtn99]

You had to sign up to GC & forums separately. But then it remembers you, so I never have to sign in again.

There is ALOT of helpful info there!!! I don't know how I would have started 4 yrs ago without it.

We don't really have a separate club or website here in New England, so we use GC's forums which are broken up into areas.

Check it out, you might be surprised.

 

[Pin Wizard]

Well, I stopped by there early this morning to join the list of people ordering VA Geocoins. I'll have to see what else is going on there.

 

[MiJo]

Hi Fellow Geocachers,
I thought I'd better check-in again, although we haven't done any caching since vacation a few weeks back.
Sorry about thinking you were new here, SplshMtn99. I probably meant Ohagash and my old brain mixed things up!
I look at the GC Forums on a regular basis, too. I even put a post on once asking if anyone else enjoys WDW. I didn't really get any serious responses and I think the post has vanished over the months. It is a good place for info about caching.
Our son has now been at Navy BC for a week and we haven't heard anything since he landed in O'Hare Airport. We expected this, though. We did receive a box with his civilian clothing in it on Monday and we were able to get his address from an information number. He is scheduled for graduation on October 13th and were hoping to get out there for that. That would mean grabbing a few caches in IL and WI. We should be getting a letter from him within the next week or so and then he should be able to make a phone call at some point. Fortunately, we know he's in good hands and doing something he wants to be doing. It hasn't been stressful for us at all. I would like to know how much BC has changed since I went through in '71, though.
I guess that's it. Maybe we'll get some caching in this weekend but we've been pretty busy doing other things so I don't know.
Good caching!

 

[Pin Wizard]

Wow, Mike! No contact from your son since he got there. Good thing you know the "in's" of it and know it's common. I don't think I would be as calm about it. LOL! I remember when a friend of mine told me he was being deployed for two weeks and not to worry if I didn't hear from him. That was tough even with his saying that!

There's a contact number to find out addresses? Is it just close family that it's available to or anyone? Sheesh...I better check the Coast Guard web site and see if they have something. My sister hasn't been too helpful there...strange in my book.

I've been working OT for quite a few weeks. We seem to crash on Saturday mornings then do some decent caching on Sundays. Of course, entering all the coordinates manually slows me down also. Don't like that aspect of this. I guess I better drag out the print outs and see what's around and fairly close. No trip to Richmond today!

Oh...Bears! I was looking on ebay last night at walking sticks. There's someone that makes them and said they include a whistle with all sticks they sell. They mentioned that bears don't like to be snuck up on and you should blow a whistle every so often when in an area with bears to alert them to someone being around. Is that right? Guess I better read up on bears. We were caching in the Great Dismal Swamp last weekend. There I was telling dear son to be quiet so the animals don't show up. Did some reading online about the Dismal Swamp as well as seeing their sign posted at the trail about bears, bobcats, foxes, snakes, etc. etc. etc.

Happy caching!

 

[MiJo]

We did receive the customary "form letter" from our son yesterday so we have now heard from him. Actually, he had 5 minutes to fill in three lines at the end of the letter. He did give us a slight address correction, though. There is a Navy message board, a lot like this one, that has a forum about Recruit Training. Some threads there list a phone number that may be called to get addresses for new Navy recruits after they've been at Boot Camp for a few days. Anyway, DS mentioned they were told they could probably write a letter on the 28th, which is tomorrow, so we may get a real letter from him around mid-week or so! We are also expecting a phone call in another couple weeks, but that is up to his company commander.

We didn't get to do any caching today due to babysitting for Erin and some rain this afternoon. I spent some time today trying to plan our trip to Great Lakes for our son's October 13th graduation. Since we're looking for reasonable flights, I decided to download this Ding! thing people were mentioning on the Transportation Board. It's something SouthWest Airlines has to send those with Ding! immediate deals via the Internet. I had all kinds of problems trying to get it to work right and then I finally found a post mentioning the problem I was having. Operator error! I wasn't scrolling down the registration page far enough to add all of the required info! DUH! So, now we're signed up. I guess they have already Dinged people with flights from Philly to MCO for $40 each way! We'll be keeping our Dinger turned on when we are planning our next trip to WDW, that's for sure!

Good caching, everyone, and stay safe out there!

 

[Pin Wizard]

Wow! Never knew they were that rigid! They're informed when they can write a letter or make a phone call? Holy moly!! At least you got your form letter with an additional 3 lines. I'd be reading the bottom of the page first.

I'm sure you had fun with Erin even without caching!

Operator error... Been there too many times!

Oh, it was GREAT caching yesterday!!! Got my first FTF! Wooooooooooooooooooooooo hooooooooooooooooooooooo!!!! A cache called Boykin's Peacocks.
http://www.geocaching.com/seek/cache_details.aspx?guid=217af120-187b-4bcf-9297-c01aa17b2774

GREAT park with beautiful views. It was just pristine. No other way to describe it. Even the grass was entirely green, the HUGE tree was in perfect shape...literally! Even saw an old well there. Of course, we were just in the area where the cache was. At some point we'll have to go back, see the rest, and hike the trails. Got some great pictures of the view. The cache page said it was 8 miles from home. Ha ha ha ha ha ha!! Drove 31 miles to get there! I'm sure we could have made the 8 miles by HELICOPTER in a straight route.

lilallybean...You back from vacation yet?

Happy caching!

 

[lilallybean]

Hello all, yes we are back from vacation. We had a great time and we were able to get several new caches on the way to and from Branson and several while we were there. We had a great time for the most part, but had several run ins with seed ticks. I HATE those nasty little things. I was so covered in them after one hunt that I even threw my shoes away, they were old and ratty shoes so no big lose but still! I did want to get some input from you all...What do you think about using a trash bag as camo??? This was a big nasty green bag...like the 30 gallon size. We were afraid what we find in the bag...we thought it could be all sorts of things and none of them good. Our family practices cache in trash out and we like to leave the areas looking nice when we can. I just can not imagine actually using this as a means of camo. Maybe I am wrong here...what do you all think?

This past weekend we went on a 6 mile hike with my 12 y/o sons scout group. We were on a trail that we knew had 2 caches we had done before. We let the kids find them and now they are hooked. They want to plan an outing day just for caching! I love being seen as the cool parents who do such fun things as treasure hunting!

I am done with school and have graduated it is a great feeling knowing that I was able to stick with it and see it to the end.

Congrats on that first to find! Doesn't it feel good to get one of those! I love hearing about all the different caches you all have done. I plan on trying to place a few new caches over the next couple weeks. I can't wait! Happy hunting all!!!

 

[Pin Wizard]

Congrats on sticking to the education and getting it DONE , lilallybean!! I have been there and left. Waiting for the right time to return again. I wonder if it's ever coming. My poor 13 year old has ALWAYS heard me say...you're going to college right after high school! I don't want him taking this path.

A garbage bag as camo? Geez...I wouldn't go for it. Were you somewhere around Richmond? LOL! I had to throw that in there because there's a cache out that way we found. It's a pretty small zip lock bag with a wallet in it! I was afraid to open the bag thinking that someone lost it, and I sure didn't want my fingerprints on that! Sure enough, it was the cache!! And believe it or not, it was a pharmacist that placed it! A minister from the VA Beach area found it after me and commented that maybe we should pass the plate and all chip in for a decent container. LOL!

Sorry about the run-in with the ticks. Not fun. This past weekend I didn't bother with the bug spray. Haven't found any of those nasty little guys, so I lucked out. Sometimes you really wonder about all the chemicals in the bug spray!

Congrats on getting the kids hooked! Soon they will want to go out with you all the time "treasure hunting."

Thanks for the congrats on my FTF. Find #633, FTF #1...LOLOL! Didn't take too long, did it! I even had an e-mail from one of the military guys around here congratulating me. LOLOL!! He has so many FTFs it's not funny. He's out there at 2 a.m. picking them up. When I e-mailed him back, I told him that I was seriously doubting that he sleeps. Looking forward to seeing him and one of his sons at a Geocaching picnic coming up this weekend...Yahoo!!! I love those get-togethers! Always a blast.

There were three new caches listed today that were close enough to home to go after work. One of them had a FTF at 5:15 p.m.!!!! Holy cow! So late in the day. I was leaving work about that time. I've been working OT but normally get out at 4:00. Well, I wanted to run out the door at 4 to try and make it to these. I was second at two of the three, and third at the last. Work is just completely getting in the way of this! LOLOLOL!

Mike...Hope your week is going well! And anyone else who may be lurking!

Happy caching!

 

[MiJo]

Hi Geocaching Friends,
Lilallybean: Congrats on graduating and furthering your education! And, we're glad to hear you had a nice vacation.

Sandy: Congratulations of the FTF! We knew you would get one sooner or later!

We still haven't been out for any serious caching since our vacation. We've just been too busy with other things. We do have a Geocaching picnic coming up in a few weeks and we are really hoping to attend. How was yours, Sandy?

We still haven't received a letter from our son in Navy Boot Camp. We know he was allowed to write on the 28th but we just haven't gotten it yet. Another family with a son in his Division has not received one either so we're not the only ones. That's how it is with snail mail, especially over a holiday. He did get to call us very briefly on Thursday. He had had his wisdom teeth removed and, while recovering, a chaplain must have stopped to talk to him and he expressed some concern for his ailing grandmother. The chaplain allowed him a few minutes to call home to check on her but he couldn't reveal much of anything about how he is doing. We know he wrote a letter and hadn't received any yet, but they were due for their 1st mail call later that day. He also said his graduation is on schedule.
Hopefully, we'll get that first letter today!

Take care, everyone, and good caching!

 

[lilallybean]

I sure hope that you get that much awaited letter soon. I can only imagine how hard it is to sit and wait. Let us know when you get it.

I spent my last day off going to a few places to get approval to place some caches. The city is allowing me to place caches at any of the city parks that I want! There are 18 city parks and some of those are large enough for more than one cache!!! The parks director seened eager to help me out in any way that he could. The Spokes restaurant was also willing to let me place a cache there, that one will be named along the line of "I Spoke about a cache". Finally the fire department is letting me place an apple in their pine tree! I am so excited about that one...thanks again for letting me use that idea! I can't to get started on them! I am planning on posting them all on the same day and enjoying the race.

It sounds like you all are lucky enough to be in an area with lots of caches near by. We have almost completed all the local caches. The only ones left are the riddle ones that I just can't seem to get figured out yet.

Now that it is starting to get cooler I am looking forward to more hunts without as much worry about snakes.

 

[Pin Wizard]

Gosh! It seems like ages since I've been on here. Are they sure that Ernesto was "just" a tropical storm? Some areas had so much flooding. Lots of trees down, too. Here, we lost power on Friday, had it back for a whopping 10 minutes on Saturday morning, then it was out again until Sunday evening. Then once the electric was back on, I had just finished typing my post on the site for attending the picnic. I went down to the bottom of the page to click on my TBs to drop in when it DISCONNECTED! That's when the cable...and phone...went out until TUESDAY when a truck was finally in the neighborhood...after the holiday. Years ago I worked for a cable TV company in NJ. They had techs on call 24 hours a day/365 days a year. Not here apparently.

The picnic at the park was GREAT!! And I got my 2nd FTF! Wooooo hoooooo!!! Part of the park was closed off on Saturday because of flooding. The rangers wouldn't allow anyone caching down there. So we just went for two new caches near the pavilion. Also attended a basic training class in Geocaching given by a town firefighter. You can always pick new ideas at any of these things. After the time I was in this park and about started a panic attack after getting disoriented, I took this guy's advice and marked a waypoint where we got off the bikes on the trail. Then we headed in the woods. We made it out, so I guess it works! While we were at that class, another cacher came by and dropped off a cache that belongs to the guy that ran the class. The person found it floating in water! Lucky for us... it was the cache that came to us, and the owner let us log it! LOL! I think this is the one where I had seen the "Entering Cottonmouth Habitat" sign in the past. YEA! Don't have to go OUT after it now!

Darling son and I went back to the same park on Sunday and headed out on bikes. Had a great time! There was one cache we just couldn't find at all. I guess that's the problem with downloading into the GPS and you forget to check the cache pages! Didn't have a hint. But even with the hint, there's a few places it can be. Will have to try another time. But I had 35 feet at one point, then it jumped to 106! That's when I headed back to the bikes. But we did well that day even though others were inaccessible due to water around or trees and debris from the storm. We'll have to go back another time. We're looking forward to the next event! There's one coming up out in Richmond area at Pocahontas State Park. Will have to think about that one. My son does need volunteer hours for school, and this event is to clean up a trail there. Hmmmmmmmmmm.

Mike...Thanks for the congrats! It's nice to finally have a couple. Hope you can make it to your picnic coming up!

I hope you receive that long-awaited letter SOON!

Lilallybean...Congrats on the new caches you're placing! They all sound great! I have several here that I need to check on since this past weekend's weather. I was told that one area was under water, another seems to have been demagnatized somehow, and a couple others need new logs. Guess we'll be busy getting them up and running.

I'm with you on the snakes! I don't go anywhere in the woods without my stick! Someone once told me to scoop up a snake and toss it.



And EVERYONE keep reminding the kids to do things safely! They think they're invincible, I know. And remind them to wear seat belts! A friend at work lost her 19 year old nephew a couple days ago. Is it LeJune or Pendleton possibly in NC where the Marines are? He was coming up to this area to visit his family before heading out to Iraq. A Marine friend of his was with him and driving. The nephew was the passenger in the car. I'm not sure what caused the accident exactly, but with him not wearing a seat belt, he was thrown from the car and killed. The friend did have have his seat belt on and survived. The police said that if he had his seat belt on, he would be here now. They are charging the friend with involuntary manslaughter. Apparently, he was going about 70 mph. He's already told my friend's brother that he's willing to take anything thrown to him because of this. He was very upset himself. So sad!!!! So hug the kids and remind them!!

On a happier note, I hope everyone gets out caching soon!

 

[Pin Wizard]

In today's newspaper...


http://www.dailypress.com/news/local/dp-20257sy0sep07,0,4069931.story




Hampton Marine killed in N.C. crash

Marty Banks, 19, was on his way to visit family just days before a scheduled deployment to Iraq.

BY SHAWN DAY
247-4816
September 7, 2006
HAMPTON -- Nineteen-year-old Marty Banks spent three years preparing for a chance to fight terrorism.

At 16 - and after begging his parents for permission - the Hampton native withdrew from high school and enrolled in the Commonwealth ChalleNGe, a nearly six-month residential program that provided a GED and military discipline. He finished first in his class.

At 17, he enlisted in the Marine Corps and trained to be a machine gunner.

He told friends and family that he wanted the responsibility. He wanted to go to Iraq, to be in the middle of the fight and do what he had trained to do, he told them.

But on Friday, barely a week before he and his company were scheduled to deploy to Iraq's dangerous Al-Anbar Province, Banks died after a rollover crash along a two-lane road in North Carolina.

Banks, a Marine lance corporal, was heading home to Hampton for a final weekend visit with family when his friend lost control of their sport utility vehicle and crashed, his relatives said. The driver survived. Banks was thrown from the SUV and pronounced dead at a nearby hospital.

His death marked a devastating loss for his family and 123 comrades in the 2nd Light Armored Reconnaissance Battalion's Alpha Company, based at Camp Lejeune, N.C. Many of them plan to gather today to honor Banks as he's laid to rest at Parklawn Memorial Park in Hampton.

This week, relatives reminisced about Banks' smile, his knack for cracking jokes and his gift for doing "right-on" impersonations. But it was his intensity toward achieving goals, they said, that most distinguished the young man.

"Everything he ever did was like from an inner strength," said his mother, Karen Banks. "He was driven."

Marty Banks was nearly 6 feet tall and weighed 180 pounds. He had a relentless work ethic that helped him accomplish whatever he wanted, his family said.

"You couldn't tell him he couldn't do something," said his sister, Shay Whitlock.

The terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, inspired Banks to serve in the military, and he desperately wanted to withdraw from high school and enlist, his family said.

After garnering awards and praise during his time in the Commonwealth ChalleNGe, Banks weighed which military branch he wanted to join. He chose the Marine Corps for the challenge and the camaraderie, said his father, David Banks.

Marty Banks' passion for weightlifting, his willingness to work and his positive attitude soon made him a role model for fellow Marines, said his platoon commander, 2nd Lt. Andrew Kinard.

"Marty was the sort of individual that would take any sort of task we would give him, cheerfully," he said. "He really affected the others in the platoon."

After finishing his Marine Corps duty, Banks hoped to embark on a career in a different type of public service: firefighting. He also wanted to earn a degree in sports medicine, which he hoped would qualify him for a second job as a personal trainer, his father said.

"He cared about his family, and he cared about his country," David Banks said. "He was a good young man."

 

[lilallybean]

How sad! We never know what the next moment hold and we must treasure each moment. It is such a scary thought that my oldest son is now driving...I am always on him about wearing his seat belt and being safe when he is out with friends or with us. I just hope and pray that he listens.

I sure hope that your caches are ok. I wondered about you all in the storm. Glad to see that you are back and doing OK. I have never been through a storm like that so I can't even begin to imagine what you have gone through. It would have to be very very very scary.

Congrats on your 2nd FTF!!! WTG!

My nieces are going hunting with me this weekend. For their birthdays I gave them a coupon good for a full day of hunting. They each decided to take the otehr on their day so they would each get 2 days! Now, this is a gift that we can all enjoy! LOL

Oh...one more thing...I went to a big "61 mile long yard sale" last week. I found a sale that had tons of Disney stuff. I was strong and stayed away from the stuffed animals, but got lots of Dis clothes for my sisters triplets that are due soon. I also found 2 adult and 1 child Dis rain ponchos for just a quarter each!!! They are now in my geocaching bag!

Mike---have you got that letter yet?

 

[Pin Wizard]

Congrats on the ponchos and other items!!! That's definitely the place to buy them. Triplets! Bless your sister and her husband's hearts! Tell them to enjoy the quiet while it lasts. LOL!

We checked on one cache last night and got it back in place. Maybe we'll hit a couple more after work tomorrow.

Have fun "hunting" with your nieces! That sounds like fun. I'm sure they'll have a great time with you. You're definitely now the "cool" aunt!

Thanks on the congrats, lilallybean! We've been out caching the past two late afternoons after work. Amazingly, some new caches have been placed close to home. Yea!!! We found 3 out of 4 today. I'm not counting the last one since it was dark. LOL! We had a small flashlight but decided to give up on it until the next time we're in that area. Funny that I have a difficult time finding the caches of a minister! LOL! His are always tough for me. I think our GPS's must be way off from the other.

Yes, I guess all we can do is repeat the important things for our kids and then model the behavior we want. Not always easy, that's for sure. My 8th grader already knows how to push my buttons.

Anyone been to any GREAT caches lately?

Happy caching!

 

[lilallybean]

We did have a great time. It is funny but I think that one of the best parts of our day was that it started raining on us. We were all wet, muddy, and laughing so hard we were in tears! We did have a good time and got several caches. I did one of my lil brothers caches. That was really fun, first time I have done one of his, and the first time I had the owner looking over my shoulder. He was really surprised at how fast I found it. We did see two snakes! Lucky for me I had my brother and he got me safely through it. Three caches that we did were great fun. Heckle and then Jeckle were the first two. They of course were named for the cartoon birds. The clue was "Did you ask the crow?" We came upon a big black crow who helped us to find the micro. After solving these two we had the coords for Magpie Nest. This was the first time we had an animal guarding a cache and it did scare me when I first ran across it.

Thanks for the good wishes for my sis. I have a feeling I will be spending lots of time with her over the next few months! LOL

Sure has been a while since we heard from Mike. Hope all is well!