Minnesota's 8th Annual Canoe-in Geocaching Event was held today, Saturday, August 29th, 2015 and like every preceding event, was more successful than the last. For the eighth consecutive year in a row, the weather cooperated and was perfect.
The event is annually held at Dakota County's Miesville Ravine Park Preserve, which is located about four miles south of Miesville, MN and six miles northeast of Cannon Falls, MN. The majority of geocachers paddle the Cannon River from Cannon Falls to the Miesville Ravine landing, which is a 6.7 mile gorgeous stretch of the river. Some geocachers biked the Cannon Valley Trail and others just stopped in for the picnic.
I would like to thank the following:
- My daughter Molly and boyfriend for manning the picnic shelter while everyone was on the water.
- Doublemoose for personally carrying the cold beverages on the water and keeping them nearby.
- Those that provided door prizes.
- And especially thank you to all of whom attended this event. Without you all it just wouldn't be as much fun to be on the river.
Final attendance numbers as of September 8th, 2015:
- There were 45 RSVPs.
- 51 have logged the event Attended.
- 68 signatures were listed on the written log.
- Physical headcount during the picnic was in excess of 65 attendees if you count infants and canines.
- 5 dozen ears of sweet corn served along with a pound and a half of butter.
- In years past, we've filled the two trash barrels provided by the park. This year, we hauled out two of our own trash barrels leaving the park with only a minimal amount of cleanup.
Enjoy the photographs (click thumbnails for larger view)..
2015 - Minnesota's 8th Annual Canoe-in Geocaching Event
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2015 - Minnesota's 8th Annual Canoe-in Geocaching Event
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2015 - Minnesota's 8th Annual Canoe-in Geocaching Event
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2015 - Minnesota's 8th Annual Canoe-in Geocaching Event
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2015 - Minnesota's 8th Annual Canoe-in Geocaching Event
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2015 - Minnesota's 8th Annual Canoe-in Geocaching Event
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2015 - Minnesota's 8th Annual Canoe-in Geocaching Event
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2015 - Minnesota's 8th Annual Canoe-in Geocaching Event
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2015 - Minnesota's 8th Annual Canoe-in Geocaching Event
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2015 - Minnesota's 8th Annual Canoe-in Geocaching Event
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2015 - Minnesota's 8th Annual Canoe-in Geocaching Event
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2015 - Minnesota's 8th Annual Canoe-in Geocaching Event
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2015 - Minnesota's 8th Annual Canoe-in Geocaching Event
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2015 - Minnesota's 8th Annual Canoe-in Geocaching Event
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2015 - Minnesota's 8th Annual Canoe-in Geocaching Event
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2015 - Minnesota's 8th Annual Canoe-in Geocaching Event
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2015 - Minnesota's 8th Annual Canoe-in Geocaching Event
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2015 - Minnesota's 8th Annual Canoe-in Geocaching Event
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2015 - Minnesota's 8th Annual Canoe-in Geocaching Event
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2015 - Minnesota's 8th Annual Canoe-in Geocaching Event
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2015 - Minnesota's 8th Annual Canoe-in Geocaching Event
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2015 - Minnesota's 8th Annual Canoe-in Geocaching Event
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2015 - Minnesota's 8th Annual Canoe-in Geocaching Event
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2015 - Minnesota's 8th Annual Canoe-in Geocaching Event
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2015 - Minnesota's 8th Annual Canoe-in Geocaching Event
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2015 - Minnesota's 8th Annual Canoe-in Geocaching Event
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2015 - Minnesota's 8th Annual Canoe-in Geocaching Event
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Back in October 2013 in preparation for the MNGCA Fall Event, I hid an Arduino driven gadget geocache named Thanks Alfred (GC3F7F6), The gadget was an audible puzzle and required you to listen to a message in Morse Code. The decoded message led the seeker to the final stage of the geocache.
Apparently someone felt threatened by the cache or had a problem with it as within 5 days, the well hidden gadget had went missing. I suspected foul play by one of our own in the game but with most incidents like this, it was pure speculation and couldn't be proven. I more or less wrote off the $55 gadget as being gone forever. That was until April 11th, 2015, almost a year and a half later, when geocacher Bubbles&Bonkers emailed me to let me know she found the gadget floating in the nearby lake. It's still not proof. But the fact that the gadget ended up in the lake rather than being taken from the woods leads me to believe it truly was another disgruntled geocacher.
Enjoy the photographs (click thumbnails for larger view)..
2015 - Anatomy of a Ravaged Geocache
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2015 - Anatomy of a Ravaged Geocache
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2015 - Anatomy of a Ravaged Geocache
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2015 - Anatomy of a Ravaged Geocache
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2015 - Anatomy of a Ravaged Geocache
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2015 - Anatomy of a Ravaged Geocache
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Joshua Johnson, the Geocaching Vlogger, featured my geocache Fire and Ice (GC4TXB2) on his Geocaching Vlogger YouTube Channel. Joshua did a pretty good job with it and appreciate that he enjoyed it enough to document his experience. Thank you Joshua.
My geocache Fire and Ice (GC4TXB2) has been named by Geocaching.com's BLOG as the first Geocache of the Week for 2015. It only has 51 finds since publication on July 27th, 2014 but it has 36 favorites with a favorite rating of 92%. It's always nice to get a bit of recognition for a fun geocache, particularly since I wasn't expecting anything. But for me, the best part of the game is watching others enjoy the geocache and reading the logs of their experience.
Click here to read more about the construction of this geocache.
I was perusing the geocaching maps prior to a family trip down to Kansas to visit Jane and family. One cache in particular that caught my eye was Sitting on a Spider (GC4113), by barondriver. This cache stood out because it has all of the elements in a cache that I look for; it's an oldie, it is rated a 5/5, and it looked like it requires a bit of persistence and ingenuity. The only drawback to the cache is that it is located just south of Wichita, KS, which is just over 200 miles from where we were staying in Lansing, KS. Like Nene always says, since when does distance ever stop me from finding a cache? So Jane, Dan, and I headed south to try and score the find.
I had a couple of months in advance to think about how to get at this cache. I own climbing gear but anchoring and my inexperience could be a problem. The next best idea was a couple of ropes, a grappling hook, and a magnetic device, hoping for the best. The idea of bringing a ladder seemed like cheating so I put it to the back of my mind as a possible secondary idea.
Dan was the star at tossing the grappling hook but unfortunately, after a few attempts the ropes got tangled within the protruding bolts up top. My idea of using the grappling hook was a total failure. Luckily there was a hardware store within 10 minutes drive that just happened to be open on New Years Day. I am now the proud owner of a new 28' extension ladder. But we managed to score the find.
Enjoy the photographs (click thumbnails for larger view)..
2015 - Sitting on a Spider (GC4113)
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2015 - Sitting on a Spider (GC4113)
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2015 - Sitting on a Spider (GC4113)
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2015 - Sitting on a Spider (GC4113)
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2015 - Sitting on a Spider (GC4113)
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2015 - Sitting on a Spider (GC4113)
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2015 - Sitting on a Spider (GC4113)
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2015 - Sitting on a Spider (GC4113)
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2015 - Sitting on a Spider (GC4113)
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2015 - Sitting on a Spider (GC4113)
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2015 - Sitting on a Spider (GC4113)
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2015 - Sitting on a Spider (GC4113)
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2015 - Sitting on a Spider (GC4113)
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2015 - Sitting on a Spider (GC4113)
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2015 - Sitting on a Spider (GC4113)
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2015 - Sitting on a Spider (GC4113)
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2015 - Sitting on a Spider (GC4113)
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2015 - Sitting on a Spider (GC4113)
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2015 - Sitting on a Spider (GC4113)
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2015 - Sitting on a Spider (GC4113)
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2015 - Sitting on a Spider (GC4113)
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2015 - Sitting on a Spider (GC4113)
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2015 - Sitting on a Spider (GC4113)
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2015 - Sitting on a Spider (GC4113)
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I cannot think of a better way to spend a spectacular Saturday afternoon in October than being in northern Minnesota on another adventure. I joined with a gang of about 40 other geocaching friends to rappel down Ely's Peak to find a cliff dwelling geocache named Cliff Hanger (GCQ6D4) by EskoClimber.
We were led by the cache owner himself. Scott Engstrom, who is a professional and expert climber rigged the protection, setup the ropes and belaying gear, and made sure each and every harness was inspected for proper use. Scott was patient and made sure that everyone that wanted to step off the cliff did so safely.
As for my own experience, I knew I had to get into the first group to rappel down the cliff. I know myself.. the more I sit there thinking about it the more likely I am to talk myself out of it. I managed to complete the rappel though not without much anxiety and cursing. By the time I made it safely to the bottom, apparently the adrenaline was running so high that I couldn't control the smiles.
Enjoy the photographs (click thumbnails for larger view)..
2014 - Rappelling Ely's Peak, Duluth, MN
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2014 - Rappelling Ely's Peak, Duluth, MN
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2014 - Rappelling Ely's Peak, Duluth, MN
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2014 - Rappelling Ely's Peak, Duluth, MN
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2014 - Rappelling Ely's Peak, Duluth, MN
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2014 - Rappelling Ely's Peak, Duluth, MN
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2014 - Rappelling Ely's Peak, Duluth, MN
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2014 - Rappelling Ely's Peak, Duluth, MN
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2014 - Rappelling Ely's Peak, Duluth, MN
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2014 - Rappelling Ely's Peak, Duluth, MN
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2014 - Rappelling Ely's Peak, Duluth, MN
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2014 - Rappelling Ely's Peak, Duluth, MN
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2014 - Rappelling Ely's Peak, Duluth, MN
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2014 - Rappelling Ely's Peak, Duluth, MN
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2014 - Rappelling Ely's Peak, Duluth, MN
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2014 - Rappelling Ely's Peak, Duluth, MN
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2014 - Rappelling Ely's Peak, Duluth, MN
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2014 - Rappelling Ely's Peak, Duluth, MN
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2014 - Rappelling Ely's Peak, Duluth, MN
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2014 - Rappelling Ely's Peak, Duluth, MN
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2014 - Rappelling Ely's Peak, Duluth, MN
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2014 - Rappelling Ely's Peak, Duluth, MN
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2014 - Rappelling Ely's Peak, Duluth, MN
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2014 - Rappelling Ely's Peak, Duluth, MN
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I can't think of too many other ways to enjoy a crisp October Saturday sunrise than spending it with friends paddling to a geocache. That's just what I did today. Myself and four other geocachers took to the St. Louis River and paddled to Clough Island, which is located just outside the western edge of Duluth, MN. Our goal was to find a 4/5 rated geocache Cast Away (GC3RYRR). We scored the find with no issues and managed the entire 3.4 mile voyage in just under two hours.
Enjoy the photographs (click thumbnails for larger view)..
2014 - Paddling the St. Louis River, Duluth, MN
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2014 - Paddling the St. Louis River, Duluth, MN
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2014 - Paddling the St. Louis River, Duluth, MN
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2014 - Paddling the St. Louis River, Duluth, MN
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2014 - Paddling the St. Louis River, Duluth, MN
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2014 - Paddling the St. Louis River, Duluth, MN
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2014 - Paddling the St. Louis River, Duluth, MN
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2014 - Paddling the St. Louis River, Duluth, MN
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2014 - Paddling the St. Louis River, Duluth, MN
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2014 - Paddling the St. Louis River, Duluth, MN
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2014 - Paddling the St. Louis River, Duluth, MN
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2014 - Paddling the St. Louis River, Duluth, MN
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2014 - Paddling the St. Louis River, Duluth, MN
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2014 - Paddling the St. Louis River, Duluth, MN
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2014 - Paddling the St. Louis River, Duluth, MN
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2014 - Paddling the St. Louis River, Duluth, MN
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2014 - Paddling the St. Louis River, Duluth, MN
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2014 - Paddling the St. Louis River, Duluth, MN
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Laura and I made our way down to the Kansas City, KS, area to visit sister Jane and family. Being adventure seekers, we scouted a five star geocaching and paddling event that was scheduled to take place during our visit, I'm on a Boat (GC5ATZR). Located just a few miles south at nearby at Shawnee Mission Park, this was an event that we did not want to miss. We teamed up with Jane, Dan and Devon and attended the very fun event. We met many new friends and coincidentally, I met a existing friend at the event.
Enjoy the photographs (click thumbnails for larger view)..
2014 - Paddling Shawnee Mission Lake, Shawnee, KS
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2014 - Paddling Shawnee Mission Lake, Shawnee, KS
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2014 - Paddling Shawnee Mission Lake, Shawnee, KS
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2014 - Paddling Shawnee Mission Lake, Shawnee, KS
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2014 - Paddling Shawnee Mission Lake, Shawnee, KS
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2014 - Paddling Shawnee Mission Lake, Shawnee, KS
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2014 - Paddling Shawnee Mission Lake, Shawnee, KS
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2014 - Paddling Shawnee Mission Lake, Shawnee, KS
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2014 - Paddling Shawnee Mission Lake, Shawnee, KS
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2014 - Paddling Shawnee Mission Lake, Shawnee, KS
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2014 - Paddling Shawnee Mission Lake, Shawnee, KS
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2014 - Paddling Shawnee Mission Lake, Shawnee, KS
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Fire and Ice (GC4TXB2) by bflentje
Last year I hid a geocache that had several gadgets at various stages of the multicache. These gadgets were electronic in nature and operated using Arduino microprocessors. As an offshoot of what I learn from that experience, my latest creation is similar but requires a bit more user interaction with the device in order to be successful.
Fire and Ice is a very short, but fun and family friendly, three stage multicache. Stage #1 contains nothing more than a marker in an attempt to keep the non-serious geocacher away from the device. Stage #2 is an Arduino driven circuit device which when successfully solved, directs the seeker to the final third stage.
The principle behind the device at stage #2 is simple; change the temperature of the device 40 degrees, one direction or the other, using any non-destructive means possible. The device contains two different temperature sensors. One is built into the device which monitors the ambient temperature. The other sensor is installed within the external probe in which the geocacher interacts. In order to unlock the coordinates to the final stage, the geocacher must change the temperature of the probe to be either 40 degrees hotter or colder than the recorded ambient temperature. This can be done with ice water, a slushy, hot coffee, or by other methods. In the winter, one could even just use the warmth of their body to make the change. One gang of geocachers even managed to get the job done by using the friction of a looped lanyard. The only method that is not recommended is the use of fire. Besides the possibility of destroying the probe, it is considered a violation of park ordinance.
Please note to all of those geocachers concerned about the geocaching guidelines that this hide has been granted explicit permission of both the hosting park system and from geocaching.com. Please do not assume that the mounting mechanism used here is for general practice.
SPOILER ALERT Do not proceed unless you want to completely ruin your fun.
Enjoy the photographs (click thumbnails for larger view)..
2014 - Fire and Ice (GC4TXB2)
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2014 - Fire and Ice (GC4TXB2)
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2014 - Fire and Ice (GC4TXB2)
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2014 - Fire and Ice (GC4TXB2)
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2014 - Fire and Ice (GC4TXB2)
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2014 - Fire and Ice (GC4TXB2)
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2014 - Fire and Ice (GC4TXB2)
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2014 - Fire and Ice (GC4TXB2)
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2014 - Fire and Ice (GC4TXB2)
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2014 - Fire and Ice (GC4TXB2)
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2014 - Fire and Ice (GC4TXB2)
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2014 - Fire and Ice (GC4TXB2)
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2014 - Fire and Ice (GC4TXB2)
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2014 - Fire and Ice (GC4TXB2)
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2014 - Fire and Ice (GC4TXB2)
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My geocache For Your Eyes Only (GC47072) has been named Minnesota's Geocache of the Year for 2013 by members of the Minnesota Geocaching Association. An astounding 50 votes were cast overall with my geocache taking 64% of the vote. It's always nice to get a bit of recognition but for me, the best part of the game is reading the Found It logs by those that have found the cache. For Your Eyes Only currently has 30 finds with 26 favorite points awarded (87%). I am glad that my fellow geocachers were able to get some enjoyment out of my efforts to the game.
Click here to read more about the history and making of this geocache.