Shh-hhh.  Don’t tell tonka_boy, but I’ve been doing some caching of my own.  While he’s at work, I’m out on the trail seeking those hard to find, rewarding caches.  And did I find a great cache.  I won’t divulge the name of the cache.  That’s part of the big secret.  It won’t be a secret if I told you.  Here’s the story.

I was feeling a bit antsy, cabin fever in the worse way.  So, I grabbed my geo-bag and headed out.  The cache I was seeking was a regular, 1.5/4.0.  Feeling a bit cocky, I thought, I’m up for it.  The hike to the cache was about a mile in.  A good walk, pretty level surface and best yet–no muggles.  There was bend in the trail.  The left flank took a steep drop.  Of course, that’s where the GPSr pointed.  Looking to make sure no one was around, I headed down the slope.  It wasn’t a bad trek, but I did get wet and muddy sliding down the last bit.

I spotted a likely spot right away, tucked under a widow-maker near a small cairn.  Pay dirt!  I eased the cache from its hiding place and set in on the ground.  Setting my gloves to the side, I paused a moment before opening the cache.  I noticed it was all quiet around me.  No birds.  No squirrels.  Nothing.  The air was heavy with anticipation.

I opened the cache.  I couldn’t believe my eyes.  The cache actually popped open, bills flowing out.  So I did what any respectable cacher would do.  I took something and left something.

The swag I took (photograph by Tracy O)

The swag I left (photograph by flyingember)

Now that spring is here, it’s time to think about the non-winter friendly caches we passed up and heading out for all day geocaching adventures without worrying about frost bite.  No, a different type of bite is the concern now, namely ticks.  If you’re like me and I know I am, the thought of plucking these little devils off my skin sends chills up my spine.  Better to play it safe though and be prepared.

First of all, most tick don’t carry disease and most bites are harmless.  There is that small percentage of bites that can cause health issues that you need to be aware of before heading out.  Common tick diseases include Lyme disease, Rocky Mountain spotted fever, and ehrlichiosis. Tick borne disease can cause flu-like symptoms usually within three weeks after a bite.  If you develop symptoms like muscle aches, fever, nausea, vomiting, it’s time to see the doctor.  Early detection is key in treatment.

So let’s say you’ve found a tick on you.  Let’s dispense with the old husband tales first.  Do not try to smother the tick with petroleum jelly, alcohol or anything else.  You are only setting yourself up for an increased risk in infection.  Put the matches away too.  To remove the tick, grab it with a pair of tweezers as close to its mouth as possible and pull straight up.  Afterwards, wash the area with a mild soap.  If the site of the bite becomes infected or becomes worse, again, a visit to the doctor is in order.

So how do you prevent getting them in the first place?  Avoiding areas where ticks are likely to be found is an option, but of course one that you’re liable to ignore if there is a good geocache there.  My botany professor swore by wearing light-colored clothes to make them easy to spot.  Long pants are a good precaution not just for ticks but also prickly ash and other pointy nemeses in the woods.  Don’t forget your insect repellent with DEET.  And while you’re out there too, don’t forget your dog.  Frontline Plus is the best product on the market for killing ticks and fleas.  Happy geocaching!

Last January I released my fourth travel bug, the Haunted America Travel Bug.  As I related in my description, the inspiration came from a series of “curious incidents” as we dubbed them that have occurred in our present home.  I encouraged finders to post their own stories.  I’m happy to report the best possible news from my little travel bug.  From its humble beginnings in Minnesota, it now is residing in the The Hill of Escape geocache.  Pu’u O Mahuka Heiau, “Hill of Escape”, is believed to have been a sacrificial temple.  Doesn’t get much scarier than that, does it?

I figured something was up when tonka_boy served me breakfast in bed yesterday.  He had just received notice of a new geocache.  No taking our time in the morning, lounging about.  He was hot on the trail for another FTF. 

The cache was of the type I like–on a trail in a place scarce of muggles.  While I’ve posted that I’m not particularly fond of winter caches because the snow takes part of the challenge away, the caching this time of year, when the snow is all but gone, the trail traffic at a minimum is very appealing. 

It was a bit farther down the trail then he originally thought.  So what though.  The weather was fabulous.  All the signs of spring were there–geese honking overhead, chickadees staking out their territory claims, the rush of the creek supplemented with melting snow. 

The cache, Trolls on the Luce, was a small cache, a first time hide for the geocacher.  This one stumped us a bit, but I will say this.  Coordinates were spot on, the hide appropriately rated 2 for difficulty, 2.5 for terrain.  We managed the grab though I also managed a splinter that I’m still trying to get out.  Thank goodness my tetanus shot is up-to-date.  It’s worth it though, to add that coveted FTF.

The Luce Line Trail

My husband has been working on a series of geocaches to hide lately. It’s been a bit of an obsession too, geocaching, geocaching, geocaching. That’s the nature of the sport though. It is addictive. We spent days on geo-adventures. It’s tough caching in the winter. Some people enjoy it and like the challenge of chipping through snow and ice to find a micro buried under all of it. Me, following the trail through the snow of the last guy who found the cache takes some of the fun out of it for me. I like the challenge of finding it all on my own. It’s supposed to get into the 40s this week. The snow part of the winter caches days are numbered.

Technorati Tags: geocaching,hide,winter,snow

OK, so it didn’t bite, but it certainly was a fun geocache to place, probably more so for Norm than me. I refused to touch it. It took him awhile, but he finally created the Sugar and Spice geocache.

Hiding is fun, there’s no doubt. What makes this one fun was the fact that it was a first to find, FTF, for the geocacher, his first as a matter of fact. Those FTFs are hard to come by. We had to boat to get to our first FTF. We’re so glad to spread the love.

Technorati Tags: geocache,geocaching,hide,FTF