Team Markwell's GPS Adventures
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March 2004

Canoeist’s Convenient Cache by -Brian-M- N 42° 12.317 W 087° 55.533 Difficulty: Terrain: Date Tried: 3/6/2004 Hunters: Kelly

Green Dot is home. Blue Dot is cache.

Well - this will teach me to go on just icons and my GPS. I was traveling to the great land of the cheese today, and this one popped into my radar. I got within 244 feet when I realized I was on the wrong side of a considerable obstacle. I guess I'll try again the next time I come through - better prepared.

Click on Dash Icon to see the Map GD33-CADO Terra Server Picture from LostOutdoors.com Coordinates: N 42.2585° W 088.0966° State: Illinois Date Found: 3/6/2004 8:33 am Hunters: Kelly Lakewood County Forest Preserve, NW of Chicago 43.07 miles from home

Green Dot is home. Blue Dot is dashpoint.

Dashpoint Name: Hoard of Glow Worms Back in August of 2001, I planned my first multi-cache day. It made a large sweep up the far western side of Chicago to the northwest suburbs and then returned back down I-294 toward my office. There were so few caches around at that time that this was the most reasonable route to hit 8 caches in "close proximity." Of course, the joke is now that I can go to one park and sometimes hit 8 caches. The farthest northern cache I hit was Shine, Little Glow Worm, a now archived cache. It was one of those great hikes, even though I was lost (well disoriented) for a good hour. That cache was in the same forest preserve as this dashpoint. The best news is that someone else replaced another cache here - this time a little closer to the parking. The cache is Hoard of many things the Rebirth (GC882D). As happened last March with GD21-CAAJ and GCC102, if you've found GC882D in March of 2004, you've scored the dashpoint. I had to drive up to Wisconsin for some reconnaissance for our annual church conference's youth rally in the Lake Geneva area, so this was acutally on the way using a very scenic route that would take me to one cache that I had really wanted to see (not this one). The dashpoint rests just a little to the south of the trail near a very large fallen tree. To the right as you approach the point, you'll see a chain link fence marking the edge of the preserve property and a pink ribbon tied to the fence (must be one of Scout's markers again).

Hoard of many things the Rebirth by JollyBGood N 42° 15.500 W 088° 05.747 Difficulty: Terrain: Date Found: 3/6/2004 Hunters: Kelly

Green Dot is home. Blue Dot is cache.

The last time I was in this preserve was back in August of 2001 with my first frenzy day to find Shine, Little Glow Worm, my first themed cache, and for quite a long time, the farthest northern cache I had ever found. Back then, the nearby bridge had just been completed, and my trek through the preserve had taken WAY too long (many wrong turns). However, this day's journey led me to GD33-CADO a Geodashing point that is within scoring range of this cache. If you are at this cache, you're within the 100 meter scoring range for the dashpoint. As far as the cache itself, I found this one with much less trouble than the first cache I found here, although the sledding hill still taxed me a little. Gotta get out an hike more.

Volo Bog Suprize by JollyBGood N 42° 21.326 W 088° 10.859 Difficulty: Terrain: Date Found: 3/7/2004 Hunters: Kelly

Millie the Mole

Green Dot is home. Blue Dot is cache.

What a wonderful hike. I love these older caches that were placed before the summer of 2002. Most of them have much longer walks than the typical 600-750 foot hikes. I was immediately reminded of the Beverly hike on this one. The nicer thing than Beverly was that I only saw one other person the entire time from getting out of my car to returning. Everything was gorgeous, from the numerous Canadian geese honking overhead, to the evidence of beaver activity near the viewing blind. The cache was well hidden, but obvious to a cacher, and just off the path enough to keep the muggles away. All-in-all, a very nice hike to round out the last of three caches today.

Click on Dash Icon to see the Map GD33-BYYW Terra Server Picture from LostOutdoors.com Coordinates: N 42.5976° W 088.5457° State: Illinois Date Found: 3/6/2004 10:29 am Hunters: Kelly Williams Bay, Wisconsin, about 15 minutes west of Lake Geneva 67.92 miles from home

Green Dot is home. Blue Dot is dashpoint.

Dashpoint Name: Chain Reaction or Super Rally Point I needed to to some recon work in Williams Bay, Wisconsin, so the team I work with for a youth rally (April each year) decided that we needed a road trip to the site on March 6. Cool. The last two years I've gone up to Wisconsin for this rally, April has not granted me easy dashpoints (although I did actually score some on both trips). This time, however, it was like the Dashpointing Llamas knew right where I needed one this time, and they gladly supplied it. Super Rally is held at Aurora University at Lake Geneva, right next to the Yerkes Observatory (affliated with the University of Chicago). The observatory was actually host for a scene in the absolutely lousy movie called Chain Reaction with Keanu Reeves and Morgan Freeman. Both the university and the observatory are actually in Williams Bay, Wisconsin, about 15 minutes west of Lake Geneva. The dashpoint is on the north edge of Williams Bay, on a sleepy little road to the north of the B.P. gas station. Driving on the road, I was able to get within 15 meters from the point, which was in some wooded area too the north of the road. I probably could have zeroed it, but it was a residential area, so I figured 15 meters was close enough.

What’s Puzzling You? Piece Four by Nash79 N 41° 33.649 W 088° 11.021 Difficulty: Terrain: Date Found: 3/12/2004 Hunters: Kelly

Green Dot is home. Blue Dot is cache.

Cachiversary III - Part 1: Riverview Willow The first stop on my caching anniversary was an easy one. I had actually scoped this park out for Liberal Arts when I was considering having it all in Plainfield. Nice hide - and the first of a pattern.

What’s Puzzling You? Piece Two by Nash79 N 41° 34.240 W 088° 11.098 Difficulty: Terrain: Date Found: 3/12/2004 Hunters: Kelly

Green Dot is home. Blue Dot is cache.

Cachiversary III - Part 2: River Bank in Van Horn I knew exactly how to get to this cache. After all, I had hidden one of the legs of Hard as Pi only 80 feet from here. The hide was good, and it was at this point I learned the pattern of these hides. I was all set to do the whole group today.

What’s Puzzling You? Piece Three by Nash79 N 41° 36.628 W 088° 10.331 Difficulty: Terrain: Date Tried: 3/12/2004 Hunters: Kelly

Green Dot is home. Blue Dot is cache.

Cachiversary III - Part 3: First Defeat Well, there's usually one that I lose one on a big day like this. I didn't expect it to be this one though. Without having all of the pieces, I decided to forego the rest of the series for the day and hit it again another time.