http://mikenpat.com/index.php/geocaching/index/ en popop55@gmail.com Copyright 2008 2008-11-15T02:15:00-08:00 http://www.mikenpat.com/index.php/geocaching/cottage_grove_walkabout/ http://www.mikenpat.com/index.php/geocaching/cottage_grove_walkabout/#When:01:15:00Z Overview of my Cottage Grove excursions................ First evening I just made a short jaunt (Cyan color) from the motel (Village Green) to pick up two close caches before dark.  About one mile total. Second day (Yellow)I took two walks, one at lunch and one late afternoon.  Lunchtime walk took me around the perimeter of the nearby golf course hunting a multi and a couple of traditionals in the City of Cottage Groves North Regional Park.  Nice wide asphalt paths.  Couldn’t find one micro over by the fairgrounds/race track but emailed the owner - maybe tomorrow.  The late afternoon walk took me on portions of the Row River Trail, downtown CG and finally an old pioneer cemetery.  Had a DNF at the cemetery but got a hint from family explorer next morning.  Total walking distance for the day was approx. seven miles. Third day (Red) I walked about six plus miles going back to the pioneer cemetery and the fairgrounds to pick up yesterdays DNF’s (got ‘em both!), then west of town to a newer cemetery and back to the motel. Cottage Grove is a mixed bag as far as caching experiences go.  More than half of the caches aren’t being maintained well but there are a few cachers keeping their caches in good condition.  Two best caches of the trip was Olympic Trials Swag by Justlook’in and Duck Spirit by GoDux. With the finds on this trip combined with other visits here I have nearly cleared out the caches in the city limits - just one active cache and one inactive cache left. 2008 2008-11-15T01:15:00-08:00 http://www.mikenpat.com/index.php/geocaching/wading_around_with_the_duck/ http://www.mikenpat.com/index.php/geocaching/wading_around_with_the_duck/#When:01:17:00Z Woohoo - a day off in the middle of the week, what to do?  Well, caching, of course!  I started out the morning by heading out to get a couple of new caches out Cape Arago.  Well, that didn’t take very long - I have time to run down to Coquille and hunt for another couple new caches that folks are having difficulty with.  As I’m driving over Libby Road towards south Coos Bay I think to myself, “I should call Bad Duck and see if he wants to go with me - two sets of eyes are better than one!” Without thinking about the fact that not everybody has this day off or that some people work graveyard shifts, I quickly dial him up.  Several rings later a sleepy sounding Duck answers and I just jump right into my plans.  He’s game for the adventure.  After hanging up I suddenly realized that I just woke him up!  Well, he didn’t mind too much, I think.  So I picked him up and off to Sturdivant Park we went. We arrived and headed out to GZ which took us across the railroad tracks (away from the river mind you - where the clue says we should be) and then down into a low lying area filled with tall grass and a jungle of willow.  We both were getting wet feet as we approached the listed coords and quickly realized that to reach GZ we’d be wading into mid-thigh deep water!  Spent a few minutes pondering whether to even attempt it or wait until water recedes when I suddenly found my legs taking me right “into the fray” - it seems I had no choice in the matter! Well, now that I was good and wet I determine to give it a thorough search - about 45 minutes of thoroughness!  Thankfully, the water wasn’t cold - or were my legs just numb?  Not sure..... After wading around for about five minutes I notice that Darren hasn’t followed my lead........ in fact, as I glanced his way I notice he has popped open his umbrella, turned on his iPhone and is turned slightly away from me chuckling with someone!  I don’t blame him - no sense in both of us getting that wet!  Seriously, I’m not harboring feelings of abandonment or lack of support or ....... oh.... pardon me ......  I guess it’s payback for waking him up this morning!  back to the story....... Okay, not much to the rest of the story other than the fact that we both work on solving this puzzling cache and conclude that the coords are waaaaaaay off and Darren waits until I leave town for a few days to run out and gain FTF status!  Seriously, I’m not harboring feelings of aband......... oh, sorry I already wrote that didn’t I?  Check out the pics on the cache page gallery for a chuckle. Darren!  Where’d You Go, Man? 2008 2008-11-12T01:17:00-08:00 http://www.mikenpat.com/index.php/geocaching/sauvie_island_forest_park_in_portland/ http://www.mikenpat.com/index.php/geocaching/sauvie_island_forest_park_in_portland/#When:03:43:00Z Went caching in Portland with future son-in-law Andrew while the girls made wedding plans and shopped. Started on Sauvie Island with a hike in the Wapato Access Greenway.  There was a loop trail around Virginia Lake - picked up four caches.  One multi-stage cache eluded us due to the very confusing math involved. After Sauvie Island we went to the far northwest end of Forest Park to hunt a cache recommended by another cacher - Poet-Tree 1 - good cache.  It was off the main trail about 200 feet and hoisted up 30 feet into a tree!  Had to make a lifeline call to find it however. 2008 2008-10-12T03:43:00-08:00 http://www.mikenpat.com/index.php/geocaching/rainy_day_in_the_dunes/ http://www.mikenpat.com/index.php/geocaching/rainy_day_in_the_dunes/#When:00:10:00Z Over seven miles on the dunes and beach today from Riley Ranch County Park.  Here’s my cache logs for the day............ Found Logs Abandon ship! First leg of a seven-plus mile trek in the dunes today.  Had trouble locating so called BD - sheesh, made it harder than I needed to… but got it. Had a nice walk into this from Riley Ranch County Park.  Lucked out and found a narrow ATV trail through the lowland jungle of pine,willow, huckleberry and rhododendron.  Also saw a couple of deer feeding in a low grassy area. Now on to “A Day at the Beach”............ Thanks,man Animal Quackers Since I was already wet and pitted-out from my seven-plus mile hike into the dunes for “A Day at the Beach” and “Abandon Ship!” caches I decided today was a good day to go get this one too.  Made pretty quick work of it but my goodness that was a steep pitch up from Highway 101!  Now I’m really bushed - headed home to take in some football. Nice big container - in good condition.  Thanks. Met some mushroomers as I was coming back to my vehicle. A Day At The Beach My turnaround point on a seven-plus mile hike into the dunes from Riley Ranch County Park.  Misting pretty good out here. Traded geocoins.  Just as I was approaching GZ, four military helicopters came thundering north up the coastline. Thanks Oh yeah, milestone cache.....2200 This is a worthy milestone cache Wow, do you think I mentioned that it was a seven-plus mile hike enough times??  Sorry folks. 2008 2008-10-06T00:10:00-08:00 http://www.mikenpat.com/index.php/geocaching/sauntering_south/ http://www.mikenpat.com/index.php/geocaching/sauntering_south/#When:04:11:01Z Yesterday - North ; Today - South After church, went south as far as Langlois picking off a smattering of new caches. Started back towards home and my iPhone beeps - “You’ve Got Mail”!!  Well what do you know?  Four new caches just published!  Oh man, clear up in the Sumner/Fairview area - ugghh , not enough time, dinners waiting!  I toyed with the idea of calling Darren and racing him to the caches - only for a minute though, need to get home darn it!  Just shook my head reading his FTF logs later!  Another day - Another day! Oh Yeah!  Also picked off that pesky little Skeezix upon my return!  Then up Larson Way to top the day off. 2008 2008-09-29T04:11:01-08:00 http://www.mikenpat.com/index.php/geocaching/perpetually_north/ http://www.mikenpat.com/index.php/geocaching/perpetually_north/#When:03:05:00Z Cached in the Cape Perpetua area today - the main goal was going for the FTF on a Terracache. After getting the terracache I hunted a few right around Cape Perpetua then worked my way south to Florence. One of the more harrowing hunts was the one for Devil’s Funny Bone.  WOW!  Talk about bushwhacking!  That was every bit the 4 star terrain rating advertised!  Nothing more than an animal trail that a few folks have braved.  Great view of the lighthouse from the cache location too. Walked more good trails going for Hobbit Lookout Point and Should Have Been an Ammo Can caches. Finished off the day grabbing the six new caches along Shutter Creek Road. A good day! View looking south from viewpoint at Cape Perpetua 2008 2008-09-28T03:05:00-08:00 http://www.mikenpat.com/index.php/geocaching/terracache_no_5/ http://www.mikenpat.com/index.php/geocaching/terracache_no_5/#When:15:15:00Z Mountain Bike Hill terracache. And a FTF to boot!  Found at 0900.  (Had left Coos Bay around 0645) I love this area of the coastline - especially the hiking through the mature conifer stands of the Cummins Creek Wilderness.  Granted this cache is not within the wilderness boundary but it REAL close and has a trail head nearby.  This cache, in fact, is on Oregon Dept. of Forestry property at the top of a fairly new clearcut (oh sorry, bad word for some folks!).  Great view of the Yachats River valley from here - also can see NW to the ocean and the forested hills west of Yachats. Drove up USFS Road 55 about three miles to a point where a blocked-off logging road went up the hill to the cache.  Walked in from there - about .6 mile. A view NNE of the Yachats River valley A view NW to Yachats from cache location. Terracaching 2008-09-27T15:15:00-08:00 http://www.mikenpat.com/index.php/geocaching/nice_geocoin_gift/ http://www.mikenpat.com/index.php/geocaching/nice_geocoin_gift/#When:02:37:00Z Recently, a fellow cacher (Rod of family explorer) presented me with a really nice geocoin commemorating my 2000th find!  What a guy!  Thanks, man!! This is a keeper! Very Nice! 2008 2008-09-10T02:37:00-08:00 http://www.mikenpat.com/index.php/geocaching/oregon_fizzy_update/ http://www.mikenpat.com/index.php/geocaching/oregon_fizzy_update/#When:18:02:00Z Yesterday’s completion of Mackie’s Oregon Walkabout 3 gave me another D/T combination - now I have 59 of the 81 combinations........ Challenge Caches, Oregon Fizzy Challenge 2008-09-07T18:02:00-08:00 http://www.mikenpat.com/index.php/geocaching/epic_dune_hike/ http://www.mikenpat.com/index.php/geocaching/epic_dune_hike/#When:02:31:01Z Rarely does the notification of a new cache create both instant trepidation and excitement more than a Mackie “Oregon Walkabout”!  Such was the case in mid-July when Oregon Walkabout 3 popped up! Having completed the first two, I thought I knew what to expect - WRONG!  This one had eleven stages plus the final!  Yikes, what is Mackie thinking? On July 25th, Rod of family explorer and I set out early to tackle this monstrosity not really knowing how far we’d get in one day - on foot, that is.  Early in the day we still had a glimmer of the hope of completing the whole trek on this day.  Silly boys!  Now that it’s done I just have to chuckle at that naive anticipation!  Actually, if we hadn’t decided to grab a couple of “nearby” caches before starting our hike we might have made it - okay, probably not.  We put in over four miles on the dunes before even starting the Walkabout! Once we got started, completed 2-3 stages and noted the distance between stages we knew that we would probably not finish it this day.  Somewhere in the middle of the stages we were inhumanely tormented by a sudden “short” stage reviving our thoughts of finishing today!  WRONG!  My knees were killing me by now and we managed one more stage before calling it a day and exiting the dunes.  Counting the four plus miles prior to starting this cache my GPSr recorded 19.4 miles for the day!!  Never done that before!  Still it was a good day with lots of chatting about all things “geo” despite busting my favorite hiking stick.  We vowed to return soon to complete the task! Well, it wasn’t “soon” but finally we both had a day available to wrap this one up - today.  Had to make a guess as to where to pre-position a vehicle.  Once that was settled we dropped of the vehicle and headed back to the day’s starting point.  We guessed well - a quarter mile from the final cache location!  We had a mostly foggy morning trek for these final few stages and the final but did manage to have a few sunny moments along the way.  One stage gave us a little scare as we weren’t finding the container!  Not good.  We even called Mackie confirming we were looking in the right spot.  Rod finally spotted it after what seemed like a good 30 minute search.  Whew - onward! It felt really good to complete this one and was made more enjoyable by having someone else along for the fun! How can you top this one Mackie?  Oh NO - I should NOT have said that! I’m REALLY feeling the trepidation now................... Two Shady Characters!! Practicing my PHOON pose for THIS cache! Look!  A duck phooning! 2008 2008-09-07T02:31:01-08:00