The Golden B's

Isn't she precious?

(Published with permission)

Most interactions with geocachers are done online as we see who has hidden or found a new cache. We can see the 'geo names' of all the geocaching community.

One name that kept popping up as finding a lot of caches, and who was also the First to Find (FTF) on our Bibs and Fibs Cache that geo hubby and I placed, was, The Golden B's.

I sent them an email because they were our FTF, and I received a pleasant reply. Thus, we became a little more acquainted.  Seems they love Golden Retriever Dogs too, and they live a few miles from us. Their Golden goes on many of their geocache hunts.  They love geocaching and try to dash for the FTF on any new geocaches within the local area.

So, when a new geocache came out last week, I suggested that geo-hubby and I try to beat the Golden B's to the new cache.  I was slightly teasing because one never knows about these things. I told hubby to watch for a Golden Retriever because that would mean the Golden B's were in pursuit. 

We got to the location and found the path to be difficult. (Pictured below)

The GPS indicated we had to cross this 'stream' for the cache.

I said, "I don't think so!"

Just then we heard footsteps in the thicket, and down the path came a lovely, tail-wagging, proud but friendly, Golden!  "The Golden B's" (at least some of them) had arrived GPS in hand.   I ran over to the Golden and her master. I introduced us as "Starcatcher55 and CatsEye55" which she recognised immediately.  We greeted and petted the beautiful Golden.  We told her we were having trouble finding the cache in the deep thicket and canal of water. But, I said finally meeting them was just as exciting as finding the cache.

Because of the water, she went back to the road and came in from the other side.  Hubby crossed the canal on the small logs placed in the water. I waited with camera in hand.  Here they are across the creek looking high and low for the geocache. I took some photos as I waited on the other side.

(During this time, our son in Ohio called. I told him we were geocaching but we're always happy to chat with him. He wished us well and a good hunt.)

Then, I noticed that while taking pictures of Jim on the other side of the creek, I was also getting photos of a small muskrat nest right in front of me.  Maybe two. I could see the shiny fur of the muskrat in the larger opening to the right of the photo. (Maybe you can click on the photo for a close-up view.)

Soon, I became impatient, of course.  I walked further down the path and found a way over the water without getting a bit wet. I hurried to the area where they were crawling under bushes and around small trees. Their GPS's indicated they were 'right on top' of the small cache, but no one had found it yet. I decided not to crawl around in the thicket, but went over to check trees along the edge of the thicket, but off the grid for the GPS.

I'll bet we had searched for an hour when I yelled. "Waaa HOOO!!! I found it!!!" in the bark of this tree!
The base has a nice wood burrow to hide a geocache, but it wasn't there. You can't see it in the picture, but it's in the crack of the bark about 1/3 to 1/2 way up the tree. (And our GPS coordinates were not even close.)

So The Golden B's, CatsEye55 and Starcatcher55 became co-finders of our FTF.  How sweet.

It was really nice to finally meet The Golden B's, and how natural to meet in the forest of a geocache!

Take Care on the Journey,
~Linda



My Very First FTF - First to Find - 5.5 Miles From Home

There's that 55 again!

My geo email said there were two new geocaches hidden this weekend not too far from home. I figured that weekend geocachers had already been First to Find (FTF), but when I checked the website, there were no listings for any ambitious persons having already logged the finds!  So, I rushed to get dressed and dash to the site about 40 blocks toward Denver from where we live.

I thought I knew the area enough that I could drive straight there (a small local park) and turn on the GPS when I was at the park to locate the cache.  I didn't expect the main city street (Pecos Street) to hit a dead end.  Clicking on my iPhone app called Aroundme, I located a map of where I was sitting at the end of the street and calculated a workaround.

Geocaching doesn't include information such as what side of the fence to walk when it outlines the direct line to the hidden cache.  Of course, I chose the right side - which was not the right side!

Oh boy!  Which side should I start down?

Can you see it?  That dark spot in the center between the two fences...

I hope it's too early for snakes and such...

(I had seen the cache in the tree up close when I was on the hill on the OTHER side of the fence.

I had to walk back to the end of the fence and come around on the other side.)

I honestly couldn't figure out how to reach in and get this without getting my hands all scratched up.

I was also watching over my shoulder for other geocachers out to be FTF!!!!

There's suppose to be two tee shirts and some kid's toys inside. Along with the log book, of course.

Nope!. I'm all alone. The coast looks clear to be FTF!!!!

Got it open. A cute toy on top. (My geo purse with all my trinkets next to it.)

I added a red bead necklace to go with the white tee shirts I found nicely pressed and rolled up inside.

Oh! I WAS the first to sign the log book. March 21, 2011 at 12:25 p.m. Starcatcher55

The owner named this cache, "Sherrelwood Nameless". 

I would have called it, "Hold On To The Fence" 

It was a steep hill I had to climb to get out of there!

 Another geocacher pulls in as I'm leaving the site.

I said in greeting, "I'm not going to tell you which side of the fence it's on."

 Ha Ha Ha

Geocacher who calls himself Milestogeo is on the wrong side of the fence!!!

I didn't crop this photo so you can click on it for a close up view.

He is the blue dot in the very center of the photo. 

I pulled up beside him and said, "I did the very same thing." 

We hope to meet 'milestogeo' at another nameless geocache site sometime.

Take Care on the Journey,

~Linda