bumblingbs

Totem Lake, I love you . I am having a bad geocaching day. ThaNk you~~

There were two of us in Port Townsend. Due to a series of unfortunate events, there was one. We had filled this town up with geocaches, the two of us. Uh, I don't want to any more. Two recent logs upset me. Bless these people, they are not the first. 1) Took TB AND geocoin, left nothing 2) Took $5 gift certificate, left $1 Power Bar. Wonder if the deer will eat it? (Just a note...it will take me 8 hours to go remove food from this cache) Can I use bad words here? Umm... I'm homeschooling a 6 year old. He needs my time. I love him WAY more than I love geocaching. I intend to archive my caches. I'm tired. If you are working on the Sweet 16 series, or if there is a cache that you especialy want to do, let me know. If anybody is looking for anything, I will keep it available. My friend, who has quit geocaching, has asked me to adopt two caches. Two of his, that I love. What to do? They may become my only caches. I've had FUN! But there has recently been too much pain.

Look, I go caching alone, and I'm a 46 year old woman, or I go with my 6 year old son. I am not into guns. Sorry, just is. But I do feel safer with a huge can of pepper spray with me. It says right on the canister to not use it on humans, but if someone is attacking me, or my sweet child, wouldn't I? Uh.......you betcha..

My can of pepper spray is 8.5 ounces. It's not like one of the little keychain things you can carry around, it's 8 or 9 inches high. It's called Counter Assault, and it says right on the canister that it is not to be used on humans. However, if I was in the woods being attacked by a human, I wouldn't think twice. I'm surprised, I can't find an expiration date on this can, the first one had a very definite one. A couple of things to keep in mind~if it's raining, or if the wind is blowing the wrong direction, you're S%$#-out -of- luck. Plus, the darn thing has a safety lock on it, and in an emergency, there's little chance I'd remember how to operate it. But, it does give me the confidence to go where I might otherwise not. Maybe an illusion, but I'll take it.

What a scary story! I'm full worries, and hiking in grizzly country is one of them. Where I live, there are thankfully no grizzlies, no rattlesnakes; but there are cougars, some of whom are becoming more agressive towards humans. I have a large can of bear spray which was originally purchased for hiking near Banff, but when it expired I replaced it for geocaching security. I actually have a shoulder holster to wear it in, but normally feel stupid about doing that---I hope if I meet a cougar it stalks me long enough for me to get prepared, rather than just jumping on my back and crunching my neck. At any rate, it's given me the peace of mind, as a usually single older female alone in the woods--to go places I might otherwise worry about. Uh, yeah, don't sneak up behind me and say "boo'. I'll spray the heck out of you. Glad everybody in this story survived. Grizzlies scare me. I've met little black bears on the east coast, and they don't worry me a bit, but grizzlies.........

I'm kind of looking at Saturday for a hike, since it will probably be my last chance before St. Helens. Well, you could have come with us. It's not a hard hike, but there's a new cache on Mt Zion. Did I mention that Belleterre is a triathlete, and she makes me look like a slug? Plus, I can't hardly stand up in my kitchen, much less on a rock, I'm so uncoordinated, and she made me go places I never wanted to go. KB....the ~almost~ bride of Sasquatch......

Wow, you guys are tough! We had a small group planning to go up and hide a cache on Mt. Jupiter, 3700 feet elevation gain, 14 miles RT, and I was figuring it would just about kill me. Turns out it's the one fricking place in the Olympic National Forest that's CLOSED, due to high fire danger. We will be placing a cache, on a nice, but much less ambitious mountain. Oh, well, at least I'll live.

Geez, you guys are all GOOD. I have no idea how to work the maps on my GPSr, I usually have no idea where I am, and, for 6 months the directional arrow on my GPSr didn't work, so I just had to walk and walk until the numbers started getting bigger, then i'd walk and walk a different direction. Fortunately, I only had to do this for 6 months, until somebody spent 3 seconds of their time to change some setting which made it all good again. Track logs? Breadcrumbs? Laptops in the car? Waypoints for parking and Camp Windy and every turn on the trail? I'm impressed! Good Lord, it's not for nothing we're Bumbling B's.

Ah, I did not take trailhead coordinates. In fact, when there was the difficulty with the map showing my cache to be 3 miles from where I said it was, the approver said, "It looks like you're coordinates are at the trailhead". No, the GPSr had never been turned on, I had to sheepishly admit to her, and, that about halfway up the mountain, I had a moment where fear gripped my heart and I thought that I might have left it in the car. It was in my pack (thank God, or poor MR B. would have had to run back down to get it). Anybody want to post trailhead coordinates, fine with me. I'll add them to the cache description. The first time we hiked MT. Townsend, we did get a bit lost, but the second time it seemed like a straight shot and we had no trouble. Guess it's always easier the second time..... KB

I think I actually maybe like hiding caches better than finding them. What a pleasure it has been, watching the logs roll in. Well, except for the flat tire and getting lost bit. Everyone who has been to this cache (just a cheap rubbermaid box, mind you) has written incredible logs. If one cheap rubbermaid box spurs on adventure and fellowship, hurrah for geocaching! And by the way, thanks for visiting. I only kinda wish I could have been there, too! KB

I don't know how your recovery is coming along-I hope well. I have been asked to lead a SLOW group up Mt Townsend in a couple of months, the end of the hiking season, really. It would be a slow, supportive group that would stick together and support each other, as opposed to spreading out according to ability. If you want to join, we'll pick a date. Edited to say that I know you are normally a strong hiker who could run circles around me.......but, if you're in a personal space where you want a little challenge without a lot of pain, join us...... KB

Well, yeah, there is water, just not in the higher reaches. And, if you get a bad forecast for Sunday, maybe screw it. This is not the hardest trail in the world, not by far, but do it when it is at it's best. We had incredible wildflowers and no view. I've been there with incredible views and no wildflowers. If you can get both, you're blessed. It's a beautiful place. I won't be thinking of anything else Sunday, except the group heading up. Wish I could be along.

Honestly, I like having people find my caches at least as much as, and probably more, than finding others. My toes are tingling, waiting for reports to come in. If I show you a good time, I'm all aglow. KB....waiting......

OH! And I love you guys as well! Don't have to be first; if you go in good weather the view is the only reward you could possibly need. I love it up here. KB

Mt. Townsend is a beautiful hike under any conditions. It is one of my family's favorites. But I must warn you, she won't be a virgin on Sunday. There is a seeker heading out tomorrow. Probably. Guess we'll see if the coordinates are Ok. Never met him, but love this guy who's going......

Edited because it was too silly...

Well, I've been to a couple of showers and know some shower games, but how well will baby-bingo, or the aforementioned baby food roundup work at a geo-event? I'm thinking, not very well. Any geo-baby ideas, let me know, and you can e-mail me privately if you want, so we can spring a surprise or two on the Mooses. Or not. If it's a friendly group of geocachers getting together to welcome another to the geo-family, and give them our love, that's probably enough. (Still, if you have a stellar idea, e-mail me)

I, for one, would like to know what the hell you did with Ironmen 1 through 113. Oh, Lord, that made me laugh!

No, I meant the baby food game was not meeting with the enthusiastic response I was expecting. It was a joke!

OK,so I'll bring a big box and a bow. Anyone who wants to contribute outgrown baby clothes or presents meets me before dinner, all goes into the box, into my car. Sometime between dinner and cake, I slip out and hide the box in a pre-selected spot nearby in the parking lot. Mrs. Moose is given a GPS with the coordinates on it, and whoever wants to can follow her as she "searches" for her cache. Not everyone, please, or they'll clear our tables. Then she can open presents and stuff while we all have cake. Sound OK? I was also considering the "baby food" game. You get 8 or 10 jars of baby food, things like prunes and squished ick. Take the labels off, and number them, so somebody can keep score. Then, everyone gets a spoonful, and tries to figure out what kind of food it might actually be. Somehow, this has not met with the enthusiastic response I was expecting. I'm still open to more ideas.

Mrs. Bull Moose is expecting a little bundle of joy (and long spindly legs and stuff), and we are going to be having a baby shower for her. I believe the agreed upon date is Sunday, November 7, and the location will be Tony Roma's in Silverdale. Other than eat, drink and be merry, patting Mrs. Moose's tummy a few times, and maybe having cake, I'm not coming up with any bright ideas of how to make it geo-special. Anybody want to loan me some brain cells, or send suggestions , you know where to find me. The event page will be up, sooner or later.

On second thought, YOU put the cache on Mt. Jupiter, maybe by fall I'll be able to go up and find it. One time up Jupiter. But, MAINTAIN a cache there? Uh, probably not.

Cool! I was going to put a cache up there earlier this spring but had to turn back. I was going to try again, but now I don't have to. (Next candidate: Mt. Jupiter) Uh, oh! Jupiter was on my list too, but not until the end of the summer. It'd kill me now. Race you? Or, go with you?

You could always do Mt. Townsend instead. Granted it's longer, but not as steep, and the footing is great. And the cache hasn't been found yet. Not approved yet, either, but it's sure as shooting sitting there.

Ah, too bad. I was assuming it had involved party hats and dancing. Hugs!