Mach-1 & Redtail

Recently I had a seasonal job as a Park Ranger for a city that shall remain nameless. I decided to pick up some trash on a lovely covered bridge near one of the parks that I managed when 2 police cruisers pulled up. Apparently someone driving by saw me and thought I was suspicious. Picture it... Here's me wearing a blaze orange bandana (its hunting season), a tan polyester shirt embroidered with "City of xxx Park Ranger", a shiny gold badge that says the same and a large green pickup truck near me that says "City of xxx parks & rec". These two fine officers ask for me ID, ask me who I was and what I was doing etc etc for several minutes. I even had to repeat myself a few times. Finally they were satisfied and we all drove away. A few minutes later I drive to my office (city hall) to pick up some gear and the officers show up there. They couldn't verify my ID since I was an out of state resident and had to ask me some more questions. After they drove away, I realized that there is a micro cache on that covered bridge. I can't imagine what the police would have done if I had been just caching. The badge, the shirt, the truck etc didn't seem to be enough proof. I did my best to make the entire city aware of Geocaching. I pity the next cacher who looks for that one! Redtail

I've used a product called Sawyer's controlled release for several years with much success. It contains DEET which is encapsulated in a protein that is not absorbable by skin. Rather than being absorbed by the body, it sits on top of the skin and protects from bug bites. I've purchased this product from EMS (eastern mountain sports). I've also soaked my clothes in pymethrin which keeps the ticks off through several washings. Its a pretty heavy duty chemical however. My uncle swears by the vitamin E method. I've yet to try it myself. Redtail

My decision to carry pepper spray was mostly to appease the men in my life. I took a training class at the local police department on how to properly use this tool. As with any personal defense tool, there are pros and cons and they should be researched thoroughly. I mostly envision having to use the spray on an aggressive dog. I am not comfortable carrying a gun and that is my personal decision. I also carry a machete, hatchet, chainsaw and various other equipment as part of my job. I'm sure I must look a little scary I think the bigger concern for ANYONE caching alone should be personal first aid. Do you know what to do if you are injured and a mile from help? Do you carry things in your pack that could be improvised as first aid equipment? I always carry zip lock baggies and bandannas...sounds silly but they could save my life. I highly recommend taking a wilderness first aid course. I can splint my own leg or dress a sucking chest wound if I needed to! If I can ever figure out how to do it, I'll post a pic of the tree that almost got me. And yes, it made a lot of noise as it fell.

As a woman who often caches alone and works in the woods alone, I've never felt the need to be paranoid...just alert. Both my father and husband have expressed extreme concern over my wealfare in these situations. I've always felt that I'm in more danger in a mall parking lot at night than I am in the woods, but hey that's just me. At my father's request, I have now started carrying pepper spray with me while at work (I'm a park ranger). I took a 2 hr class at the local police department and they provided a small canister of pepper spray. I'm also looking into taking the rape defense awareness course as well. I suspect that most police departments provide these types of classes. Pepper spray can be purchased at many outdoor gear stores. Check your state laws and regulations regarding its usage. It is effective on animals as well as humans and doesn't have lethal effects. So far, the most dangerous thing that has happened to me was having a massive oak tree almost crush me when it suddenly came down across the trail I was hiking on.

I'm a park ranger in NH and "have" to find the caches in my parks to make sure their locations are acceptable. At least that's what I said when I told my supervisors about caching!! Some of the local cachers have agreed to keep hiding caches in the parks I manage so I'll "have" to find them. Oh darn............

I would recommend taking a wilderness first aid course. It covers the basics of first aid, plus what to do in emergency situations while in the woods. This course teaches lots of useful techniques, plus how to be resourceful with things you carry in your pack. I currently hold advanced wilderness first aid certification that I obtained through SOLO (www.soloschools.com).

Alright, usually I'm just a lurker but today I'm inspired to post. So, here's my two cents.... I find the joy of caching is in the journey. I don't look at other cacher's numbers as a measure of their worth nor do I look at my own that way. I also don't feel any disappointment over what's in the cache at the end. I feel blessed to have the health, time, money (well maybe I don't really have this one) and freedom just to be able to enjoy this hobby. I've had some many wonderful experiences along the way that have served as an incredible reward for my efforts. Take for example the freshly fledged Blue Jay that I hung out with on my way back from a cache today, or the doe who let me get withing 6ft of her. So, maybe I don't have high numbers, maybe I feel like visiting a cache a second time for whatever reason, maybe I don't log all my DNF's, maybe (HEAVEN FORBID) I leave a crappy trade item.........why would someone spend their energy feeling frustrated by MY experience? When did geocaching become a competitive sport? I think people should learn to enjoy their own journey more and spend less time worry about others.

Well, here's my two cents on the matter. I think that there are two sorts of people. One kind is the destination oriented person (like my husband) and the other is the journey oriented person (like myself). My husband really likes the task of striving towards a goal. Finding the cache, hiking to the summit etc. I find myself really interested in the scenery along the way. I have found the most amazing places in my own backyard that I would otherwise not have seen. I could spend hours at some of the cache locations just enjoying the wildlife, the plants and the solitude. There are several caches around my locale that I intend to go back to just because they are such nice places to watch the seasons change. While I do admit that find junk in a cache makes me disheartened, for me its not about the prize in the bottom of the cereal box. I'm sure we could talk on this topic for years to come. Instead, I think I'll go back to one of my favorite places with a sketch pad in hand.

Our geodog Fozzie entered our life a year ago December. He was a stray that a co-worker of mine couldn't keep. We weren't really in a position to have a dog at that time but I had been wanting one for sooo long that I'd make my husband take me to local shelters on the weekends just to get some "doggie attention". As soon as we saw Fozzie, we knew he was ours. It was like one of those magical moments (yes I am a romantic at heart). He is a schnauzer/cocker/whoknowswhat mix with an amazing way of loving a person. With that being said, he is also a total dork. He wants to go in the car but has to hide is head in my armpit or wedged between me and the door. He barks at other dogs with the attitude that seems like he's the hall monitor...."stop running, no barking on the trail, don't you dare sniff my butt even though I spent an hour sniffing yours etc". He has come caching a few times with us now and even though he's a total dork, I wouldn't change him for the world

Very cool (eh, sorry)! That Amish Hacker fellow is pretty handy with a pair of shears. Here is my first attempt. It illustrates the plight of the novice cacher as he/she is cruelly mocked by topography, wandering in a swirling, magnetic field-induced stupor, cursing the the low pressure system that haunts his/her every turn. At least that's what my dog says it is. http://snowflakes.lookandfeel.com/viewflake.php?id=3178462 Well, as it turns out, I have no idea how to upload an image here, so I have to leave you with the link. (I would, however, be grateful for a tutorial). Staying with the winter theme, here is a site where you can make your own snowMAN! http://clevermedia.com/game.cgi?snowman4000 Mach-1