Me & Bucky

As Isonzo Karst noted, there are now plenty of commercial trips down to Antarctica. In fact, there are now outfits that will support your flight to the Pole, hike to the Pole, ski to the Pole, climb up the Vinson Massif, and trips to Emperor Penguin colonies. Last year I spent November on what is generally seen as the "standard Antarctic loop": Fly in to Ushuaia, Argentina, sail to the Falklands, South Georgia, South Shetlands, Antarctic Peninsula, then back across the Drake Passage to Ushuaia. It completely rocked, and I would go back in a minute! We ended up taking about 40,000 pictures and 120 hours of video, which filled up a 1TB hard drive. One of the favorite parts of the trip for me was the trip back across the Drake Passage. 10-15 meter rollers with waves in the 30 meter range crashing over the bridge. I took about 8 hours of video from the bridge, which some day I'll figure how to get onto YouTube. As far as events, someone should see about having an event at the Antarctic Ice Marathon. I'm sure some of those crazy folks are cachers!

You can't go wrong by heading to Garden of the Gods, Red Rock Canyon Open Space, or Pikes Peak. You also might want to consider Tarryall, which is the oldest cache in Colorado. Regardless, hope you have a great time!

Hi DesertNWR! Great to see your post!! You would get plenty of help from the Nevada geocaching community (www.nevadageocaching.com is the website of the local group). There are currently 2 CITOs per year up at Red Rocks, and these typically get around 20 people coming out to help clean up. They have tended to be held in late-April/early-May for the Spring cleanup, and late-October/early-November for the Fall cleanup.

Here are a few that I've visited that would make any list proud! White Point Hydrothermal Vents - GC1576V One of the two best caches of any type that I've been to (the other, Hot Rox is listed below). Old Faithful Geyser at Yellowstone National Park - GC10HZW Its easy to get blase and forget just how rare it is to see a geyser. Kruger National Park - GC1785M Not just cool rock formations, but amazing animals too! Imperial Valley Mudpots - GCZBZ3 The earth is stretching, and this is what you get. Lake Cahuilla - GCZ792 Ancient fish traps and travertine deposits with a rift valley to boot! Kelso Dunes - GC13ENE One of the very few "singing" dunes. Delicate Arch - GC177KB It takes your breath away when you make that last turn and there it is! Dead Horse Point - GCZCZM The Colorado River and lots of red sandstone. Inverted Topography - Snow Canyon - GCZ9C6 Was a "WOW!" moment when I finally got it. Barringer Crater Earthcache A relatively fresh impact crater. Niagara Whirlpool Earthcache A 2 for 1, with the thundering falls and the whirlpool. Garden of the Gods Earthcache - GCND0E Fins of red rock, and its free! EarthCaches I haven't been to, but really want to some day: Burgess Shale - GC16D7W Been on my "To Do" list for a long time. Waving in the Coyotes - GC10DM8 Amazing sandstone in an area rich in geologic wonders. bingvellir - The Mid-Atlantic Ridge Of course, you would have to add in Geysir - powerful hot spring - GC1G4XZ while on this trip to Iceland. Hamelin Pool Stromatolites - GC2F13P Living stromatolites! Virtual Cache that should have been born an EarthCache Hot Rox My other most favorite cache ever. Who doesn't like flowing lava??

You can't go wrong with giving the ring to Pele. Hot Rox is one of the best caches EVER!

Fantastic to see the new Earthcaches in Kruger National Park! Can't wait to get back and give them a look. And fully agree with Carbon Hunter's sentiments of "plenty of room for more"!

Yes, I agree pretty much. If I give a good look at a site and can't find it, then I will log the DNF. If I'm not able to get to the site, or if I'm not able to give it the look that I think I should have (I'm only there a minute when someone comes into view and I leave), then I will log a note or not at all and try to come back to give it another try. When one cache took me 7 tries to find, I logged the first DNF then sent notes to the owner for the remainder, but didn't log anymore DNFs. (It turned out that the coordinates were wrong, and when the owner was finally able to get out there and fix it, I found it right away on my next visit). I think the DNF is a great tool for the owner, and for prospective seekers!

And a modest Thank You! for being able to place EarthCaches as well! A couple more are in the que, and I hope to write up a couple more in the near future.

Thanks, Andy, for all your hard work! This is FANTASTIC news, and the potential to have physical caches back in the park is more than I thought possible. Just the fact that the board is willing to look at a proposal is a step in the right direction. It sounds like it will take some work, coming up with the right combination of size, location, and hide type. The educational requirement should be the easy part, since there is so much to learn about within the park.

Sorry these are getting in so late. 4/8/2007 MS0082 REG MS0185 ERR MS0192 REG MS0193 REG MS0195 REG MS0196 REG MS0197 REG MS0200 REG MS0201 REG MS0597 REG MS0598 REG MS0599 REG MS0600 REG MS0601 REG MS0596 REG MS0595 REG MS0593 REG MS0592 REG MS0590 REG MS0587 REG 4/21/2007 JK0047 REG JK0549 REG 4/23/2007 AA5197 REG 5/13/2007 LN0419 REG LN0441 REG LN0452 REG 5/26/2007 NS0030 REG NS0228 REG NS0057 REG AA2122 REG NS0240 REG 5/27/2007 OW0287 REG OW0285 REG OW0459 REG OW0339 REG NS0048 REG NS0046 REG NS0044 REG NS0039 REG NS0037 REG NS0035 REG NS0034 REG 5/28/2007 LN0467 REG

So I was checking out the mag pin finders on ebay, and came up with the following image: Does this mean that you will scream uncontrollably if your battery is running down?? Ok. For a real question. How does this thing work? Thanks

Yay! Thanks for organizing this contest John & Shirley! With or without the "dreaded PM from John", I'll give it a go!!

My all time favorite is station Piute near the Nevada/California border. "Follow my buckboard track" indeed! ". . . STATION IS IN PIUTE VALLEY ABOUT 2-1/2 MILES N OF THE OLD GOVERNMENT ROAD FROM PIUTE SPRINGS TO FOOT OF MOJAVA AND ABOUT 3/4 MILE W OF THE SEARCHLIGHT ROAD. IT IS RIGHT ON THE MESA AMONG THE (GRASS) WOOD AND THE ONLY WAY TO FIND IT WOULD BE TO FOLLOW MY BUCKBOARD TRACK LEADING FROM THE SEARCHLIGHT ROAD."

Hi Glen, I'd like 2 of the antique nickel, if you have them. Thanks!

Four of each metal please!

One of each flavor for me, please. These rock!!

The Pyxis was my first GPS unit. Don't remember exactly when I bought it; I think in 1989 or 1990. It was mostly a marine GPS, but I used mine exclusively in the Mojave Desert. The antenna could come unscrewed, and you could bolt it on top of the truck (or your boat) and attach a cable to the handheld part. I have no idea where mine is; probably out in the garage somewhere. I never did know if the "Y2K Bug" was the death knell for it.

Benchmarks in Vegas? That town has grown so quickly that there is hardly anything left. Besides, theres nothing to do on the Strip anyway! So if you're a benchmark hunter and find yourself with a spare afternoon, what do you do? Here are my suggestions: 1) Road Trip to Hoover Dam. You will pick up 20 marks on top of the dam in two hours (on the trip from Vegas to the dam you can pick up 10-12 more in another hour or two) and have a nice day in the canyon (unless its 120 degrees). Watch out for Bighorn Sheep on the way down, and check out the new bridge that is being built. 2) Take Las Vegas Blvd. (The Strip) south to Jean, searching for the occasional mark here and there. The real fun begins when you take the dirt road next to the railroad from Jean to Nipton. Lots of cool bench marks, and a couple chiseled crosses and a drill hole. 3) Head to the Nevada/California border south of Laughlin (2 hours south of Vegas) and after finding the Von Schmidt Iron Post, work your way northwest along the boundary, finding drill holes and boundary marks. 4) For the real thrill seekers, head northwest out of town and find the marks along the old Tonapah & Tidewater Railroad. Pack extra water and food for all these trips. And make sure that you let the non-benchmarking member of your team (the one that will be staying back at the hotel playing quarter slots, and who you will be taking to see Cirque du Soleil tonight for $150 per ticket!) know where you will be going. Your rental car can make trip number 1, but you will want a 4-wheel drive vehicle for trips 2, 3, and 4.

Well, I knew I'd seen more than a couple of these. The Use Astro Pier is the Meridian Stone near Julesberg, Colorado.

What a great thread! I wish I'd found it sooner. I found the Wheeler Stone in Austin, Nevada in February 2005. I had no idea about the history behind Wheeler's surveys, though I knew that Wheeler Peak on the eastern edge of Nevada is named for him. Even before finding about some of the history behind these, I considered this find to be one of my best.

Finally finishing up with the logging. The contest has been great fun! July 17: In Kansas JH0109/1933/N/N July 21: On the way from Kansas to Denver, Colorado JH0197/1935/N/N JH0321/1940/Y/N JH0299/1934/N/N JJ0104/1935/N/N JJ0275/1935/N/N July 24: A random bench mark along U.S. 40 LM0522/1934/N/N July 30: On the way back from Cheyenne after Frontier Days MO0594/1933/N/N MO0595/1933/N/N MO0593/1933/N/N MP0255/1956/N/N July 31: Originally found on July 2, I was finally able to get pictures on the 31st LM0436/1934/N/N

A little traveling in mid-July: July 15, 2006 KK1229/1938/Y/N KK0006/1938/N/N KK0003/1938/N/N KJ0360/1938/N/N KJ0231/1938/N/N KJ0219/1929/N/N KJ0192/1938/N/N July 16, 2006 JJ0288/1933/N/N JJ0291/1933/N/N JJ0292/1933/N/N JJ0293/1933/N/N JJ0294/1933/N/N JJ0208/1933/N/N JJ0268/1941/Y/N JJ0211/1933/N/N JJ0225/1933/N/N JJ0224/1933/N/N JJ0712/1954/N/N JJ0076/1933/N/N JJ0077/1941/N/N JJ0789/1954/Y/N JJ0721/1954/N/N JJ0089/1934/N/N HH0574/1934/N/N

Getting closer and closer to being caught up all the time! These four were found on July 6 on the Piceance Mesa in Colorado: KM0241/1950/N/N KM0242/1950/Y/N KM0266/1950/Y/N KM0247/1950/Y/N And I grabbed this one on another trip to Dinosaur, Colorado on July 8: LN0121/1934/Y/N

These finds are from trips taken around the 4th of July weekend. The first set was from a trip from Baggs, WY to Steamboat Springs, CO. July 1, 2006 LM0348/1934/N/N LM0352/1934/Y/N LM0354/1934/Y/N LM0355/1934/Y/N July 2, 2006 LM0314/1934/Y/N LM0364/1933/N/N LM0339/1933/Y/N These are from a trip taken to Dinosaur, CO. July 3, 2006 LN0098/1934/Y/N LN0099/1934/N/N LN0642/1939/N/N July 4, 2006 LN0277/1933/N/N

A couple more trips from June. The first set is from a road trip to Encampment, Wyoming for the Woodcutter's Jamboree. 6 of 7 finds were FTRs: June 17, 2006 MP0300/1934/Y/N MP0647/1937/Y/N MP0302/1934/Y/N June 18, 2006 MP0155/1934/Y/N MP0150/1940/N/N (date on disk is 1928) MP0149/1934/Y/N MP0300/1934/Y/N These next finds were from finishing out a line of bench marks along a road to Greystone, Colorado: June 21, 2006 LN0011/1955/N/N LN0006/1955/N/N LN0172/1941/N/N LN0168/1941/N/N