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Team Retriever's First Day...


TEAM RETRIEVER

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I posted this in one of the other sections (Getting Started), but wanted to share it with my fellow Hoosiers. Yesterday was our first day out and we're so excited! Here's my report...

 

WHAT A BLAST!!!!! The two days leading up to Sunday were full of anticipation. Going from a project we seen on www.geocaching4kids.com the family made quick walking sticks Friday night. Nothing but cheap dowel rods and some spray paint, but the girls enjoyed making them and they worked well in the bush. We created team nicknames and I briefed them on the simple guidelines. Then we were ready!

 

Before we left, I had written down all of the caches and their coordinates, then listed them in order of distance from the house so as not to back track all day. Worked out great. I told the kids that we would be doing four or five "log in only" caches and they all agreed that sounded "stupid". LOL! Well, after the first cache, they were anxious to find the next one no matter what was available for trading. They soon learned that the search was even more fun than trading! We did a total of ten caches with NO DNF'S and even had to dodge some muggles along the way. The kids loved that part of it too, as it felt so secretive. We started a new tradition of everyone high-fiving after a find. About mid-day, we took a break and had lunch at McDonald's (where else when you let the kids choose). Afterwards, we went out and did the caches that required a little hiking and buschwhacking. Seen a couple of snakes and a deer, plus some wonderful scenery.

 

Soon learned that "Pup", being the youngest in the group and a little girl through and through, didn't care much for buschwhacking. A piggy-back ride through the rough parts took care of that and she did great.

 

"Wolf", the middle daughter and tomboy of the bunch, loved every minute of it!! She turned out to be quite the little geocacher and I have no doubt she will be doing this for a longtime. She loves being in the woods and getting dirty (all while looking so cute)!!!

 

"JJ", the oldest daughter and typical teenager, was a bit grumpy but did great. She found a cache or two and enjoyed the searching, although she might not readily admit it. Being the average teenager, she tried to turn geocaching into a fashion show and was worried about being seen in public with ugly hiking boots on. LOL! She did fine and I'm sure she'll be ready to go next time.

 

"Goldie", my wife and soul-mate for all eternity, was the hero of the day. Finding most of the caches and simply stepping to the side without saying anything so the kids could find them, or helping "Pup" through the thorn bushes while I ran up ahead with the GPS, and just being an all around good sport makes me appreciate her even more. She really enjoyed the day and can't wait to go out again!

 

Me, I can't stress enough what a wonderful day we had. This is such a fantastic family activity and I'm blessed to have the family that I've got!!!!!!! Thanks to all who answered some of my questions and a very special thanks to everyone who placed the caches out our way! Still got some more local caches to find, but I'm sure TEAM RETRIEVER will be back out there soon!!!!

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Lead Dog and Patrick,

 

You'll be happy to know that I hid my first micro-cache yesterday! It's called "Captain Retriever's Maiden Voyage" and should be approved soon if it's not already. If you go looking, let me know what you think!

We'll keep a lookout for it, but we're a little bummed right now. If it's a micro in the woods, we hate them, but can't resist them. We got blanked yesterday with 2 DNF's on Trickworm micros in the woods at the Reservoir (Altho one wasn't a micro, it was Tricky's first SMALL and we still couldn't find it...) Dense cloud cover and rain may have done us in, I don't know. Lead Dog really doesn't like to cache in the rain because he says I smell like low tide at the bait dock when I'm wet... :):laughing: Maiden Voyage sounds like we'll need the canoe which is in drydock right now... And I'm a little leery of the water right now having watched "Surface" on TV last night.

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It was find number 390 for SixDogTeam, FTF #106-- I probably acccount for more than half of those finds, when Lead Dog would just have given up and be sitting on the ground muttering to himself, drinking warm beer out of his canteen and hyperventilating, while I perservered with the geometric logic and dogged ( no pun inteneded) determination that only a Jack Russell can muster under adverse conditions brought about by Micros-in-the-woods.... But that stoopid Dead End number twenty by Trickworm is vexing him. We've tried twice to find it, and its in a tree and we don't see it. You can drive up to it (Dogs can't read signs, wink, wink), and Lead Dog is at this moment working himself into a lather and swearing up and down that he's going to take the chainsaw and chipper shredder out there in the back of the truck, and reduce that tree to sawdust, and if part of a logbook comes flying out, he'll sign it with a maniacal laughter that will reverberate thru the woods and bring the smokies and we'll be arrested and it won't be the first time, and who'll bail me out of the shelter this time? I'm worried, he's done far stoopider things... He's outside now, dicking around with the chipper-shredder, thank goodness, he can't get it started. I hate it when he gets this way, no good ever comes of it. If I could just get some whiskey in him, he'd calm down in a hurry. I've tried bribing him with the idea that a fresh episode of Gilmore Girls is on TV tonite, but nothing is deterring him from this new obsession with Number Twenty. When he gets like this, all the birds in the yard quiet down, it gets earily silent, like just before a tornado when it gets so dark. Oh, oh, I can hear him swearing down there, as we speak, now he's mad that he can't get the Chipper-Shredder ready to go...All the huskies are barking and howling now, there's no telling what he's up to. I've got to get down there and try to keep him from doing something really futile and senseless. Oh, Dang those infernal Micros-in-the-woods!!!! :cry:

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