Adventures in Waymarking

[+T0SHEA]

Most waymarkers have experienced an adventure while seeking that waymark. Unexpected encounters, questioned by police, business owners, locals and many others that ask, "Why are you taking pictures of that...

 

You visited a location that exceeded your expectations, or fell short.

 

What was one or more of the most difficult waymarks to find: Did you go out of your way just to waymark it? How far did you go?

 

Share some of your adventures, add a link, if you want, so we can see your waymark.

 

Here is one of our waymarks to get this started.

 

On occasion a waymarker’s attempts at achieving new categories can lead to adventure. Such was the case for us in our quest for the Point Lepreau Nuclear Generating Station in New Brunswick.

 

Access to the station is very tightly controlled, as we discovered when attempting to get a photo of the site. We first went to the main gate where a guard was on duty; we turned around and parked a short distance away, and discussed our options, as access from here was impossible.

 

We already knew that another road circled around to the other side, and decided to give it a try. After driving down the back road into the area of the station we were surrounded by security guards in big trucks who, we learned, had been watching us on hidden cameras for several kilometers. The guards turned out to be very nice, affable gentlemen with a LOT of questions for us. After a lengthy yet somewhat jovial back and forth conversation, they allowed us to take a couple of distant pictures, bid us adieu and allowed us to go on our merry way with their escort. It was an adventure, to be sure, suddenly finding ourselves surrounded by security, not knowing what their agenda might be. Ultimately, though, it was a quite pleasant experience meeting and talking at length with the station’s security force. I suspect, though, that they got quite a kick out of two visitors from British Columbia. http://www.Waymarking.com/waymarks/WMNZ3F_Point_Lepreau_Nuclear_Generating_Station_Point_Lepreau_NB

[+MountainWoods]

Some of our most difficult (and even exciting) adventures were when we first started Waymarking and were only doing visits at that time. We are fortunate to live in the same county where the pioneer and prolific Waymarker GEO*Trailblazer 1 lived. Many of his waymarks are in some of the most scenic and rugged parts of the Ozarks. There are some of them that we have yet to locate.

 

Twice we have grunted and trudged through the area where the OLE MAN OF THE OZARKS should be, even hitting ground zero without seeing it. That area is difficult to keep satellite reception in, so no doubt Charles's GPSr and our GPSr were off far enough that it could be 100 yards from where we hit ground zero.

 

Both times we were exhausted by the time we got out of that valley.

 

We didn't find out until 6 weeks after that second attempt that Charles Britton (GEO*Trailblazer 1) passed away the next day.

 

We do plan to go back and try again some cool/cold day.

[+Spooty]

My adventure was a bit similar to the original poster's. I tried to visit WM44BE "MCAS YUMA : YUMA, ARIZONA", but was thwarted by security. I posted a comment there, but failed to achieve an actual visit with photographic proof.

I haven't tried for a find in the "Military Installations" category since then; it's probably not hard - I'll just have to be quick and non-obvious when taking a photo.

[+iconions]

I usually don't have many encounters when I am Waymarking - I have many more when I am geocaching. I guess it's because, when I am Waymarking, I have my camera, my GPSr, and a clipboard, so I look like a quasi-official looking person doing some sort of inventory. Since I photograph a LOT of Historic Districts, I preplan with the list of buildings I need to get pictures, checking them off as I get them taken. A few years back, on a nice autumn Saturday, I was photographing the Excelsior Springs Historic District when this lady in a car races over to me and wanted to know what I was doing. I explained that I was marking the Historic District for Waymarking.com. Come to find out, she was with the Excelsior Springs Chamber of Commerce. She seemed to be interested in what I was doing, and asked to get the URL of the results, which I provided. It actually turned out to be a very cool encounter.

 

My all-time favorite Waymarking story, though was on-line. I got a thank you passed to me through Groundspeak. A lady had found one of my zinc headstones that I had waymarked in the Paola, Kansas, Cemetery and had sent a note to Groundspeak. Come to find out, this was one of her relatives that she had been searching for - go figure. So, good thing do come out of our little hobby!

[+T0SHEA]

Hi, iconions. "I See" you made someone very happy about locating a family member. Thanks for sharing this great story.