2017-12-28: Surprise Road Trip: Texas to Maryland Day 2

So welcome back and a quick recap of where I'm at. Because my wife was pulled from our Christmas vacation and sent on a business trip to Baltimore, I decided to drive there from Texas to surprise her. Yesterday I drove over 500 miles and stopped just west of Memphis, Tennessee, over on the Arkansas side. Along the way the GeoDogs and I are stopping for caches in needed counties to fill in those empty spaces on the map. In case you missed it, you can read all about Day 1 here before continuing to fill you in on the Why, Where, and Wohoo!

Waking up at dawn this morning in Brinkley, Arkansas, I loaded up the GeoDogs in the car and we began Day 2 of our Surprise Road Trip. Brinkley is located in Monroe County and one that I needed. Not far from the hotel was a park with a simple and quick cache, Best Park Ever (GC1XC5F), I could easily grab and be on my way. And not to worry about muggles this early in the morning.

Back on the road and a long stint before the next scheduled cache county. Eastbound on I-40, across the Mighty Mississippi River, through Memphis after 105 miles we arrive in Shelby County, Tennessee at a town called Arlington. It wasn't right off the exit, but the NoWhere Road cache (GC3RYBG) was pretty easy to get to and I thought it wouldn't take much time away from traveling. Found it quickly but the container was empty. Added a new log sheet and was on my way.

Taking the backroads back to the interstate, I passed by this old abandoned spooky house. It would have been cool to go exploring inside. But it was beyond the fence on private property. So just photos for now.

Just twenty-six miles down the interstate was my next stop in Haywood County and a quick cache called Koko Moto (GC2GAB3). A quick find right off the exit and return eastbound quickly.

Forty-seven miles later and I find myself in Henderson County at the Independence Cemetery. A small unincorporated community in Tennessee just a few miles from the interstate. The cache was called Earn Your Independence (GC111HB). Cemetery caches are among my favorites because of the stories and history that could be found in them. With the small church and graveyard it was hard to resist not taking a quick walk among the headstones. The cemetery was well kept with the exception of the space between these two headstones. Husband and wife headstones. I've heard about some people who don't want their burial site to be well mowed grass because they like gardening, trees, vines, etc. Could this be the reason? Or perhaps turmoil and chaos in the marriage? Hmmm. I guess we'll just have to imagine what truth has been confined to the grave.

Continuing east and across the Tennessee River, I arrive in Humphreys County and grab a quick off the exit cache. Pond Bottom at Cuba Landing (GCX8NR) was a quick cache with a view of North Fork Blue Creek. A quick stop for the cache and to let the Chihuahuas take care of their business.

A short 14 mile drive later and I'm in Hickman County at another unincorporated community called Only, TN. Here was an Earthcache called Lee & Gould Furnace (GC15QK3). Samuel Lee and James Gould built the furnace in 1833 as part of an ironworks that employed hundreds. They located here due to the proximity of the raw materials needed to produce iron. The furnace stands as a reminder of an early industry.

Williamson County was the next stop thirty miles east. The Flying Alphabet cache (GCX9NE) was at a truck stop near the exit. A nice quick stop that I could park next to it and let the GeoDogs out as a distraction while I made the find.

The next exit down was Cheatham County and another quick right off the exit No Map Needed cache (GC3V7K4) in a busy shopping area. Again I was able to position the car to block the view from muggles to make the quick find.

Thirty-eight miles and through Nashville later, I arrived at Wilson County for my next cache. Wash Day at Belinda City (GC1DVEN) was just the cache needed right off the exit at the edge of a parking lot for a quick find to keep me moving forward.

Next was a nice long stint of 115 miles over to Roane County. The New Years Resolution cache (GC5JHVJ) was so close to the exit it was practically still on the exit!

Sixty-seven miles later and passing through Knoxville, I arrived in Sevier County and the town of Kodak. There I grabbed Scorpio the Scorpion cache (GC3Q3DT) to claim a county find.

Speaking of Knoxville, they have one of my favorite cache finds. I found Knoxville's Fastest Headstone (GCNBF5) way back in 2008. The cache is located near the headstone of A. J. Pete Kreis who was from Knoxville. He was a favorite to win the 1934 Indy 500 race but was killed during practice when his car crashed over the wall and burst into flames. If you've ever watched the race on TV and in the intro do a brief history of the race, they usually show that crash. Well his giant rectangular headstone has the track outlining it and his car going over the wall. Pretty cool to see if you're ever in the Knoxville area.

My last cache for the day was in Hamblen County off I-81 in Morristown. Pull Out #3 cache (GCMJ18) is another one of those quick park and grab at the exit caches for the highway traveler.

Welcome to Virginia! Finally making it through Tennessee longways east to west, I drive another 115 miles to Marion, Virginia. When I got off the exit ramp I'm staring at these signs and begin to chuckle so I just had to take a picture. You got the Atkins (diet) to the right or the Hungry Mother to the left! Well I thought it was funny. Maybe cause I was driving for 625 miles, I'm tired, and ready for a hotel. I should make it to Baltimore tomorrow to surprise my wife. Talking to her on the phone a few minutes ago, she now thinks I'm still in Texas driving around the state Geocaching. With the freezing temps there in Baltimore, she's starting to come down with a cold and not feeling too good. Hopefully arriving with her puppies and myself will cheer her up! Come back tomorrow to see what happens!

2015-06-27: Road Trip Day #8 Geocaching and Hiking Tennessee and Alabama

Today is Saturday, only two more days of vacation, and we're still in Tennessee. We really don't want to go home. But...

Waking up in Hillsboro, TN, we had one more local virtual Geocache over by Arnold AFB to get before continuing southbound, then a few more caches in new counties. Then it was a cache stop in a very well known place in Lynchburg, TN. The home of the Jack Daniels Distillery and Visitors Center. While Candy and I are not much for drinkers, although the Jack Daniels BBQ sauce is pretty tasty, we opted out of the tour and just found the cache.

Next stop was Stonebridge Park located in Fayetteville, TN. Within the park is a stone bridge representative of the famous stone bridge that once spanned the Elk River. There's also this log cabin from the 1700's converted to a visitors center.

Here's another example of why we go Geocaching! This is not a public park, not a tourist area, no signs along the road pointing the way. This is private property, somebody's private residence. However, they allow an earthcache here so Geocachers can come and appreciate the beauty of this natural bridge. The history behind this area was that it used to be an unauthorized dump. There was anything from household trash to appliances and even a car dumped here.

This couple happened to notice the natural bridge among the rubble. In 1997, they bought 15 acres that included this bridge and waterfalls. Cleaned it up and began building their dream home. They have since acquired approximately 40 more acres to preserve the area.

Even further down the road is another earthcache in Gadsden, AL. Noccalula Falls is a 90 foot waterfall flowing from Black Creek.

A few caches later and it's time for a hike. And what a great hike it was! Located within the Talladaga National Forest in East Alabama, is the Cheaha State Park. Within the park and on Bald Rock is the "Cache Across America" cache. From the parking area, it was an easy hike to the viewing platform on the boardwalk. A little bit rougher, but still an easy trail to the cache site. This is the highest point in Alabama.

Our last stop for the day was the Brown Bomber. LaFayette, AL was the birthplace of Joe "The Brown Bomber" Louis, the World Heavyweight Boxing Champion from 1937 to 1949. Here you'll find a statue in his honor outside the courthouse.

We ended the day in Opelika, AL. Still 400 miles to go and one more day to get there. Hopefully, we still have time to do some Geocaching tomorrow too. Stay tuned.

2015-06-26: Road Trip Day #7 Geocaching Kentucky and Tennessee

Hello again. We started out in Bowling Green, KY this morning and a few local Geocaches planned locally before hitting the road again. First up on the list was a web-cam cache at Western Kentucky University. These used to be a LOT harder to get because you had to have to coordinate your visit with somebody near a computer to take a screen shot while you're standing in view. Now with smartphones, you can do it yourself.

It was summertime and this was the only student we saw on campus.

There was another virtual on campus at a memorial plaque talking about the occupation of Bowling Green of the Confederate Army before leaving Kentucky. A few blocks away was the next earthcache at the Historic Railpark and Train Museum, formerly the Louisville & Nashville Railroad Depot. Built in 1925 replacing an older facility, the depot was made from local limestone.

One last historic virtual cache before leaving Bowling Green was the Riverview House at Hobson Grove Park. Construction began on this house in the late 1850's, halted by the Civil War, and finally completed in 1872.

Moving on down the road to Glasgow, KY was our next stop at this First Responders Memorial next to the Glasgow Fire Department.

From Glasgow heading SE on Hwy 90, we grabbed a quick cache at a cemetery and new county in a little town called Summer Shade. Then taking some back roads down to Tompkinsville, KY, we found Old Mulkey State Park. Located within this historic park is the Old Mulkey Church. The church was founded in 1773 by Philip Mulkey and the building constructed in 1804. Daniel Boone's sister, Hannah, and Revolutionary War soldiers are buried here in the graveyard.

Continuing through the backroads of Kentucky and into Tennessee, also Geocaching along the way, we come across "Odd Fellows Cemetery." Located in Baxter, TN, what's strange about this cemetery is a double headstone for Thomas J Stowers. I guess you can say he has a headstone and a footstone! Who's Thomas J Stowers you ask? Well he claims to be the sole survivor of General George Custers last stand on June 25, 1876.

After a few more standard caches and a 23 cache power trail along US-70, we finally got to do a little hiking in Walling, TN. Near the junction of the Caney Fork and Collins Rivers you'll find the Twin Falls and the down river trail. A great moderate trail along the banks of the river with some very scenic views. There were two caches here, one being down the trail. Again not a bad hike until you got to the last few hundred feet it went uphill by a water fall before finding the cache.

We ended the day in Hillsboro, TN. Our Geocaching total for the day is 38, add in some history, a hike, and spending time outdoors with a great lady makes for a fun adventurous day!

2015-06-21: Road Trip Day #2 Geocaching in Tennessee, Kentucky and Ohio

So this morning after breakfast and finding a Starbucks, we found a few more caches around Cleveland, TN before hitting the highway. A couple more quick caches along I-75 to complete the county, we arrived in Knoxville.

While this next cache I had already found years earlier while I was a truck driver, I thought it was cool enough to show Candy. It was located at the Asbury Cemetery on the SE side of Knoxville. The huge headstone is for A. J. Pete Kreis. If you've ever watched the Indianapolis 500 race, they usually play a few scenes from the long history of the Indy 500 and usually a clip showing an old race hitting the wall, flipping over the wall, and bursting into flames. The 34 year old driver was killed in that tragic accident. His huge headstone is a replica of the famous race track and has his car at the spot where he lost his life.

Crossing over into Kentucky and another cemetery cache by this statue of Jesus and a woman who appears to be the Samaritan woman at the well discussing the "living water." The cemetery is the Whitley Memorial Gardens just north of Williamsburg, KY.

Another stop for a new county cache, we encountered a short hike to this tree which after falling over against another decided to change directions. Can you spot the cache in the photo?

A couple of stop, grab a new county cache and go's later, we came upon this historic virtual cache. Located in Richmond, KY, the White Hall State Historic Site was first built in the late 1700's with a major addition constructed in the 1860's. 

The next stop of interest along our route today was this aluminum teepee. Don't know why it was built or the purpose it now serves, but interesting to say the least. The things you see while Geocaching!

Well day #2 is over and we just crossed the border into Ohio and our hotel for the night just north of Cincinnati. We ended the day with 25 geocaches and many new counties on our map. Time for some much needed rest after a great day!

2014-06-13: Road Trip Day #7 Virginia, Tennessee, North Carolina, and Georgia

On this seventh day of our summer road trip, we ended up driving through Virginia, Tennessee, and North Carolina. We continued following US-19 southbound and Geocaching along the way. We managed to find 12 for the day at various stops.

After a couple of Geocaches, I saw this virtual cache pop up so we turned off of US-19 for a few blocks to take a look. This water wheel was out at the edge of this Geocachers own property. 

These next few photos are of Spivey Creek in Tennessee at the site where once stood the Tilson Grist Mill. The mill itself has since been removed, restored, and now sitting in the Tennessee State Museum in Nashville. But a Geocache has been hidden here to mark the spot.

Continuing down the road crossing the border from Tennessee to North Carolina at the town of Bristol, there's a giant guitar in the center of town. That definitely a photo opp! So we quickly pulled over for a closer look.

This next stop is another virtual cache next to Cold Springs Church. This natural cold water spring continues to flow 24 hours a day. The locals even bring their jugs and containers here to refill for free fresh cold spring water. Sure beats buying bottled water in the store.

After the water falls into the drain below the deck forms this creek.

Still winding through the Smokey Mountains, we stopped for another Geocache and a scenic view at the Pattons Run Overlook along the Nantahala River in North Carolina. After finding the cache near the parking area, we took the short hike down the trail to the rivers edge. It was a beautiful hike and listening to the rushing waters was very relaxing. A great place to stretch the legs.

Our last stop and a virtual Geocache was a monument located in Murphy, NC. The monument marked the site of the former US Army post Fort Butler, where the Cherokee Indians we gathered to begin their relocation march known as "The Trail of Tears." Here at the confluence of the Valley and Hiwassee Rivers, General Winfield Scott commanded the relocation forces and used Fort Butler as his headquarters.

From there we continued south on US-19, crossed over into Georgia and stayed the night in Dahlonega, GA. Another great day full of history, Geocaching, and scenery.