2014-08-23: Florida's First Coast St Augustine and Anastasia Island

Today Candy and I took a drive up to St. Augustine to visit her family and do some sightseeing where she grew up. And of course we couldn't pass up Geocaching while we were here. We spent most of the time at Anastasia State Park.

Our first virtual cache was a short hike to the sight of the Old Spanish Quarries where much of the Coquina was retrieved to use in the construction of many of the early buildings. Including the fortress Castillo de San Marcos.

We continued hiking some of the trails and even went over to the beach side to enjoys the views. But we didn't stay long. It was August and we weren't exactly dressed for the beach.

The last Geocache of the day was called lighthouse view because it was in view of the lighthouse. It was a nice relaxing day enjoying the outdoors, hiking, and spending time with family.

2014-08-10: One Weekend / 1800 Miles!

While today's post may be short, it covered 1800 miles in just one weekend! During our summer road trip, we had dropped off Candy's grandkids at their father's house in Maryland. While the son was staying there, it was time to pickup the granddaughter. 

After work Friday night we quickly packed, hopped into the car and got a head start. We made it almost through Georgia and stayed the night in Richmond Hill, just south of Savannah.

On Saturday, we hit the road early and drove all the way up to Westminster, MD. With granddaughter in the car, we made our way back southbound. Just north of the Richmond, VA beltway I decided to call it a night.

Sunday came and we drove all the way back home to Florida. Wow, what a trip! From Google maps it was 1809 miles. Add in all the gas, food, and overnight stops and it was probably more like 1825 miles. Sadly the only Geocaching we managed was during the stops. Total caches for the weekend add up to only 5.

The one cool thing we found was on the way back. We stopped in Port Wentworth, GA for gas and saw a sign for Sweet Tea Grille. With a name like that how can you not eat there. Out front they had this huge chair which made for a nice photo opp!

2014-07-05: Geocaching With Friends Finding Virtuals and More

Today's Geocaching adventure takes us to Southwest Florida along with some Geocaching friends looking for virtual caches around the Ft. Myers area. This morning we started out early from Orlando and heading down US-27 to LaBelle, FL. There we met up with Geocachers CoalCracker7, the Corbettz gang, and MsYB to begin our adventure.

The first cache was called Giant Oaks and it was a short hike through the woods to find several large oaks. The ankle high grass was still wet from the morning dew and wearing sneakers it wasn't long before my feet were wet too.

CoalCracker7 and myself.

The next virtual cache on the list was called Bird Watching and it brought us to this lake with these two small islands in it. On the islands were thousands of these white birds that always hung out there. On the walk out to view the birds we passed by several huge oak trees with an abundance of Spanish moss hanging from their branches. After the short hike and a few photos, we headed off to the next one.

MsYB with the Corbettz kids taking the lead.

Not far down the road was the Port LaBelle Marina and our next virtual cache. A quick stop, more pictures, and we continued on.

Next on the agenda, another virtual cache and the largest oak tree in Hendry County. A quick photo and then we headed north of town a few miles to a cemetery and another virtual cache. Don't know much about the cemetery. Here's a photo of the oldest marker found.

From LaBelle, we headed west over towards Ft. Myers. Along one of the back roads, we passed by an old fashioned cattle roundup and had to stop and take a picture.

On the outskirts of Ft Myers, we stopped by the WP Franklin Lock and Dam Complex for an Earthcache on the Caloosahatchee River. The goal here was to learn about the history of the river, the oxbows, the locks and dam. We gathered the necessary information required, watched a boat pass through the locks, and enjoyed the views.

MsYB, CoalCracker7, and Corbettz

The next few on the list of virtual caches were stops at Lee County Park, the Fort Myers Cemetery in search of a malicious killer, First Street, and then the Edison and Ford Winter Estates.

Corbettz crew looking for Edgar J

 

MsYB with Thomas Edison at the HUGE Banyon Tree

After finally finding all the virtual caches in the area, we headed over to Veterans Memorial Parkway for a quick 20 cache power run before heading home. Another great day for fun, adventure, history and Geocaching with friends. Until next time...

Hmmm,,, maybe I'm looking in the wrong spot?

2014-06-14: Road Trip Day #8 From Georgia to Home in Florida

Home Sweet Home! We set out from North Georgia this morning on our last day of the road trip. And our last chance to see what we can see. We continued to follow US-19 south for the most part. Whenever we saw a new county sign, we looked at a Geocache to find in that county. Our Geocaching finds for the day totaled 15. Most of the Geocaches were nothing special, but they did give us a find for the county.

This next cache took us to a piece of history. The Auchumpkee Creek Covered Bridge in Culloden, GA was built in 1892. With the construction of the new road and modern bridge along side, the covered bridge was no longer used. The Upson County preservation commission authorized its restoration in 1985.

Several more Geocaches along US-19 southbound, we crossed over into Florida. By this time it was just looking forward to getting home. Once we hit I-10, we jumped on eastbound over to I-75 south. A few hours later it was home sweet home.

Now we need a vacation to recover from our vacation!

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.