2018-02-11: Geocaching Redemption Finding Previous DNF's and More!

Another Sunday and another 360+/- mile drive from Killeen back to Monahans, Texas. And just in case it hasn't hit you yet, depending on whether or night I work a 5-day or 6-day week, I'm driving eastbound after work from the jobsite approximately 320 miles either Friday or Saturday night. So it's a good thing I like driving!

Anyway, today's drive takes me along the same route as last weeks blog. Though I find many new geocaches and redeem two DNF's from last week, placing them in the Found column!

My first stop was confusing to me. I thought I had been there before but it was still showing up as unfound. I pulled up to the "Brown Cemetery" (GC4QKZ8) geocache next to the airport in Killeen and realized that I was already there. I found the geocache again and looked at the logsheet. Sure enough there's my stamp. I even talked about it in my November 18th's Blog, but I guess I forgot to log it as found. I wonder how many other geocaches I forgot to log?

After putting 100 miles behind me, I decided to get these three geocaches lined up on US-283 just north of Brady. "On The Road Again" (GC5E8QY), "Boot Hill" (GC6W393), and "Keeping Boundaries" (GC6W0PX) were all quick roadside caches. I thought Boot Hill might be an old west cemetery, but turned out to be a cemetery of sorts for old boots on fence posts.

Another 100 miles later and I was back in Sherwood, Texas. If you remember from last week's blog, the geocache at the old courthouse "TGT: Sherwood" (GCM4G3) was nowhere to be found. After a conversation with the CO mommio, I got permission to replace it with a Slim Bob cache.

Then I went over to the "Old Cub Scout House" (GC7DXBM) from last week which I could not find. After using a PAF a few days earlier for additional clues, I began the search again. Another 10-15 minutes of looking and finally redeemed last weeks DNF and put this one in the found column.

Passing through Mertzon a little ways, I took a detour on a side road to "Hawt N' Juicy" (GC3CY7Z) cache. It was a quick roadside cache near the bridge over Spring Creek.

My next geocache was a roadside memorial for a "Fallen Hero" (GCWR3Y) on US-67 just east of Rankin. Sammy Charles Long was a Texas State Trooper who was killed on November 21 1976. The suspect was able to gain control of Trooper Long's service weapon and shot him several times. A deer hunter who was returning home witnessed the murder and shot and killed the suspect using his hunting rifle. Patrolman Long had been employed with the Texas Department of Public Safety - Texas Highway Patrol, for 18 years and was stationed at McCamey.

Just down the road is a picnic area and "Another Hero" cache (GC1D7AK). It was at this picnic area that the hunter witness Trooper Long loose his life. Then he became the hero taking action and taking out the suspect.

Entering Rankin once again, I stopped for two more geocaches. First was the "Rankin Museum" (GC3XRA9). Formerly the Yates Hotel, Ira Yates built the 3-story, 46 room, sandy brick hotel in 1927 at the height of the oil boom. It had a restaurant, a drugstore, and a barbershop. The hotel closed in 1964 and remained close for a decade until the Rankin Museum Association converted it into a museum. I invite you to take a look at the Texas Escapes website for some more interesting stories about the hotel. About the famous musicians that played at the "Rankin Beach." Yeah that's right I said BEACH! You gotta read about that too! I tried to get a photo of the interior through the glass. It was closed when I stopped by.

One more geocache at the Rankin sign (GC2M5EY) on the west side of town. That's it for today. Time to head up to Monahans. See you next week...

2018-01-14: Geocaching Through Cemeteries, Scenic Views, and Texas History

Before we get started, let me just say that I've created a Facebook page to help you stay up to date with my blog posts. So if you're on Facebook, be sure to like it so that you'll be notified when I post an update at: https://www.facebook.com/AwayWeGoUS

This morning we drove down from Killeen to Austin, Texas where I dropped off Candy again at the airport. This time she had a business trip to Philadelphia to train some directors up there. So just me and the GeoDogs for two weeks.

Making the drive back from Austin to Monahans, I head west on US-290 to just before Johnson City, Texas. My first stop was at Miller Creek Cemetery (GCRYZK) for my first geocache in Blanco County. From the historical marker: "Born in Tennessee in 1836, Thomas C. Felps came to Texas in 1856. He earned a living by freighting and joined the Blanco County Rangers during the Civil War. In 1863 he married Eliza V. White (b. 1846), a native of Ohio. In the summer of 1869, the couple lived with Eliza's parents while Thomas recovered from a fever. Her father, newly-appointed County Judge S. T. White, had gone to Blanco on July 21, 1869, when Thomas and Eliza were killed by a band of Indians on Cypress Creek. Only Eliza was scalped. The couples orphaned children, Thomas and Caroline, were cared for by Eliza's parents. (1975)"

Next I dropped south down to Bandera County and a very rural geocache along a lonely highway (GC79FB5). Before leaving the county, I made another stop in the Saint Stanislaus Catholic Cemetery (GC3NZ9P). The site, on a bend of the Medina River, had been occupied by Indians, then by white campers making shingles. The founders formed a partnership in 1853 to build a town and water powered lumber mill. The town and county were named for nearby Bandera Pass. Immigrant workers from Upper Silesia from the Polish colony in Karnes County were recruited. These workers arrived in 1855, and each family received purchase rights for a plot of land.

Population of settlers increased with the arrival of the cavalry at Camp Verde in 1856. After the Civil War the town boomed as a staging area for cattle drives up the Great Western Trail. Construction of a courthouse began in 1890. Looking through the dates on the cemetery, the oldest marked headstones go back to the 1860's. But there are many unknowns as well. The statue below is from one of the many graves.

Another cemetery further to the west and my next cache was the Vanderpool Cemetery (GC5EJYM). Originally called Bugscuffle, settlements began in the 1850's but disappeared in the 1860's because of Comanche Raids. Things began to pick up again and a post office opened for three years from 1886 - 1889. Re-opening in 1902, the name was changed to Vanderpool after the first postmaster L. B. Vanderpool. The town never really took off and the population stayed small over the years.

Just over the line into Real County was my next roadside cache called "A Million Miles" (GC2HWKM). I think I spent more time enjoying the views and taking pictures than it did finding the cache!

Slowly continuing westbound and still in Real County, I stopped by the Leaky Cemetery and another Geocache (GC6BV5R). This cemetery was originally known as the Floral Cemetery and served an earlier community by that name. The cemetery dates to at least 1881 when land for the cemetery was sold by John and Nancy Leakey for one dollar and a cemetery plot.

The oldest documented burials here are those of Sara Catherine McLaurin (b 1849) and fifteen-year old Allen Lease who were killed on April 19, 1881 in the last Indian raid in the Frio canyon area. There are over 900 documented burials here as well as a number of unmarked graves. Those interred in the Leakey Cemetery include pioneers, children, elected officials of Real and Edwards counties, community leader, and veterans. The founder of the town, John Leakey and hes wife Nancy are both buried here.

The next two photos were taken at the Leaky Cemetery. The first is one of the many statues. The second is the grave marker for Lucinda Smith Cope which I found to be an interesting story.

I say this often, but I love Geocaching because of the places it takes you that otherwise you'll never get to see. I mean if I wasn't Geocaching, driving from Austin to Monahans is only 375 miles and about 6 hours. Taking the backroads and siteseeing, I'm already at 4 hours and barely halfway. However, If I had taken the I-10 route, I wouldn't have discovered roadside attractions like these. This farmer / rancher takes their old equipment and sets it out in a field under a banner of "Rust N Peace" (GC3KNN5). The total size is probably 3-times the size as what you see in the photo and includes a few old trucks. But I wanted to get the sign in clearly for you to see.

Driving up Hwy 55, I get to my next quick county geocache called "On the way to Granch" (GC2F18G) for a find in Edwards County. And it gave me a nice photo:

Up in the NW part of the county at the intersection of Hwy 55 & Hwy 277 there's a roadside picnic area (GC1QP0N). Before the Interstate Rest Area/Plaza's with full facilities, many highways just had a safe pull off area with picnic tables. This one was slightly fancier with a round shallow pool and water fountain. Why have such a thing way out in the middle of nowhere? I guess for some cool relief during those hot Texas summers when not many cars had air conditioning. Though now it doesn't look like it has seen any water in a very long time except during a rain shower. Regrettably, I forgot to take any photos. But if you click on the GC# link, you can view the photo gallery there.

My last stop for the day was another one of these roadside picnic areas. But this time is was one of my own Geocache hides called "Because They ALL Should Have One - Dino Tracks" (GC6HYCZ). I've only hidden a couple of caches at these picnic areas and I give them the name "Because They ALL Should Have One" because I was once a truck driver. And I was also a Geocacher during that time. And I had to pass up a whole lot of caches because it's kinda hard to park a big truck pulling a 53' trailer at a roadside cemetery and many others. Of the caches I listed just in this blog, I could probably only have found just the previous picnic cache as a trucker. Maybe the "Million Miles" cache IF I already knew about the little pull off area in advance. More than likely though I would have just stuck to the Interstates.

At this particular picnic area there are also a couple of dinosaur tracks out behind it, so it makes for an even better reason to stop. This cache also went missing as indicated by previous cachers, so I stopped by to replace it. After a few photos of the road home after the sunset, I drive the last hour back to Monahans, Texas. That 375 mile, 6 hour drive turned into a 480 mile, 10 hour Geocaching Adventure. But I think it was worth it!

2016-02-06: Geocaching and Canyon Hiking in Dickens Springs

Today we wanted to do some rough terrain hiking and Geocaching. Our last few months back in Florida, we starting doing the bushwhacking and hiking through scrub and swamp. While the chance of hiking a swamp in West Texas is ZERO, there is opportunity to do some bushwhacking through the forest.

About an hour east of Lubbock are several Geocaches with high terrain rating located within Dickens Springs. So after breakfast, we headed out on US-82 into Dickens County and the town of Dickens. After stopping by the historic Dickens County Courthouse and the County Jail buildings for photos, we arrived at the Dickens County Springs Park from 1891.

The history of the springs from the Historical Marker:

At one time, water covered this area. Sandstone, the prominent rock around this site, is porous, causing exposed strata at canyon rims to form a natural drainage outlet for upland aquifers, making possible the existence of these springs. Situated at the head of a canyon ravine immediately below the Upper Prairie Region of the Rolling Plains, the ancient springs have been a favored human habitat since the earliest human occupation in this region. Many nomadic tribes have used the site, leaving behind a wealth of archaeological evidence. 

John A. Askins and his family settled near these springs in late 1883, and it became known to pioneers as Askins Springs. A traveling real estate developer called Dr. M. S. Crow arrived here in 1891 and was a driving force in the organization of the town of Dickens about a half-mile west of the Askins land. In 1891 he gave a speech proclaiming his intent to give ten acres around "Crow Springs," as he called them, to the town of Dickens. The new city park became known as Dickens Springs. Generations of Dickens citizens and tourists, attracted by the rugged and colorful scenery and the unique collection of plants, have visited this site for picnics and social gatherings. In 1978 the departments of Anthropology and of Park Management at Texas Tech University made an intensive survey of the land surrounding Dickens Springs. Though many artifacts were lost to souvenir hunters, the university workers uncovered a variety of ancient tools, rarely of local origin. In the 21st century, Dickens Springs continues to provide water and beauty to the area for modern visitors as it did for the nomadic peoples of the past.

So we drove towards the springs and canyon area and about halfway down the entrance the road forks. Naturally I take the right fork. Not having ever been here before, we later learned I should've went left. You'll see why as you continue reading!

We arrive at the parking area for the Chuck Wagon (GC4ZZA4). A quick find of our first cache, and we go check out the chuck wagon. A makeshift replica of an old west covered wagon with a picnic table in the center. Hopefully in the hotter summer months, they have a canvas giving shade to those having a picnic.

As you can see from the photo above, if you do decide to have a picnic here, you will have an incredible view of the canyon. Our next cache was called the "Forgotten Picnic Table" (GC552R2). Looking above at the picture again and the trees in the foreground, that's where the spring flows. That's also the location of our next cache. DOWN into the canyon! We started down what appeared to be several different trails leading down, but none panned out. So we just started bushwhacking our way through the trees, bushes, and thorns.

It's kinda hard to tell in the photo below, but the first is looking down through the trees what we had to get through. After about 30 minutes, we finally made it to the bottom and found the forgotten picnic table and the cache.

Now the next cache seemed to be in the direction of the top of canyon on the opposite side about 1/4 mile away. But before we climbed back up the opposite side, I wanted to find the origin of the spring. Plus it was kinda going in the same direction anyway. So we followed the small creek upstream to the spring.

REALLY?! We arrive at the springs only to find stairs and a trail leading UP to the other parking area. Yeah, remember that fork in the road I mentioned? If we had taken the left fork, we could have parked and taken the easy way down into the canyon. I know, I know... where's the adventure in that right? So we check out the springs and take the trail up to the giant steel teepee covering another picnic table.

Now checking out the remaining caches, we were now closer to The Mystery of the Dug-Out-Mine cache (GCHYXZ). While not really a mine, this is actually a replica of the original first home built around 1878 by John Askins (even though the above sign at the entrance suggests 1883). The dugout was a common sense first home for early settlers in timber poor West Texas. John Askins traveled to Colorado City, TX for the tin used to roof his dugout. The remains of the original dugout were located about 200 yards to the south. But this method was a quick way to get shelter until more lumber or brick could be brought in to build a house.

Finding the cache above and behind the dugout house.

Looking back down the canyon from the cache in the above photo, if you look closely to the top right side, you can hopefully make out the frame of the chuck wagon. We bushwhacked our way down to the forgotten picnic table below the trees in the center of the photo. Then towards the camera to the right for the springs and up to the dugout house out of the photo to the right. Now the last cache was over to the top of the hill to the left side of the canyon.

So we went back down the stairs to the spring and followed the creek a short ways until we got to within 200' of the cache (GCHYXW). Then it was climbing UP the side of the canyon through rock, sand, and trees to get to this boulder you see below. We searched for about 15 minutes without any luck. This cache on the opposite side of the canyon doesn't get looked for as often as the others. The last time it was found was in May of 2014. Since then there has only been one other cacher logging a DNF in March of 2015. And now almost another year later and our DNF. I don't like going through all this and not come away with a find.

Having now hiked back down to the creek, we decided not to go the short route back to the car which would also require bushwhacking back up the canyon. Instead we went back up to the springs and the teepee parking area, and walked the road back to the fork and then down again to the chuck wagon and our car. I forgot how long a walk it was going around the long way, but it felt like a mile!

Driving back up to the entrance of the park, there was one last cache (GC54JDT) to get and another short hike up the hill. If you look back up to the photo of the entrance, you'll see the hill off to the left side. Yep, we now had to hike up there too!

The last cache for the day was at the Dickens Cemetery (GC5HGQC). A quick find and we then headed back to Lubbock. Another long but adventurous day hiking in the wilderness. Yes, our muscles maybe a little sore, but definitely well worth it!