Geocaching Montana

My first event

2011-01-10T00:03:00.001-08:00

I have planned & posted my first ever geocaching event!
I'm super excited!

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Travel bugs & Geocoins

2010-10-12T10:40:00.001-07:00

I recently came across a discussion about proxy Geocoins. I have to say it is like many aspects of geocaching in that everyone plays the game the way they enjoy it.
I personally have a nice collection of Geocoins & travel bugs. I have become reluctant to releasing some that I really like. I have harassed people who pick up a coin or TB & fail to move it for long periods of time.
Of course, lately I haven't found caches large enough to hold either coins or TBs so I haven't Benny able to move mine along either. I plan to change that shortly.

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPod

Break is over

2010-08-11T19:54:00.001-07:00

I am back caching!

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

It was a lovely day to geocache

2010-05-15T08:18:00.000-07:00

May 14, 2010 was the nicest day we have seen in a few months! I had cabin fever so I grabbed my gps & headed out. The plan? 4 geocaches before meeting the Hubby for lunch!

I arrived at cache #1 (one I had found in it's first two forms before) and knew it would be a super easy find.

Oh look! A Waymark!

Made it to the top

SCORE!

Back in Shiny & my favorite song of the moment was on!

Then it was on to my first DNF of the day. I pulled up to the cache area and searched. I searched high and low for 10 minutes then text for help. Even with a hint I could not find it. Time was running short so I headed out to cache #3. Well that one had me all over an area of GF I am not familiar with. Not good. I did find this cool house:But that was when I started to think I should quit while I can still find my way home!

I had to race across town to meet the Hubby!
I pulled into the restaurant parking lot & thought at first this was him

Close but he rides a blue Honda Shadow

I went inside to wait

He was detained by the Wing Commander. I was lucky to get the 45 minutes for lunch we had when he could get there.

I think I should have more days like this. OK, maybe more successful geocaching days but this was a nice day to be out & about anyway.

Happy caching!

The Winter/Spring cache dash!

2010-05-15T08:01:00.001-07:00

OK- it was not an official event it was just my way of having fun with some of the geokids on trips to Hungry Horse Montana! (I went two weekends in a row)

First I have to say it was awful to have to drive this 500 mile trip in a rental vehicle instead of my Shiny.

March 27- we pack up & left early (0600 is early for teenage boys) hitting our first Waymark 30 minutes out! We managed to get 10 waymarks on this trip. The two boys who were in the car on the way up had a blast- they helped navigate, read the gps & geocaching clues, were willing, er, excited to get out and find each & every cache we came to. The only reservation that was voiced was stopping in Browning to find 2 waymarks. We were able to do a drive-by style waymark so I was happy & they were content.
We picked up the 3rd teen in Hungry Horse a little after noon & he was revved up to help cache our way home. He did spot 2 on his own.

I wish I had the total scored for trip #1 but I lost that paper. I will say we were all soaked from head to toe by the time we found all 15 geocaches!

April 3 - The 3 boys & I were joined by my Hubby and our geomutt, Karma! We all piled into Shiny a bit later than planned. This time we headed up another road to the same destination. The hubby drove and was excited to know that we did not find all the caches without him.
We got 2 FTF right off the bat! This was a faster trip with only 8 geocaches to find and none over a 2/2 for the sake of speed. No one was wet this trip but fun was had by all.

Photos are posted here and here!

Back at it

2009-10-28T07:35:00.000-07:00

I took a bit of a break from geocaching since many of my geokids went back to the parent they spend the school year with and I have been spending my days with my grandcub. I decided this week that I needed to get out & cache no matter what!

I took g-cub (9months old) and we found 5 caches over 2 days! He prefers to fall asleep in the truck so I have to plan park-n-grabs but it's still fun.

I picked up a Travel Bug & a geocoin and released 2 new TBs so it added to my accomplishments for the week!

Tips on geocaching with a baby:

DON'T give him the nano size (choking hazard)
DO find big caches with big TBs or prizes (he loves to get new toys)
DON'T plan for long outings (He lasted about 90 mins before he either got mad or fell asleep)
DO have fun!

Got Milk?

2009-09-14T05:31:00.001-07:00

Milk
Originally uploaded by ZhenPanda

Did my first 12 of 12! loads of fun!

GPS Food

2009-09-13T18:58:00.001-07:00

GPS Food
Originally uploaded by DarrylW4

I spotted these after looking at several fellow cachers' 12 of 12 photo sets. Too funny!

A DNF day

2009-09-04T22:23:00.000-07:00

Since I have been without a job for a whole week I decided to spend a day geocaching.
I grabbed the DeLorme EathMate PN-40 (now fixed) and downloaded a couple caches I hadn't yet and headed out before my daughter showed up to have me "babysit"... again.

Before starting I hit Sonic for a Cherry Limeade.

First cache Mall Holiday 2... been here before, old GPS keep pinting to under my truck! I walked over to where I expected it to be & there it was! FIND #1!!
Secnd attempt was Refuel! ... bad idea at 1PM... on the corner of busy & busier! will try on a sleepless night.
Third cache Is Bill Bored?... parked, walked straight toward it... searched a bit toward the ground then looked up & BINGO! Find 2!
Next attempt was Take me out to the Ball Game... searched, searched, searched... DNF #1
Then up Richard Lionheart... ouch... DNF #2
Onto Sunrise Park... super easy find & spiffy containter. Find #2.
Now Bad Motor Scooters... climbed a tree and DNF #3

Called for help. I was in the right spot, should've been there. damn.

Cache attempt #8 was What Happened to the Houses? I got a lot of signal bounce and I was getting tired so it was a quick DNF (#4)
For a change I tried one by a different cacher and headed to find Gloriana. It is located by the Church where my Late Uncle Fr. Tony retired to before his death, so it's a special place for me. I searched a bit and then had to call it my final DNF of the day.

Total 3 finds & 6 DNF (even though refuel is not technically a DNF)

I am not discouraged.

Geocoins

2009-08-22T00:20:00.000-07:00

I have too many geocoins!

Not that I am complaining but I think my purpose behind buying them was not really to let them go. That is against what geocoins do- Travel!

I did donate a couple to new geocaching families in my area so that the kids can track them.

I also picked 7 to release in the next month. I hope to spread them out to different areas of Montana for release.

I'll update when I get them out & about!

You see them EVERYWHERE!

2009-06-07T00:52:00.000-07:00

Geocachers that is!

Driving home from our Rapid City trip we passed through the metropolis of Alzada, Montana (insert sarcasm here) and saw a couple guys hunting for GC1Mv22! It was funny because I looked at my husband as we drive by at 55 and said "They're geocaching!" without batting an eye he responded "yeah, you said there wasn't any out here"

I really didn't want to look for micros and anything over a 1/1 with the speed of our trip.

It's a very small world!

Memorial Day trip

2009-05-17T20:00:00.000-07:00

This year I will be heading to Rapid City, South Dakota!

Not because it was a place we wanted to see or a new adventure we felt calling but because I have to take my favorite niece to meet her Dad. (Her mom is too busy to do it)

No worries!

We have planned:

Geocaching in Rapid City
Waymarking MoH graves at the Big Horn Battle Field
Photographing several County Courthouses in both MT & SD
Checking out the area around Rapid City & Ellsworth AFB

New Cache-mobile!

2009-03-23T01:06:00.001-07:00

better view
Originally uploaded by ZhenPanda

It should be nicer for those remote caches then the van was!

Have geocoin... will travel

2009-02-18T15:50:00.000-08:00

One of my geocoins made it to Japan & China!!!!

I'm excited!

If you geocache in the Great State of Montana....

2009-01-10T12:47:00.000-08:00

Add your photos to our flickr group!

North Dakota geocoin

2008-11-22T23:44:00.001-08:00

North Dakota geocoin
Originally uploaded by ZhenPanda

I love geocoins.

I own over 50.

This is one I was super excited to find! The seller on eBay advertised it as trackable... it's not.

Oh, well! It's still a neat coin.

Geocoin set

I had a minute

2008-10-21T17:38:00.000-07:00

So I snapped a few pics of my geocaching necessities!

1. Geocaching goodie bag, 2. Geocaching backpack, 3. Geocaching stuff close up, 4. Geocaching stuff close up, 5. Geocaching stuff overall, 6. Geocaching humor (just to fill the space here)

How to have fun geocaching with kids

2008-10-09T12:26:00.000-07:00

Maybe it's the teacher in me but when I take the hoards out caching I like to have "jobs" for each so they can feel like they are an important part of our outings.

Geocaching jobs:

the pointer - this is the top job because the person with the GPS tells us where to go & how far we should be from a cache. This person sits in the front passenger seat when driving to the cache they are assigned.
the tourist - I carry 4 or more cameras so this person gets to take all the photos they choose to with which ever camera (I have toy film cameras as well as digital cameras.) I usually stay closest to this person while we hunt a cache.
the scribbler - carries the pencil or pen and writes our info in the log.
the lookout - watches for muggles and tries to be the distraction if needed (not needed very often)
the guide - carries the printed sheet about the cache and reads/deciphers clues when needed (needed frequently when more than 3 people are caching)

Jobs change with each cache we hunt. If we are going after 5 caches everyone will have a chance to do each job. If there are more people I make up jobs to keep them busy.

What is geocaching, anyway??

2008-08-01T15:03:00.000-07:00

(I stole this from Wiki)

Geocaching is an outdoor treasure-hunting game in which the participants use a Global Positioning System (GPS) receiver or other navigational techniques to hide and seek containers (called "geocaches" or "caches") anywhere in the world. A typical cache is a small waterproof container containing a logbook and "treasure," usually toys or trinkets of little value. Today, well over 800,000 geocaches are registered on various websites devoted to the pastime. Geocaches are currently placed in over 100 countries around the world and on all seven continents, including Antarctica.

For my kids it is just a fun thing we do on weekends and when the mood strikes!

Cachin' with kids

2008-07-28T21:35:00.000-07:00

I usually try to recruit random kids to go out and geocache with me since after once or twice adults are bored....maybe it's just my husband.

These guys loved it! We have one more weekend before they go back home so I hope to get a couple more finished with them... maybe even a hide!

I wish my husband enjoyed geocaching as much as I do

2008-05-28T20:30:00.000-07:00

It's so sad. I can hardly get him to do park & grabs!

Oh, well- His loss!

I'm going to do a cache machine!

And I'm going to have a ball!

I have a plan!

2008-05-27T21:37:00.000-07:00

OK, I know that no matter how well I plan things happen. I will adapt, I will overcome. IF necessary.

My PLAN for this summer (since I will have to work most of it):

Waymark the places within my town from the National Register of Historic Places. (I work in the middle of one district so that will be my noon walk!)
Do more benchmarking within my town. (I have pretty much cached-out the immediate area)
Finish the waymarks from my trip to Helena- over 45! (That should take at least 2 weeks)
Attend the Lewis & Clark Festival/geocaching event on June 28, 2008.

So there's my plan.
Wish me luck!

Charles M. Russell

2008-05-26T23:04:00.001-07:00

Charles M. Russell
Originally uploaded by ZhenPanda

So I found the last of the 3 "Famous people" buried in Great Falls. Woo Hoo!

They will be waymarked shortly!

St. Helena's Cathedral

2008-05-15T21:53:00.001-07:00

St. Helena's Cathedral
Originally uploaded by ZhenPanda

Benchmarked. Waymarked.

Wow- if I could only come up with a great geocache this would have been a home run!

Today was a full day of geocaching, benchmarking, waymarking & Photography! Son#1 had an appointment at Ft. Harrison so I drove him. We found 5 benchmarks & 2 geocaches. I must have found about 40 items to waymark.

It was a great day!

Whiney Pete had fun geocaching

2008-05-04T15:30:00.001-07:00

Whiney Pete had fun geocaching
Originally uploaded by ZhenPanda

I'm slowly getting out more.

Today was just fun to let one of my nephews find the cache!

Getting out and about again

2008-04-28T22:57:00.000-07:00

I decided that whether my GPS wanted to work with my laptop or not I was going caching!

I found a easy one yesterday

Today I told the hubby i was going out and invited him along. he begrudgingly hopped in the car. We struck out on the first try- a micro I had attempted before without any luck. (Maybe the third time will work). Then we headed down by the river for a level 4 difficulty. I figured if we couldn't find that one we'd head home. We followed the GPS to within 10 feet and began the intense hunt. As we searched an older truck pulled within 15 feet, parked and the occupants sat watching the river nearby. A few minutes later the passenger tossed a bottle out her window in our direction. We moved away. They left shortly after and that is when the hubby spotted the cache. So we signed the log and headed to the 3rd cache. Super easy find. On to the fourth and final cache. Another easy find. We dropped a coin and singed the log.

As we headed to our victory ice cream stop the hubby started to discuss how it may be a good idea to look into a hang gun since the occupants of the truck did not appear to be very friendly. I am not opposed to guns and do not intend to carry a sidearm while caching but we went to look a few. I did not think we would purchase one but we did.

It's funny how easy it was- 45 minutes and here is his spiffy new toy.

Complete with the warning card.

Now I get to pick a really cool computer!!

Geocoin lost inventory

2008-04-20T16:41:00.000-07:00

I thought it was only 1 coin (maybe two) lost.

NOT!

I have 4 missing coins.

Damn.

Caching in the Leaves
Masters of Space
2006 CITO
Meet & Greet

Why I am no longer releasing geocoins

2008-03-18T13:46:00.000-07:00

I got a little Gun-ho about collecting and sharing geocoins about a year ago. It was cool to see where they went and how far or haw fast they moved.

Then the started to disappear.

1 is totally gone but the nice person who had it at an event replaced it.
2 are now questionable- I even sent emails to the cache owners to see if they might check their caches. One owner was very nice and helpful but the other was very rude. The second owner could not be bothered to read the cache log back further than the main page entries so they accused me of placing the coin in another cache (I didn't place the coin in the first place). When I pointed out the entry of when the coin was dropped they responded with "we have no plans to visit this cache until summer so you will have to go check it yourself." WOW! The cache is in New York & I live in Montana.

Thanks for the help fellow cacher!

(please excuse the sarcasm)

I will not be placing coins in caches anymore. I plan to display them at events but no more will I waste my time, money & effort to send them out on a journey.

IT SUCKS!

I'm Stumped

2008-03-08T12:41:00.001-08:00

Stump
Originally uploaded by ZhenPanda

I haven't re-installed my GPS software since I had to re-format my computer. Since the problems are still popping up I'm afraid to.

I just can't find the motivation to get out & cache.

I really miss it.

Geocaching in MT news!

2007-12-28T09:31:00.000-08:00

The Sidney Heraldhad a great article about local MT geocachers!

Merry Christmas

2007-12-21T00:08:00.001-08:00

Updates

2007-12-18T16:46:00.000-08:00

The most frustrating caching experience of my life (so far) has been Garden of Eden.
I have returned to search for the final leg on 4 occasions. On the second I managed to loose my keys in the rocks. On the last I found the cache but no keys.
For me the cache was not necessarily worth the frustration. It was just an ammo box under a bridge. Coords were off by 100 ft (each leg up to it had similar issues. I think that the times I took random geokids were even more distracting than helpful.

I do have to go back (again) to the cache...to search more for the keys.

A note on the previous post/video- AJ did not win the grand prize but was a runner up!

Not cache related but I needed to share this!

2007-11-26T20:58:00.001-08:00

How things change

2007-11-21T23:29:00.000-08:00

I have been caching for almost 2 years...but only successfully for a little over 1. LOL

I noticed a few days ago that suddenly several caches "disappeared" from the area. I investigated a bit more & it looks like 3 local cachers just up & quit. How sad.

I do not claim to be a "die-hard" but I cache when I can. It is a sport that takes some commitment with motivation. Some days I am not really motivated to drive 20 miles to find the newest cache but some days I am more than happy to drive 100!

Some cool caches went away but there are still some to find within 10 miles of my house!

Happy Caching!

DNF

2007-11-19T07:47:00.000-08:00

Sunday was a boring day so I logged into geocaching & found a cache which was "published" on November 7th (but didn't show until Nov.18) & got excited.

An 8-leg mutli-cache-WOO HOO- I'm up for it!

I gathered a couple geokids & we headed out.

*OMG*

We found 5 legs without much problem. It was fun for the new kid but the rest of us were kinda getting burnt out fast. How many decon cans in a tree can you hide for one multi cache???

It started to snow & then got dark fast so we called it a day.

This DNF was a DID NOT FINISH.

Benchmarking

2007-11-18T12:30:00.000-08:00

On the trip home from the Flash Mob I noticed the tell-tale signs of benchmarks not far from where I had searched before. (It's funny how much you see when you are not the driver!) I got excited!

Today I went and tried to find them based on my mental notes. I did not look them up again I just went out found what was there marked it in my GPS and photographed it. I got home and looked them up to find I was looking at State benchmarks which are not in the database.

Bummer.

I'm going!

2007-11-05T15:23:00.000-08:00

I got Friday off to go to the flash mob on Saturday!
The hubby & Son#2 will tag along!

Now I have to pick how many geocaches we should attempt on the way down & back.

I have planned a side-trip to the zoo & Red Lobster!

IS IT FRIDAY YET!??!

Could be the coolest caching event yet!

2007-10-24T22:27:00.000-07:00

WWFM-B-MT Looks to be the coolest caching event ever!

The hubby & I are mulling it over- the cost for a trip to billings, hotel, food & then only 15 minutes of caching? It is a tough call. I think it is almost worth it.

The boys would love it. I could take photos! He could... um... drive?

I'll have to get back to you on this one.

Silly me

2007-10-21T21:58:00.000-07:00

I volunteered to start a local chapter of the Military Association of GeoCachers.

Now I have to come up with a name!

I thought of a few- give me some feedback please!

Rocky Mountain Military Cachers
Big Sky Military Cachers
Forgotten States military Cachers
Treasure State Military GeoCachers
Montana Military Cachers

Whatcha think?

ATTENTION! Montana & Wyoming Military geocachers

2007-10-17T23:51:00.000-07:00

Support the Troops

Join the
Military Association of GeoCachers

I would like to start up a chapter of the Military Association of GeoCachers!

I know we are few & far between but Please let me know if you want to be a part of this great community!

Post here or email me through geocaching.com

Blog Action Day

2007-10-15T16:43:00.000-07:00

We spend time out in the environment- let's do something to help.
Start here!

OMG

2007-10-10T16:26:00.001-07:00

I can't believe it's my waymark!
I've never had a featured waymark before- I feel special.

TOTALLY MADE MY DAY!

Placing my first cache

2007-09-27T07:16:00.000-07:00

This next week I will take turtle and SCA_Kid to place our first cache.
I maintain two which I adopted but you know your own feels different.

I'll give all the details once it is up!

Waymarking my hometown

2007-09-09T14:51:00.000-07:00

I love Great Falls. I want everyone to experience it once. LOL

I decided to walk the Historic District today.
I first looked up all the NHR houses/buildings in the area and found my starting point. I was a bit dumbstruck when I really read over the local listings. One of the buildings is no longer there! I did not think you could demo a historic building to build a fast food joint!
ROFLMFAO!

I did find about 10 houses with signs so it was a fun filled day!

Labor day geocaching

2007-09-06T00:46:00.001-07:00

The hubby has been on leave for 10 days & has done nothing but play WoW and eat!

I decided we should get in a few caches before I have to work.

It was a late start & we headed north!

I did not find one- he located all 4.

It was a nice day anyway.

In the folds of the flag

2007-08-30T00:07:00.001-07:00

In the folds of the flag
Originally uploaded by ZenPanda

My visit to Missoula was focused on waymarking more then geocaching. Mainly because i was exhausted from the long day before. Waymarking is less labor-intensive. It can be educational and fun!

I marked about 25 places! (I'm still sorting them out)

What a day

2007-08-20T16:40:00.000-07:00

Sunday I did some geocaching, benchmarking & waymarking while out looking at the forest fires.
My Aunt, fishladyMT, and I started fairly early (9AM) and headed for Choteau to see if there were any smoke plumes or flames visible.
Our first stop was to waymark the Fairfield Post office, Then on to the Teton County Courthouse where we found a benchmark. I only had to look across the street for the second benchmark of the day. I waymarked the ranger station & Smokey the bear, a couple Montana Historical markers and a catholic church on the way to the Fool Creek fire area.

Somewhere along the line we spotted a small group of Yak! very unusual for Montana. Although the camels in Fairfield are more rare- we have gotten used to them as they have been there for years.

I forgot to put the Eureka lake cache in my GPS so we bypassed it for The Ear Sees a few miles closer to the fire. It was sad to see a cool whip container in the middle of this beautiful area. I hope the cache owner will replace it with a studier one soon.
We headed to Augusta to see if the Ahorn fire was doing more than smoking. As we traveled along the highway I waymarked a few more of Montana's historical markers. As we stopped at one I noticed that my GPS said a cache was only 62 feet away! I always wondered where Gilman was! The Gilman cache was an interesting find- I actually tripped over it!

In Augusta I marked the Post office & ranger station then we headed toward the fire area. Nothing but smoke. It was not a total loss- I met the dumbest Pronghorn ever and spent a bit of time photographing him. He just kept coming closer to the van!

We found Tatonka and Calvin's keychains without a problem. Marked a truss bridge and were rained out of an estate sale.
As we headed home we only had the opportunity to mark a couple post offices as the rainstorm became very intense.
Miles driven: 215
Geocaches: 4
Benchmarks: 2
Waymarks: 12

Not a bad day at all

100 finds!

2007-08-12T23:02:00.000-07:00

TeamTGF noticed before I could post about it!

My 100 find!! WOO HOO!!

The Wood Carvers Cache was the most appropriate for the milestone! IT was just perfect- Books & bears!

I almost wish I had gone geocaching on my birthday instead! LOL

I spoke too soon

2007-08-11T12:45:00.000-07:00

On the 9th all the sudden 15 new caches were published dating from the 1st to the 8th! One was here in town! WOO HOO!

I rounded up two of my cache-kids and we did another long day trip starting with the new one & working toward Shelby! It was fun. Our list of 24 was quickly whittled to 12 we wanted to try. Our score ended up being 8 of 9 tries.
Our one "DNF" was actually an aborted attempted when we ran into a smelly carcass within 10 feet of the cache. So the kids don't think it counts as a DNF.
Shelby has some very nice caches. The hides are mostly unique and fun. The places they are hidden are interesting. I really want to go back and finish the area. We enjoyed a quick bite there then headed home.

It was a good day of hunting!

Bad things about geocaching in Montana

2007-08-07T03:16:00.000-07:00

FIRES!

No new caches have been placed & I can't go to the ones I want to hunt for because of the DAMN FIRES!

Enough already!

RAIN DAMN IT!!!

GPS envy

2007-07-21T00:03:00.001-07:00

GPS envy
Originally uploaded by ZenPanda

My little Magellan explorist 210 and my Aunt's Magellan XL

Woo Hoo! Our FTF!!!

2007-07-17T05:50:00.001-07:00

Woo Hoo! Our FTF!!!
Originally uploaded by ZenPanda

First FTF! Lion's Park Jr.

Geocaching record

2007-07-11T03:03:00.001-07:00

Caboose

2007-07-11T02:04:00.001-07:00

Caboose
Originally uploaded by ZenPanda

Close to geocaches Montana Moab & Follow the Fissure.

Lewis & Clark Festival Geocahing event

2007-07-08T14:58:00.000-07:00

What a fun event! Tons of people for both the festival and the cacher get together. We meet several new people, swapped stories and really put faces to all those logged names!

Early crowd

TB/geocoin table

Originally both my boys and the adopted one were supposed to attend with me but it ended up just being the adopted one & me.
I don't mind- he's a good kid and really likes to geocache with me.

I can't wait for the next one!

Waymarking

2007-06-22T07:52:00.000-07:00

My waymarking profile:

I love geocaching except...

2007-06-14T12:49:00.000-07:00

when people steal the TB, coins & destroy the caches.
It may or may not be cacher doing these but it is annoying.

I found something that gets me outside & moving and a few assholes ruin it!

My score so far:

59 finds
0 hides
19 benchmarks
55 waymarks