Happy New Year!

The Princess and I spent the first day of 2019 letterboxing and geocaching.  On New Years Day we planted four boxes, one of them being our Secret Santa stamp.  We also looked for local GeoArt.  They were hybrid boxes planted by geocachers.  The art made a Batman symbol.  We got 26 the first day and I went out after the other 30 on the first Saturday of the year.  Of the 56 hybrid boxes only ten of them still had their stamps :(

Planting on 1/1/19

Also on that first Saturday, I went after some traditional letterboxes.  Two of them were planted on New Years Day.  When I was finished with the two new boxes and the 30 hybrids, I went after 5 boxes planted at Scales Lake by people attending the GLG.  Someone recently planted another box at Scales Lake.  I looked for it and couldn't find it.  I think I finally have found/looked for all the boxes at Scales Lake. 

At the end of year, I usually do a recap post.  My traditional plants in 2018 were pretty average.  If you don't count the boxes I planted for my event in 2016, the last 3 years I have planted 28 boxes each year.  Funny how that worked out.  My find count for 2018 was average.  My LTC plants and finds were down in 2018.  I started working in September 2017 and I have less time to make LTCs now.

I don't set boxing goals.  I am looking forward to the Big Top on the Prairie event in Ohio.  I have already set money aside for the hotel room.  I also plan on attending an event at a nearby state park in May.  It will be hosted by the same boxers who put on the GLG last year.  My boxing buddy says we need to go box in Louisville.  That will help add some stamps to my logbook :)

As for planting boxes, I have a plan for 2019.  Last year I joined a LTC swap for silly holidays.  When I joined I made a card for a silly holiday on my birthday thinking I would hide it on my special day.  I then I got to thinking it would be fun to hide more silly holidays.  I plan to hide one silly holiday each month in 2019.

There has been talk on the AQ boards of a Power Plant Challenge.  If you plant at least ten permanent traditional boxes between Nov 1st and April 30th, you get a Power Plant Patch <3  If everything goes as planned, I will have 20 boxes planted by the end of April :)

I hope everyone has a safe, happy, and healthy new year :)

Fourth trip to Scales Lake

Trail Selfie

Yesterday, G-MA, Daddy's Favorite Princess, and I went back to Scales Lake.  If you don't recall, it was the location of the 2018 GLG.  This was our 4th trip back to the park and we now have all the official boxes planted for the event.  I think there are a few other boxes planted by people who attended the event that we have not gotten.

G-MA and I drove separate to the park and arrived a little before 9 am.  We knew that the first trail we were walking would be long.  I parked my van at the end of the trail and G-MA drove us to the start of the trail.  The weather was beautiful and cool.  We debated if we should wear jackets or not.  We were looking for a Star Wars series and found all of the boxes but one.  There was a bonus, which was nice since we could not find a box.  We also found a geocache close to one of the boxes.  We looked for 16 and found 16.

After the Star Wars series we left for lunch.  We went to a local diner that had a letterbox outside but we had already found it.  Then we went back to the park and tried to figure out where to park the second car for an easy exit of the trails.  We ended up walking in and back out.

Cool fungi 

This time we searched for the Famous in Indiana series.  The temp had risen and the mosquitoes were out in full force.  We struggled to find many of the boxes.  Landmarks had changed in the short period of time and the wording of the clues was often an issue.  The stamp in the first box was missing and there was another box that we could not find.  We ended up with 8 out of 10 in this series.

While we were there I planted a box at a cemetery just outside the park.  This would have been my campsite stamp if I would have been able to camp.  But I was just too busy the weekend of the GLG and it was miserably hot.  After all the boxing we stopped to get ice cream to celebrate G-MAs 10th AQversary and her recent birthday.

Returning to Scales Lake

Box planted by someone attending the GLG

G-MA and I went back to Scales Lake today, the location of the GLG.  We still had 30 boxes we needed to get from the event.  There were also about 12 boxes in the area, planted by boxers who attended the event.

We got some of the boxes on the way to the park and started the, "Teddy Bear Trail."  We had heard that this was the most strenuous trail in the park.  It was tough.  There were 2-3 places where I had to pull G-MA up the hills.  They probably should not have planted on this trail.

After finishing this trail we went back to town for lunch.  We grabbed a few more boxes on the way.  While stopped for lunch we discussed our plan of attack.  We went back to the park for 3 more boxes that were planted by folks who attend the event.  By now it is 3pm and my kids are texting me about what to do for supper.

G-MA and I decide to leave the park.  We get a few more boxes as we leave town.  I ended up with 16 boxes today.  Our plan is to come back again right when the park opens.  We will get an early start and tackle the longest trail first.  Then we can leave for lunch, cool off, and start again.  We have 25 boxes to go.  I think I may take one with me to plant just for fun :)

Great Lakes Gathering 2018

Our First GLG 

I totally forgot to make a blog post for the Great Lakes Gathering (GLG).  Daddy's Favorite Princess, G-MA and I rode to the event together.  I just got a new van so I drove.  It was at Scales Lake, Boonville, Ind on Saturday, June 30th.

The day of the GLG was the hottest day of the year.  It was miserable and it looked like a lot of boxers stayed inside and stamped table tops.  My boxing buddy, G-MA, doesn't like table tops.  We checked in, dropped off our food, left behind my table tops, and hit the road.

We started off looking for the petting zoo series; we struggled with where the trail even started.  The series was entitled, "Around the Barn" but the boxes where no where near the barn/petting zoo.  We finally find the correct trail and realize that G-MA left her boxing bag at the event pavilion.  So, we go back, grab her bag, and get going again.  We ended up walking the petting zoo trail with two other boxers and it was nice to spend time with them.

When we were finished with that series we went back for lunch.  The place was a ghost town. We stamped a few table tops and went out again.  There was a trail that left from the shelter house called, "Fairies and Gnomes, Oh my!"  I enjoyed the stamps but we struggled finding some of the boxes.  We ended up going back and finding them later that day.

After that we went back to the pavilion again to restock our water, rest, and stamp a few table tops.  The hosts had planted a series of drive by boxes in the park.  It was very nice to have these boxes on such a hot day.  This series was called, "Aloha! From Indiana" and we found two of the stamps I donated.

We are locals living about 40 minutes west of Scales Lake.  Daddy's Favorite Princess was supposed to be at a birthday party at 6 and G-MA and I were very tired.  We went back to the pavilion to pick up our leftover food, gather table tops we brought, and say good bye.  At the shelter I was ambushed!  I had one boxer say she would not leave without exchanging with me.   I felt like a celebrity with all the boxers asking to exchange with me :)

I think we found 34 traditional boxes and only took 1 picture.   The birthday party that the Princess went to was a pool party.  I was very happy to sit in the corner and cool off.  I had a head ache the rest of the evening.

GLG Stamp Donations

I am looking forward to the Great Lakes Gathering later this month.  I have never been to one before.  Indiana is hosting this year and it will be about 40 minutes east of me.

I volunteered to carve 5 stamps.  There is a petting zoo at the park and they asked for petting zoo stamps.  One time we were letterboxing at the park and we stopped to play on a playground.  While we were there the donkey just wondered around the playground eating grass.  I had to carve the donkey and I know they have peacocks there too.

I am working on a new event box to take with me.  I need to make our camping reservations and we will be good to go :)