Thursday is our geocaching day. We don’t always get to go but we try. There are four of us girls. We met through geocaching but now we are friends. It is a day we all look forward to, especially in the fall because we can hit the trails.

Philippa and Brenda. Deb didn’t get to come today.

Geocaching is a high tech hide and seek kind of game that you use your gps to find things that other geocachers have hidden. Usually the geocaches are hidden in interesting spots or in interesting ways to make it fun and get you out and exploring the world around you.

We start out with a general plan because you always need a plan. We never stick to the plan. We always get side tracked. We never reach our goals because, well we always get sidetracked.

An older male geocacher we know said, geocaching with us four girls would be like being with a gaggle of geese. But he also said he wanted to go with us one day. Hmm. Yes, sometimes it might be like that. Sometimes between the navigating, the reading of the information on the cache page and trying to catch up with every one, we don’t always finish our conversations. But doesn’t that happen anyway when girlfriends get together.

Last thursday we decided to head to Winchester, TN. We did make it there, that was the only predicable thing that happened all day. We had so many distractions. Mini adventures. That sounds better. Or mini excursions.

This happens to us a lot. Like the time we came upon a feeding park and the deer were hungry. Hungry because no one goes to feeding parks when it’s 25 degrees outside. So we went to a convenience store and bought a box of crackers and a jar of peanut butter and fed the herd of deer, some ostriches, and an emu until they didn’t want anymore. (Feeding emus is very scary.) We have fed lots of animals now that I think about it. Pigs, dogs, birds, squirrels, cats, horses, but not the camels. I heard they spit. What do they eat anyway? And who would think we would SEE Camels. Who OWNS camels in Tennessee? Why? That happened last but I have to show them first. 

We are just driving down a country road between Huntsville and Winchester and there is a tall fence, an unusually tall fence. Sitting in the shade on the hills of Tennessee, we found a caravan of camels. This was a treat. We slammed on the brakes and got out to investigate. A few were friendly and came over to see us. They have 2 humps. My dad says that means something like where they came from. Several of them had humps that flopped over. Brenda talked real sweet so they wouldn’t spit. They snorted and showed us their teeth. See what I mean about distractions. (Since then Brenda has found an article about the camels here. It’s very interesting about the camel keeper)

We also made a stop at Falls Mill. I’ve been here many times before but there is a boy scout geocache there now so we found it. We also toured the gift shop and bought some cornmeal that was ground there. I will write about the mill soon. Kevin and I returned this past weekend for a country drive and visited it again. 

We made several other stops here and there. The pound were we found a cache and talked to the dogs through the fence. We ate at a diner. We always look for local. Those are the best. And are usually lucky. This one had 4 kinds of fried potatoes on the menu: home fries, french fries, steak fries and tater tots. They usually have great cobblers too. We were not disappointed with Skipps in Winchester. The decor and locals are worth the visit alone.

Next stop a fire tower. I’ve found caches at fire towers before but never one with this sign! (Mom this is where you quit reading) 

Philippa

Brenda and Philippa

I take this as a personal challenge. I said to the girls. We are going to climb it aren’t we? I headed up before we found the cache. It was missing a few boards. There was movement the higher you got. About half way up I hollered at them. Ya’ll are coming aren’t you??? This was a white knuckle climb. I was not in my comfort zone. I’ve gotten old. Why is this making me nervous. How many more floors??? Then it was just 2 boards wide. Finally, I hear their voices and with company it’s not nearly as scary. The view, lovely. 

The top little building had a table and chair and an empty pack of cigarettes. I had to laugh at that. We found the cache with wobbly legs and moved on to our next adventure.

Geocaching is an adventure and we get out in nature and find wonderful beauty in any direction we head. We might be looking for man’s hidden treasures but we find God’s treasure everywhere. Our eyes are opened to his creation and I feel so blessed to be witness to it every time we venture out. 

Thank you for reading. I hope you enjoyed our adventure. All these pictures were taking by my iphone. I think they turned out great!

Katey