Back home again with none of the nightmare flights on the way out. In fact, it went a little too smoothly!
We added lots to our cache map during this trip. One more trip out east in August should complete it. Then where? A trip up the middle and one to Washington and Alaska. And how come we don't have Arizona yet? Airfare to Phoenix is cheap.
Two first-to-finds, logs written in French, and lots of pretty hikes. My kind of vacation.
Friday, June 19, 2009
Tuesday, June 16, 2009
Double rainbow
I don't have many pictures of our caching adventures across Maine, New Hampshire, Connecticut, Rhode Island, and New York. I'm back at work now, sitting in those impossibly uncomfortable chairs in a hotel meeting room. The boys have been to visit with Rich's uncles and aunts. We were out there the night we got to Albany and there was a storm across the valley. This double rainbow which arced all across the sky was a nice reward.
And of course the boys got wet.
And of course the boys got wet.
Maine's solar system
This is cool. Someone at a university in Maine decided to put out a scale model of the solar system. We figured it out when we passed Jupiter on the road. We stopped at Saturn.
And there's Titan.
Yeah, there's a cache there. We passed Uranus and Neptune on the road, then stopped at a visitor's center before getting on the dreaded interstate and found Pluto and Charon.
There was a cache at the visitor center, too. The log was totally soaked, but there was a nice hot picnic table to dry it out on.
More information on the model
And there's Titan.
Yeah, there's a cache there. We passed Uranus and Neptune on the road, then stopped at a visitor's center before getting on the dreaded interstate and found Pluto and Charon.
There was a cache at the visitor center, too. The log was totally soaked, but there was a nice hot picnic table to dry it out on.
More information on the model
Sunday, June 14, 2009
The cache of the yellow eyes, and a moose
One more first to find attempt, this time in New Brunswick. Richard never gives up, thank goodness. We must have spent a half hour looking for a small mason jar in the woods. I'd say, let's give up. Rich would say, let me just look over here. Here's the cache which he eventually found. You can tell I gave up because I was back in the minivan. Did I mention it rained all day?
And yes! We were first to find! Hallelujah Chorus again.
Later that day in NB, we saw this fine fellow.
We saw a young girl moose later on, but didn't get the camera out before she va-moosed. And still later, after we were back in the USA, we got to Connor town!
And yes! We were first to find! Hallelujah Chorus again.
Later that day in NB, we saw this fine fellow.
We saw a young girl moose later on, but didn't get the camera out before she va-moosed. And still later, after we were back in the USA, we got to Connor town!
La Rocher Perce
In the town of Perce, actually, there's an acute accent on the final e, so it's pear-say, but I don't want to look up how to do that in HTML, there is a rock with a landbridge. There used to be two, but one fell down in 1857. We were looking forward to seeing these rocks. They are sandstone which have been carved away by the ocean, very similar to the twelve apostles that we saw on the Australia trip.
But the clouds came in and here's what the rock looks like in the fog. See the hole in the rock? See the rock? It's past the pier. The hole is near the right side. There's a smaller rock to its right.
It was foggy the day we got there and until we left. We spent half the morning walking the boardwalk - fabulous boardwalk with benches here and there - but the fog didn't lift until we left. Here are the benches.
And the boardwalk. That seagull flew down and caught a fish just after I took this picture.
On the pier, there was a place to eviscerate your mackerel.
And boats to take you to the island offshore, which was also shrouded in fog.
The island is called Bonaventure, and is full of hiking trails. We would have gone over if we had had more time. Instead, we failed to find a cache at the end of the boardwalk, sat on another bench, and shopped.
As we were leaving town, the fog lifted momentarily, and we got our view of La Rocher Perce.
The Island of Adventure was still fogged in.
But the clouds came in and here's what the rock looks like in the fog. See the hole in the rock? See the rock? It's past the pier. The hole is near the right side. There's a smaller rock to its right.
It was foggy the day we got there and until we left. We spent half the morning walking the boardwalk - fabulous boardwalk with benches here and there - but the fog didn't lift until we left. Here are the benches.
And the boardwalk. That seagull flew down and caught a fish just after I took this picture.
On the pier, there was a place to eviscerate your mackerel.
And boats to take you to the island offshore, which was also shrouded in fog.
The island is called Bonaventure, and is full of hiking trails. We would have gone over if we had had more time. Instead, we failed to find a cache at the end of the boardwalk, sat on another bench, and shopped.
As we were leaving town, the fog lifted momentarily, and we got our view of La Rocher Perce.
The Island of Adventure was still fogged in.
Forillon du Sud
The park has two entrances, and two exits. That is, you enter the north part of the park, see the sights, descend and ascend 101 steps, then exit the park. Then you travel to the south part of the park and enter again. If you pay at the north, you get into the south on the same day for free. So we did.
There was a multistage geocache that for some reason I thought was at a cemetery. I'll tell you the reason. It was called GRANDE-GRAVE, and part of the cache was looking up the date of death of M. Xavier Blanchette. Turns out that it has nothing to do with a cemetery. The first stage was down by the shore, and where the sign used to be was a large skip. They were tearing down and rebuilding the pier. Unfortunately, to get the second stage, you needed the info from the first stage. Fortunately, I am a genius and figured out where the second stage must be, based on information from a reenactor at the shop up the hill. So up the hill we went again, and sure enough, there was the second stage. The shop was an old general store and fish buyer. Inside, besides the reenactors, there was an animated M. Hyman telling a fisherman that he couldn't give him any money because they had overfished the cod and the economy was bad. The third stage took us to a typical 19th century farmhouse which had been donated by the family. There were reenactors inside that building as well, all of whom spoke decent English, about as decent as my French, so we had a good time. An old man came in and sang a folk song with the girls. I'm not sure if that was part of the show or if he was a tourist as well. And I only caught bits and pieces of words, but it was a typical folk song about girls and loves and losses. In the farmhouse, we picked up the third stage, using the date of M. Blanchette's death (he lived a long life and was a farmer as well as a fisherman, thus surviving the overfishing of the cod) and found the coordinates for the final. It was outside, and as we were leaving, we found a swing set.
Aren't the blue flowers pretty? They grow in the woods and are a type of violet. Perhaps a wood violet. I saw it on a sign somewhere, but have now forgotten.
Note the school bus at the top of the hill in the picture. It let off a couple of classes worth of preschoolers. We followed them into the next building on the farm, the barn. The nice reenactor girls let our kids play with their kids in games of cod fishing farm life. They washed clothes by putting soap on a washboard, soaking the garment in water and scrub, scrub, scrubbing. Then rinse, rinse, rinse and race to the clothesline. I have one picture which didn't come out but which captures the scene exactly.
Then they played a salt cod carrying game. Then we left. I don't know why I don't have pictures of the farm house. I guess I just forgot to take them.
And then it was off to the pierced rock.
There was a multistage geocache that for some reason I thought was at a cemetery. I'll tell you the reason. It was called GRANDE-GRAVE, and part of the cache was looking up the date of death of M. Xavier Blanchette. Turns out that it has nothing to do with a cemetery. The first stage was down by the shore, and where the sign used to be was a large skip. They were tearing down and rebuilding the pier. Unfortunately, to get the second stage, you needed the info from the first stage. Fortunately, I am a genius and figured out where the second stage must be, based on information from a reenactor at the shop up the hill. So up the hill we went again, and sure enough, there was the second stage. The shop was an old general store and fish buyer. Inside, besides the reenactors, there was an animated M. Hyman telling a fisherman that he couldn't give him any money because they had overfished the cod and the economy was bad. The third stage took us to a typical 19th century farmhouse which had been donated by the family. There were reenactors inside that building as well, all of whom spoke decent English, about as decent as my French, so we had a good time. An old man came in and sang a folk song with the girls. I'm not sure if that was part of the show or if he was a tourist as well. And I only caught bits and pieces of words, but it was a typical folk song about girls and loves and losses. In the farmhouse, we picked up the third stage, using the date of M. Blanchette's death (he lived a long life and was a farmer as well as a fisherman, thus surviving the overfishing of the cod) and found the coordinates for the final. It was outside, and as we were leaving, we found a swing set.
Aren't the blue flowers pretty? They grow in the woods and are a type of violet. Perhaps a wood violet. I saw it on a sign somewhere, but have now forgotten.
Note the school bus at the top of the hill in the picture. It let off a couple of classes worth of preschoolers. We followed them into the next building on the farm, the barn. The nice reenactor girls let our kids play with their kids in games of cod fishing farm life. They washed clothes by putting soap on a washboard, soaking the garment in water and scrub, scrub, scrubbing. Then rinse, rinse, rinse and race to the clothesline. I have one picture which didn't come out but which captures the scene exactly.
Then they played a salt cod carrying game. Then we left. I don't know why I don't have pictures of the farm house. I guess I just forgot to take them.
And then it was off to the pierced rock.
Saturday, June 13, 2009
Forillon
I've been having fun speaking French. After listening to the Quebecois for a while, I've re-found my accent. So picture me saying Forillon the right way...
Forillon is a National Park at the top of the Gaspesie. There are cliffs and seabirds and rocks and ocean waves and pebbly beaches and cold wind.
To the west
To the east
These waterfalls disappeared into the pebbles on the beach and went underground to the sea.
Like this
The cliffs above the beach. There is a trail to the top of Mt. St. Albans, with an observation tower at the peak. It was shrouded in clouds the entire time we were there.
On the way out, we saw a black bear, but he left before we could get a picture. Here's what the drive to the south part of the park was like.
And now, it is time to go on our multi-state cache run. I'll post more of the Gaspesie the next time I've got internet.
Forillon is a National Park at the top of the Gaspesie. There are cliffs and seabirds and rocks and ocean waves and pebbly beaches and cold wind.
To the west
To the east
These waterfalls disappeared into the pebbles on the beach and went underground to the sea.
Like this
The cliffs above the beach. There is a trail to the top of Mt. St. Albans, with an observation tower at the peak. It was shrouded in clouds the entire time we were there.
On the way out, we saw a black bear, but he left before we could get a picture. Here's what the drive to the south part of the park was like.
And now, it is time to go on our multi-state cache run. I'll post more of the Gaspesie the next time I've got internet.
Lighthouse Trail
You know how you've been driving almost all day and there's still a while to go to get to your reserved motel room, and the kids are getting restless and you just can't stand being in the car any longer? Yeah, me too. Luckily, there's a lighthouse and a beach to get out and stretch at.
When I took this shot, I didn't realize how perfectly the lighthouse was reflected in the pool. The blue truck belonged to a fisherman who brought in his rowboat while we were messing about on the beach. He had two large dogs with him.
Rocky seashore
There are lighthouses all along the Gaspesie coastline. You can even stay in some of them. Most are working. And you can see why they need them. The rocks are sharp!
When I took this shot, I didn't realize how perfectly the lighthouse was reflected in the pool. The blue truck belonged to a fisherman who brought in his rowboat while we were messing about on the beach. He had two large dogs with him.
Rocky seashore
There are lighthouses all along the Gaspesie coastline. You can even stay in some of them. Most are working. And you can see why they need them. The rocks are sharp!
Caching in Quebec
We've been out of internet range for a couple of days. But having a wonderful time. Currently in Maine and starting a multi-state cache run today. But I get ahead of myself.
We spent more than a couple of days in the Gaspesie region of Quebec. The plan had been to drive through it in one day and get to Nova Scotia, but it was so nice there that we did a lot of hiking and not much driving.
First up was a first-to-find caching attempt in a bird sanctuary near Riviere-du-Loup (Wolf River). This is supposed to be the third best birding in Quebec. I don't know about that, but there were lots of different bird calls. This was one of those caches which looks close from the parking spot, but you have to go around a pond and up the side of a mountain, so multiply the distance you expect by about 4.
Di and Andrew on the way to the cache. Rich took this picture from the top of an observation tower.
This is where we entered the woods on the mountain-circling trail. That's the observation tower in the background.
I gotta go up that!?!
We found the cache after scrabbling up and down the side of the hill. And, yes! We were first to find! We sang selections from the Hallelujah Chorus, then found a bunch of other caches on the way back down. It's a rush to be FTF on a cache so far from home.
We spent more than a couple of days in the Gaspesie region of Quebec. The plan had been to drive through it in one day and get to Nova Scotia, but it was so nice there that we did a lot of hiking and not much driving.
First up was a first-to-find caching attempt in a bird sanctuary near Riviere-du-Loup (Wolf River). This is supposed to be the third best birding in Quebec. I don't know about that, but there were lots of different bird calls. This was one of those caches which looks close from the parking spot, but you have to go around a pond and up the side of a mountain, so multiply the distance you expect by about 4.
Di and Andrew on the way to the cache. Rich took this picture from the top of an observation tower.
This is where we entered the woods on the mountain-circling trail. That's the observation tower in the background.
I gotta go up that!?!
We found the cache after scrabbling up and down the side of the hill. And, yes! We were first to find! We sang selections from the Hallelujah Chorus, then found a bunch of other caches on the way back down. It's a rush to be FTF on a cache so far from home.
Wednesday, June 10, 2009
Things I've Learned in Quebec
1) Je comprends plus que je peux parler.
2) First to find (FTF) = Premier a trouver (PAT)
3) Thanks for the cache (TFTC) = Merci beaucoup pour le cache (MBPC)
4) There is a reason for all those Catholic saints - they exist to provide names for all the little towns in Quebec.
5) 300 kms is a lot less than 300 miles
6) 300 m is a lot more than 300 feet
I like Quebec.
2) First to find (FTF) = Premier a trouver (PAT)
3) Thanks for the cache (TFTC) = Merci beaucoup pour le cache (MBPC)
4) There is a reason for all those Catholic saints - they exist to provide names for all the little towns in Quebec.
5) 300 kms is a lot less than 300 miles
6) 300 m is a lot more than 300 feet
I like Quebec.
A fun day
On Monday, John took off work in the morning and took us to the Canadian War Museum. They had lots of guns and tanks and airplanes and uniforms for the boys. They had fashion for me.
I had two favorite parts at the museum. One was John's story about when he was looking through the list of items in the archives and asked to see a certain crate. In it was a fully functional 10 megaton practice bomb. They opened the end of it to see the coded locks and timers and whatnot. Here it is.
There were lots of hands-on exhibitions for the kids. Here is my peace-lover saying NO TANKS!
Here are two army people we found on the way.
Andrew plays a lot of battleship. This one is a four-banger.
Andrew and Connor try not to be seen.
Di and Connor try not to be seen.
Then we had fabulous Greek food for lunch.
On Monday afternoon, Pam took off work and took us to the Museum of Civilization. There was a lot to see there and we did all the floors but the very top one. Here are some highlights.
The fantastic beasts exhibit.
The children's museum was all hands-on.
My longshoremen.
The outside of the museum. Does it look like an inuit art face?
Parliament Hill from the Quebec side of the river.
Look out for the helicopter!
Geese and babies.
Then we picked up John and decided we were too stuffed from lunch for a full dinner. Instead we went to a diner for milkshakes (we split them) and poutine. Poutine is fries with cheese curds and brown gravy. Tastes better than it sounds. They say the best poutine is sold by street vendors, but we are not here on a festival weekend.
Then, because we certainly hadn't done enough walking in 2 museums and a couple of blocks to dinner, we walked to the canal and found a geocache.
Tourists on the bridge waved to tourists on the boat.
Can you guess where the cache is?
Pam & John's place.
On Tuesday, we drove past Montreal and Quebec city to northeast Quebec, where we stayed the night. It rained all day and I didn't get any pictures. Today is a hiking day.
I had two favorite parts at the museum. One was John's story about when he was looking through the list of items in the archives and asked to see a certain crate. In it was a fully functional 10 megaton practice bomb. They opened the end of it to see the coded locks and timers and whatnot. Here it is.
There were lots of hands-on exhibitions for the kids. Here is my peace-lover saying NO TANKS!
Here are two army people we found on the way.
Andrew plays a lot of battleship. This one is a four-banger.
Andrew and Connor try not to be seen.
Di and Connor try not to be seen.
Then we had fabulous Greek food for lunch.
On Monday afternoon, Pam took off work and took us to the Museum of Civilization. There was a lot to see there and we did all the floors but the very top one. Here are some highlights.
The fantastic beasts exhibit.
The children's museum was all hands-on.
My longshoremen.
The outside of the museum. Does it look like an inuit art face?
Parliament Hill from the Quebec side of the river.
Look out for the helicopter!
Geese and babies.
Then we picked up John and decided we were too stuffed from lunch for a full dinner. Instead we went to a diner for milkshakes (we split them) and poutine. Poutine is fries with cheese curds and brown gravy. Tastes better than it sounds. They say the best poutine is sold by street vendors, but we are not here on a festival weekend.
Then, because we certainly hadn't done enough walking in 2 museums and a couple of blocks to dinner, we walked to the canal and found a geocache.
Tourists on the bridge waved to tourists on the boat.
Can you guess where the cache is?
Pam & John's place.
On Tuesday, we drove past Montreal and Quebec city to northeast Quebec, where we stayed the night. It rained all day and I didn't get any pictures. Today is a hiking day.
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