Leaping All Over Middle Michigan

Happy Leap Day 2016! Like many of our peers, TaGeez and I took the day off and went exploring. This was our first adventure of the new year. 

Our original plan was to grab some puzzle finals on the east side - we had a hit list and everything. But it was a special day and the sun was peaking out. With a last minute decision, we decided to dump those plans and head to the middle of the mitten. 

First stop - Lansing, Michigan.

There is a cool series of challenges called "Historic Caches of Michigan Counties". WONDERFUL challenges because, to qualify, you have to visit the oldest 5 caches in each county. Oh, the history! Back in the days when people wrote their logs in the log. Oldies on Power Island, abandoned cemeteries, near the Michigan Lost Towns. With WikidKriket and TaGeez, we've loved exploring back roads and nature trails in Michigan.

Last Fall, we signed our 10th HCoMC challenge, which qualified us for the metachallenge in Lansing. Imagine our dismay when we realized the challenge was only 83 feet from a Multi stage we visited not long before before! SO CLOSE! So back to Lansing we went....

This is Wind Lord. As you can tell, TaGeez is a kindred spirit. Here's him doing his best 'Karate Kid' impression.

With a little maneuvering, we made the find, though. 

Historic Caches of Michigan Counties
Metachallenge GC30JWA

Next up? Alma, Michigan

So north we head. The next few stops were a lot of fun. We visited historic cemeteries that had several things in common: old headstones, dirt roads, snowbanks, and wind Turbines. Yes, this area has miles and miles of ginormous Turbine fields.

Michigan Ghost Town Challenge GC1PVAD

Plus a stopover at Alma College

St. Louis, Michigan: The Middle of the Mitten

And our goal - the middle of Michigan. Such a small town with a large name! Can you believe this is on US 12 - Michigan Avenue? It's all over the place!

Quaint little downtown with a Civil War memorial, a time capsule, and a truly wonderful quilt shop. Yes, we stopped and supported the local economy!

And we found the marker! If you can overlook that it resembles a headstone, it was pretty cool! Although we had sunshine to and from this little town, the moment we exited the car to check out the stone it started to sleet. 

Nearby is the Pilgrim's Memorial in the middle of the park. Plenty of the room for visiting guests. 

And then onto the gem of the day: the webcam! Yes, one of only 3 active webcam caches left in Michigan! After requirements gathering, we stopped and posed. Pretty cool, eh?

Mt Pleasant to Southfield to Home

Next stop is Mt Pleasant for the only Virtual cache in the immediate area. As we only have spoiler pictures, we can't post anything here. We then booked it south to reach LadyB's event in Southfield for laughter, geocoins, good friends, and raffles. We started the day with an event (at midnight) and ended the day with another. Good, good day.

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Some times it IS about the numbers (Leap Day edition)

• This was our first road trip of the year and the first road trip in my new Fusion.
• TaGeez finished his 366 grid
• I finished my "Placed Caches by Found Date" grid with my Leap Day hide
• Completed year #4 of my cache-a-day streak
• TaGeez and I each hid a Leap Day cache
• Plus we had an FTF at 12:05 am
• Our smilies included 2 events, 2 challenges, 1 webcam, 1 virtual, and 4 traditionals.
• We also logged a find in a new Michigan county.
• We now have 2 new souvenirs, own 2 new Leap Day geocoins and won 3 prizes at the raffle table
• AND we both celebrated birthdays. 

It was a fabulous adventure!