Toasty Toes!

Out grabbing my Cache-a-Day with TaGeez today. The weather is 1°F ("feels like" -13°F) so we made a quick dash. My feet are still thawing.

They weren't toasty like they were on New Year's Day. After the Roseville event, we trekked through piles of snow grabbing new caches. My feet were warm and happy because TaGeez gave me the best advice:

> Put on a pair of thin socks (see blue cotton in picture).
> Adhere toe-warmers in the toe area (Never adhere toe-warmers directly to your skin).
> Cover with wool socks.
> Wear your water-tight LLBean duck boots

Wool socks give an extra layer for warmth, wicks away perspiration, and holds the toe-warmer in place as you slide on your boot.

I never noticed the cold on Wednesday and we were out for 10 hours in Arctic-like conditions tramping through the woods.

I Love My Boots!

Have you seen them? They are the Women's Bean Boots from L.L.Bean (8" - black/black)!

I bought them last year for geocaching and, on the first day, went on an 8-hour geocaching run. I've been in major downpours, long cache runs and mud oozing up to my knees!

My feet are cozy, comfy and dry in them! They stay dry inside, clean easily, looks good and have a lifetime satisfaction guarantee. It was the best gift to myself!

It's been a year, my friend. Looking forward to another Michigan winter with you!

Geocaching 101: Caching Essentials Kits

Today’s topic is Geocaching Essentials kits.  I had been thinking of this for quite some time (since GeoBash, actually, when I bought all these small easy-to-lose caching toys).  On Monday, I even started gathering my stuff together (mainly because when I cleaned my car I almost sucked my new logroller down the vacuum).  Then, on my ride into work this morning, I heard Sonny on the Podcacher show talk about carrying essential tools on a carabiner.  So, it was time.  How many more reminders did I need to start putting these together?

What are “Essentials” kits?  Sometimes, when you are out grabbing some quick caches or on a numbers run, you don’t need a full Geocaching gear pack.  You just need…. The essentials!  I thought these would make good stocking stuffers or items for raffles.  This is a good starter kit for newer cachers and Scouts.  Plus, since most of the items are inexpensive, you can make a few to have onhand at all times.

To make sure I didn’t miss anything, I even put the question out on the Southeastern Michigan Geocaching Group.  These were the suggestions they had for my watertight containers bought at the local outdoor store (I will continue to update this list as suggestions arise):

• Mini pen and/or pencil
• Tweezers
• Small blade for making other tools or sharpening pencils
• Spare log paper
• Batteries (if using a hand-held GPSr).
• Path tags
• Log roller (or DougPeterson’s Famous Extraction Tool featured in this cache description)
• Contact card with cacher name plus emergency info
• Single-serving sunscreen
• Band-aids
• Tick key and poison ivy wipe

I also intend to compile a list for Geocaching Gear Packs. Keep in mind that the contents of either the pack or the kit will vary based on geography, climate, personal preferences, etc.