Bird Hills Cache GC1AB2

Ooh, I've been wanting this one for quite some time!  Bird Hills Cache is an oldie near Ann Arbor.  It's a triple threat: A Jasmer filler (September 2001), a D/T 3/4 4-stage Multi, and a Historic Cache of Washtenaw County. After other plans fell through Sunday morning, TaGeez and I decided we needed to cruise west and have an adventure!

I must admit that I went with a little trepidation.  This was the closest 09/01 cache, and it had MANY DNF's of late.  Later another experienced cacher told me he had driven 2x from Toledo and still never found stage 1.  Another posted a log that it took him 6 tries!

Luckily, we had better luck.  Well, not sure if it's luck.  TaGeez and I are a Hell of a team when it comes to finding tough caches.  We really, really do compliment each other.  My analytic mind and his dogged determination.  Neither of us mind getting dirty and we're very bull-headed -- no cache shall go unfound!

I won't bore you with a play by play.  If you'd like to read it in case you give it a go, you can find my log here. I thought we were in trouble at the very first stage (walking in circles because the GPSr wouldn't settle, lost our pen before we got there), but it turned out to be a fabulously successful mile walk (not kidding - it really was "up hill - both ways!")  The terrain rating fit.

I will share with you the end of my log, though.  I think this is the funniest bit:

Off to the final. This was a vastly different terrain from the first 3 stages. I don't want to give too much away, but it was muddy, wet and buggy. TaGeez hurdled the creek (landing in ankle-deep mud), trying to close the gap of the last 60 feet. I moseyed to the right, hoping I could give him directions from my bank. As I settled on a log my iPhone displayed the final as 10 feet away! A twist of fate that he directed me to the final, visible from his bank!

What a hoot!  After a brief break (it was horribly humid), we tiredly (and doggedly) walked the (very) hilly path a mile back to the car, silly grins on our faces.

   

We celebrated with the most fabulous dinner at the Blue Tractor BBQ & Brewery on Washington Street (try to smokey BBQ and the mustard-based BBQ sauce - WONDERFUL!). 

Come Dance in Detroit

A few weeks ago I shared my adventures to the Vanity Ballroom on Detroit's East side. On Friday, TaGeez and I stopped at her sister ballroom on the West side, The Grande Ballroom. It was a puzzle location for RayQix's Come Dancing: The Grande Ballroom GC45WAW.

This Moorish Deco landmark was a gem in Detroit's vast musical legacy. Generations of Detroiters share stories of their parents meeting there on the weekends; their brothers seeing Pink Floyd or Led Zeppelin; they saw Detroit's M5.

Ray does a fabulous history, including pictures of the ballroom's heyday, on his cache page.

Unfortunately, when we stopped to see it on Friday, there wasn't even a whisp of that Golden Age ghost present among the ruins. Even the Vanity still held some of its architectural charms. 

My two takeaway memories on that bitter afternoon were:

• The tree that was growing within the ruins, whose branches were spied peeking out one of the broken windows.
• The initials of the original owner's kids still etched along the second-floor line.

I was sad as we pulled away from and headed towards the lights of  Xochimilcos in Mexicantown.

The Vanity Ballroom

I spent the morning grabbing caches in Detroit. Weirdest thing... One of my stops was a still-unfound cache, 3 weeks after publication! As I was searching, Team Rumble arrived, and we shared first-to-find! Then, 17 minutes later, another Cacher arrived (with the CO) and grabbed second-to-find! What are the odds that an unfound cache would have a rush 3 weeks after publication?!?

Then, as I was in the area, I stopped to grab the puzzle final for the Vanity Ballroom GC45W7G. The cache page contains some fabulous photos of it's heyday. So sad to see it in such disrepair.

As I was leaving, a pair of Urban Explorers arrived to take pictures of the interior. I'll have to search the Internet to see if they post their work.

Power Lady GC34E

Twice in one day!  But this was a story I wanted to share and do so while it’s still fresh. On Monday, TaGeez and I visited Power Lady GC34E – Michigan’s Fifth Oldest Cache hidden February 24, 2001.

According to the cache page description:

It is located in a long abondoned summer camp that used to be used by the kids from Saint Anthonies orphanage in Toledo. The only info I have for when it was closed was in the 60's, this comes from the local barber who used to go down to the nearby beach when the girls were brought down, seems they used to visit by gender :), only to be chased away by the Nuns who typically ran the camp. All of the buildings have since been destroyed/washed away from high waters. But some remnants still remain.

Unlike my original log, a blog post allows me to share the story via pictures.

This was the last "must do" on our list. We had read the prior logs so we parked legally and stayed on the public paths.

Ominous Entry - but nothing that says No Trespassing

Heading down the public path

Our first view of the lake

At this point in the day the winds were whipping, which made the waves crash against the barriers! Awesome! We stopped on the sandy beach for pictures and then headed to the cache.

TaGeez on the beach

Scrapcat, too

Cruise Bug Trackable being released into the cache

Climbing over cement blocks and under tree limbs, with the spirit of adventure carrying us, we rounded the peninsula towards the GC.

Making our way around the penninsula

Remnants but no camp sign

At this point I pulled out my iPhone, but, unlike some previous finders, it had a strong signal and zeroed us right to the spot.  Cache in good shape. Dropped a TB and a personal path tag.

TaGeez made the find!

  

It's official!  We're on the log!

It had gotten darker as we were stomping along this shore.  However, we still took the time to enjoy the beautiful water, crashing waves, crunching shell path and crackling leaves as we left.

Stopped to enjoy the crashing waves

Brick debris mixed in the leaves

Rounding the peninsula back to the beach

One last look at the sky over the water - great waves!

Last look at the beach before heading back to the car

Fifth oldest cache in Michigan - WOOT! Most excellent way to end our day of adventure! 

A Cemetery Visit: Downer Cemetery

One of the fabulous aspects of southeastern Michigan are the historic cemeteries – especially around Detroit.  Remember: Detroit had a Golden Age and there were people of means building mausoleums with sphinxes guarding the doors.  I am privileged to live near Woodlawn Cemetery at 8 Mile and Woodward.  I’ve spent many fascinating hours, wondering around the obelisks and stained glass and marble.  My family consists of several major history buffs so to see the great Detroit names or the names of the soldiers from the Spanish-American war or the zinc monuments…. Wonderful. 

Did you know that cemeteries were the foundation of the National Park system?  In Amerca’s earlier years, families would travel from cities out to the cemeteries to visit their beloved late relatives.  They would bring picnic lunches and stroll among the headstones along tree-lined rolling paths.  Because of the travel time, they would spend the entire day out there.

So, imagine my joy when I discovered that a majority of Michigan cemeteries contain caches.  Now, for those of you not in the know, don’t worry. There is nothing disrespectful about this.  We don’t hide caches on graves.  We don’t have bands of caching enthusiasts disrupting the solemn Sunday visits.  We only display respect.  In many instances, it’s our group that cleans the neglected cemeteries (CITO) or lift the stones upright.  Our caches tend to be in the wooded areas that line the perimeter.  And, quite often, they are puzzle-related so that you learn a little history or can photograph really neat stones.  In the more rural areas, we are the only visitors….

This is a typical note posted on most SQ (Spirit Quest) caches:

The "SQ" in the Cache Name denotes a Geocaching Spirit Quest. This designation is to distinguish Caches that are placed in Cemeteries or Memorial Gardens and have a more Spiritual Meaning than most Caches that are out in the rest of the World. These may be not be found after dark or by certain Times of Day as well as those hunting them must be more respectful of the surroundings due to the fact that these areas have residents that have passed-on and should be respected, as well as the Natural Landscape that is above Ground. The "SQ" caches were started by cachers in Northwest Ohio and has since spread to many other states as well as Canada.

Last night I was out with Team STD (scrapcat, TaGeez and Da Finns).  One of our stops was the Downer Cemetery, a little gem tucked away in Wayne.  I found the sign fascinating.

I didn’t get a chance to take too many photos as there’s no night caching in Michigan cemeteries, and it was getting late.  But here’s a few. 

Such a quiet oasis off a very busy freeway exit.

Elisa