Labor Day Weekend: On the GeoTrail in Coshocton

 

It's become almost a tradition. Labor Day and geocaching with TaGeez & ShelleyJean. This time we headed down to Coshocton, Ohio for the Coshocton Ring GeoTrail. 

The Coshocton Ring Trail offers fun, free, family-friendly activity you can do any time of the year! There are 45 NEW caches placed for you to find. In order to earn the coin, you must log a total of 16, including the Cache to Rule All Caches, complete the passport, and get a cool Coshocton Ring Trail Coin.

Seen on the way! Such a good sign!

We were limited on time so we headed out Friday afternoon to grab some Ohio counties on our way. Did you know Switzerland is in Ohio? At least Little Switzerland is! Sugarcreek is home to the Guinness Book of World Records "largest cuckoo clock in the US". 

Tick Tock Virtual GC9P769

We were lucky enough to be present during the mid-hour entertainment, occupying ourselves beforehand with a nice little Adventure Lab across the street.

Lovely adventure into the town of Coshocton, where we spent a night at the Coshocton Village Inn. Jacqueline at the front desk gave SJ a heads-up that the onsite cache was kept behind the desk. And, with that, we grabbed CCR #45: Council of Elrond GC9RXM0. 

Since we only had the day, we got an early start. The fog was out and there was a bit of a chill in the air. It lent an air of mystery for a beautiful day ahead!

First stop was the Old Fort. 

"Located just south of the present-day south bank of the Tuscarawas River, near West Lafayette in Coshocton County, stands Ohio's oldest building. It is a small (16' X 16') sandstone structure, with rifle ports, known as the 'Old Stone Fort'. That the 'Old Stone Fort' is Ohio's oldest existing building, and one of the oldest European-built or early US buildings west of the Appalachian Mountains, is not in question. The question and the mystery is, who built the 'fort'?"

Dew covered

Now to start the geotrail. Caches are laid out into 3 rings: Narya, Vilya, and Nenya. You need to complete a total of 16: minimally 3 from each ring plus the CCR #01: The Cache to Rule All Caches. 

To simplify, I ran a pocket query for the series and then color-coded each ring. Voila! We had a plan of attack!

We spent 4 fabulous hours driving the backroads of Coshocton County. Farm stands, Amish Markets, cemeteries, libraries, and several of fabulous local businesses. We also detoured for a Carnegie Library and a local quilt shop. 

TaGeez and Scrapcat

Low-flying planes

And the final cache was impressive! CCR #01: The Cache to Rule All Caches included the final stamp we needed to complete our passports. Afterwards we visited the Coshocton Supply Company, where we met the indomitable Mindy! Lovely lady who enthusiastically awarded us our coins, sold us our t-shirts, and directed us to the local sites (including the horse-drawn canal boat). 

The Coshocton Supply Company is situated in historic Roscoe Village, a fabulous brick-lined downtown situated amongst other shops and down the road from the Warehouse Restaurant, "home of the legendary onion rings". And, MAN! They smelled and tasted delicious! More than enough for 3 hungry cachers!

Sadly, it's time to head home, but we had a little time to grab a few more counties and enjoy a little more sightseeing. My favorite stop of the trip was the Mount Vernon Dog Fountain! What a hoot! SJ, can we go back when we do Belmont? 

Must Love Dogs Virtual

TaGeez having too much fun!

Scrapcat and TaGeez in Mount Vernon

TaGeez is such a trooper! Another county down!

Swartz Creek Covered Bridge, Wyandot

In the end, we checked off 8 more Ohio counties and making plans for more on the way to the Belmont Geotrail this Fall!

Another fabulous adventure with the Super Sexy Trio (SST = Scrapcat, ShelleyJean, and TaGeez)! Coshocton is a friendly little town, nestled in small hills, and steeped in history.  We thoroughly enjoyed exploring the backroads but, more importantly, spending time together!

Coshocton Geocoin and Discover Tags

If you decide to visit, Mindy from the Coshocton Supply Company said they still have about 100 geocoins left. One Trail to Rule Them All!