Hid my first night cache

So, I placed my first night cache yesterday with Evan and Dan. Was an interesting adventure, cannot wait for it to be published!

Started out by scouting out a place during the day. Had good parking, a fun bridge, and a creek. Brought along the reflectors, tape, and flash lights. Marked the trail, hid the cache, and backtracked. This should be a fun one.

When the cache is published, check it out at:
Creekside Night Cache

Caching on a cruise

My husband and I recently took a cruise to St. Maarten, St. Thomas, and the Bahamas. It was a great, relaxing getaway, and now we are back and blogging about it.

We've been on several cruises in the past, but never (for some off reason) combined geocaching and cruising. Well, why not? Seems others are doing it, so it can't be that hard, right? Well, right! It was just as easy as at home, and in some ways, even easier because people just think you are a silly tourist and ignore you. We also took this trip to complete our first virtual caches as well. So, a trip of many firsts for us.

At our first stop, St. Maarten, we actually skipped the caching and went on an ATV tour. A great adventure and I really do recommend this if you get the chance - you see parts of the island you wouldn't on a normal bus tour and it was a great change in pace to what we're used to.

In St. Thomas, we got off the boat specifically to find a cache and walk around the surrounding area. The cache, honestly, was a let down. You go to a new place and you want something new and exciting, and instead it was the same, stupid light post find that I'm tired of finding at home, too. And it was on the pier, so super busy. After finding the cache, we walked around a bit and considered riding the tram up the side of one of the hills, but instead were talked into a tour. It was well worth it - got better views than could have been expected on the tram, and had the best banana daquari ever.

We had no particular plans in the Bahamas, so we just got off of the boat and made our way through the crowds at the pier. Walked toward Parliament Square and were pleased to see that there was a cache nearby. This would be my first virtual cache, as well. It was nice area, and a short walk from there are two other caches - Queen's Staircase and Water Tower. So, we headed that way. At the Water Tower, there were also some nice shops and we got a few gifts for the nieces and nephews back home - embroidered with their name, too. A little cheesy, but I'm sure they will like them, so I guess that is what really matters anyways :-) While talking with the vendor, she recommended going to the top of the nearby fort, Fort Fincastle, before heading to the staircase, so we did. What an amazing view of the pier and the island in general. A short walk to the staircase, then headed back to the pier. A GREAT visit to the island, very recommended.

Then, sadly, we had to head back to the US. Instead of going straight from the boat to the airport (our flight didn't leave for Dallas until after 6pm), we decided to go for a tour of the Everglades. It was very cold, but otherwise beautiful. There were a lot of gators around, and I want to go back and visit Miami again in the future. After the tour, we had some time before the boat headed to the airport, so we checked for nearby caches. 182 feet away? Well, how fantastic was that? So, another virtual cache for us. Admittedly, we didn't have all the tools needed to answer the questions, but we can guess lengths with piece of paper. Hope that is close enough...



Caches for this trip:
Parliament Square
The Water Tower
Everglades Safari Park

Everglades National Park: Our Review & Ratings

We visited Everglades National Park on January 14, 2012, during a cruise trip. We spent a few hours exploring the area, with a guided boat tour as the main event. We wanted to see wildlife, and the Everglades delivered on that front.

Our Visit

We took a guided boat tour through the wetlands, which gave us a chance to see the landscape and its wildlife from the water. There was a wide variety of scenery, from trees to wetlands, and it was interesting to see how much life was packed into the area.

The alligators were the big attraction for me. We saw lots of them. Lots. I'm glad we were watching from a boat at a comfortable distance, though. I expected to be more scared than I actually was, but that doesn't mean I wanted to get any closer. I have a healthy respect for animals that could decide I'm lunch.

Evan especially enjoyed the airboat experience and seeing the animals. He liked how distinct the Everglades felt compared with other national parks. Each park has its own character, and the Everglades has a very particular one, shaped by its wetlands and the variety of life they support.

We didn't do any hiking or explore the park on foot, so our visit was limited to what we could see from the boat. There was plenty to keep us interested for a few hours, and we got what we came for: wildlife and a look at a very different environment.

Favorite Things

The alligators were my favorite part. Seeing so many of them in their natural habitat was memorable, and the boat was a good way to observe them without getting uncomfortably close.

Evan's favorite was the combination of the airboat tour and the wildlife. The Everglades isn't just another place with a nice view. Its ecosystem gives it a character of its own, and the animals are a big part of what makes it interesting.

Things to Know Before Visiting

• Allow a few hours at minimum. We spent a few hours focused on wildlife and felt that was worthwhile. Evan thought a day or two would give visitors a more complete experience.

• Consider a guided boat tour. This was the main way we explored the park, and it worked well for us. There are different ways to experience the Everglades, including boat tours, airboats, hiking, and paddling.

• Keep your distance from wildlife. The alligators were fascinating to watch, but I was perfectly happy to observe them from the boat. Admiring them from a safe distance is a good arrangement for everyone involved.

• Think about the weather. Evan would avoid the height of summer. South Florida's wet season typically runs from May through November, when rain and mosquitoes can be more of a factor.

• Bring ear protection for an airboat tour. Evan's advice was to bring your favorite earplugs. It is probably worth taking that suggestion seriously if you're sensitive to noise.

Our Ratings

We use a five-point scale for activity ratings: 1 = Poor, 2 = Below Average, 3 = Average, 4 = Good, and 5 = Excellent. Ratings below reflect the activities we actually tried.

Category	Judy	Evan
Scenery	4/5, Good	4/5, Good
Wildlife	4/5, Good	5/5, Excellent
Water activities	4/5, Good	5/5, Excellent
Overall experience	4/5, Good for a specific interest	4/5, Worth visiting

Judy's overall rating: Good for a specific interest. I enjoyed the wildlife and the boat tour, and the Everglades was worth visiting for that experience.

Evan's overall rating: Worth visiting. He especially enjoyed the airboat tour and the wildlife, and appreciated how different the Everglades is from other national parks.

We didn't hike, geocache, camp, or explore the park's historical sites, so those activities aren't rated as experiences from this visit.

Official Park Information

Visit the official Everglades National Park website for current information and trip planning.

Everglades National Park protects approximately 1.5 million acres in South Florida, including wetlands, mangrove forests, coastal areas, and other habitats. Established in 1947, it was the first national park created specifically to protect biodiversity. The park supports a wide variety of wildlife, including American alligators, crocodiles, wading birds, and the endangered Florida panther. Visitors can explore by boat, bicycle, kayak, or on foot, and guided tours offer ways to learn about the park's ecosystems. Because the park is so large, its different entrances provide access to distinct areas, so it's worth planning ahead to choose the experience you want.

Final Thoughts

We enjoyed our visit to Everglades National Park, particularly because of the wildlife and the opportunity to see the wetlands from the water. A few hours was enough to give us a taste of the place, but there is clearly much more to explore than we managed on this trip.

If you enjoy wildlife, especially alligators, the Everglades is worth visiting. I'd be interested in trying a ranger-led wetland walk if we return. For now, I'm happy with the alligators we saw from the boat. We had a good view, and they had no reason to know we were there.

2012 caching goals

I've been considering my goals for this year, and based on how well I did last year, I've made some changes and added some new goals.

Recap of 2011 Goals

• Find 250 caches - check, I actually found 275 caches.
• Find caches in 5 states - narrowly made this one, with a last minute trip in the middle of December.
• Find cache in 1 other country - I didn't make this one, but will make it up this year.

2012 Goals

• Find 300 caches
• Find caches in 5 states
• Find caches in 2 other countries (to make up for the one I missed last year)
• Complete 3 challenges
• Find 3 benchmarks