Geocaching in Argentina

We had a few different stops in Argentina, with Buenos Aires as our final destination. We found geocaches at two of these ports. For the first geocache, we had a driver take us to the stunning location so we could make the find. Totally worth it - stunning views from here and a fun search: Galese.

At another port, we decided to explore another cache (Caminito - República de La Boca). This street was super fun to explore! And on Leap Day!

Geocaching in Uruguay

Montevideo was a fun stop, and we had some of the best food on the trip here. Definitely try steak when in the area!

We had been exploring the city a while when we decided to go look for this geocache. Unfortunately, we forgot a pen. But, fortunately, we were able to get one as a souvineer to sign this log: Canteras del Parque Rodo.

Caching in Chile

A trip a year in the works finaly coming to fruition! We headed off to South America with our friends, and OF COURSE we did some geocaching along the way. We spent a few days in the area surrounding Santiago, then our first stops were all in Chile.

The first cache we found on the trip was a bit tricky, but fun: Vicente Perez Rosales. I also got the chance to put my feet in some water, so I took it.

A few days later, we had a port further south and found two additional caches: Furthest Southern Cache and Monumento al Ovejero - Monument to the shepherd. We visited a museum and did a lot of stair climbing.

Caching in Sweden

Our time in Sweden was even shorter than Finland, and our group split up differently than normal. CJ and I really wanted to climb up high (Evan and Lesley are afraid of heights) so we did a rooftop tour without them. This is one of the most fun tours I've done - we climb to the roof, got harnessed in, and walked around the roof of the Parliament building while learning about the city.

Of course, we also had some time to explore, so we found a geocache while in town (I found one earlier in the day by walking from the pier, but this is the cooler one). Sooooo many muggles so there was a bit of a delay between me finding it and being able to put it back in place.

Urban Birdhouse

Caching in Finland

This is such a great place to stop - I just wish we'd had more time! We took a ferry to visit Suomenlinna, which was a fortress built to defend the city (but didn't seem to do that all the time based on our tour guides comments). It is a pretty place to explore, very colorful, lots of history. I stuck my foot in the Baltic Sea here (soooooo cold) and we found two geocaches.

Suomenlinna
Hauta - Tomb

The first photo is Lesley and I close to the water right before I stuck my foot in.

Caching in Estonia

We had a stop in Estonia for our vacation, and we took a walking tour of the town with a fantastic tour guide (Lori). He did great, shared a lot of stories, and showed us many of the highlights of the town. At the end of the tour, we had some free time, so the four of us grabbed a geocache and beverages.

Old Thomas / Vana Toomas

If you can get a chance to visit Estonia, this was a pleasant surprise - just keep your timing in mind cause they said there is a lot of snow and cold and winter.

Visiting some cemetery caches on Memorial Day weekend

For Memorial Day, we decided to stop by some cemeteries and pay our respects. Our first cemetery was for the Forgotten Cemetery, where we did encounter others also visiting. The cache itself was rather typical (if not a little muddy), but really we felt this was a nice stop to start the day.

The next cemetery we visited (Mobley Cemetery) was a little off the beaten path and well-hidden. If we hadn't had directions to help us get there, we would have never known this cemetery existed. It is a small family cemetery and there was a table and chairs for those visiting.

Our last stop was in a larger cemetery which was quite well maintained, Sowers Cemetery. This one also had several older graves, as well as many children. I also get pretty sad when I look and see a family who lost many members around the same time period, and some quite young, which seemed to be pretty common in the sections we visited. The cache was quite well hidden and probably the best hide of the day.

There was a bit of time for reflection, and I'm glad I got to think about my family and friends who are no longer with us. Everything really was at peace.

Have you ever wondered where Preston Road ends if you drive north until you cannot anymore?

Today we headed out with Lesley and CJ on one of our random "where does this road end?" drives. For this adventure, we met up at Jack Macs on Preston, grabbed a quick bite to eat, then started our drive north.

I had intended to stop more for geocaches on the way, but was soon distracted by singing along to the music and catching up with friends. We did stop for one in Prosper, TX, though, and got to see a pretty old church with flowers (and bees) everywhere: Prosper Landmark #2 Old Church.

Okay, and perhaps then we found another distraction not too long later in the form of a winery we'd never heard of. But we stopped for a wine tasting at Eden Hill Vineyard and we pleasantly surprised. I really like the non-sweet reds best (as is usual), but even still, this was a pleasant (if distracting) pause in the trip north.

After that, we got back on our way and drove...and drove...and drove. We kept thinking, sure this is the end, but then we made it a little farther. And when we did find the end, we were met with a pretty view and could see (but not quite reach) Oklahoma across the lake.

Caching while visiting the Bourbon Trail

We all decided that we'd take a weekend trip to Cincinnati and then drive down the Bourbon Trail (which meant I was the designated driver on this trip). This was also great for me as I got to find a cache in Ohio (my first and only!). We also got another cache in Kentucky. This was a great time - highly recommend spending more time in Cincinnati, because we missed so much we wanted to do.

Giant's Causeway and Belfast

While we did find a geocache in Belfast, I would be lying to say that this was more than an afterthought. There were some changes to the itinerary of the trip, and Belfast was added as a port. CJ was immediately on board for heading out the Giant's Causeway, and THAT was the big highlight of the day. What a FANTASTIC spot. I want to come back to spend more time here - as well as several other places we passed that just look like fantastic spots to visit. I loved Iceland, but this area...it was probably my favorite stop.

First off, don't argue, and go to Giant's Causeway. It really is that awesome.

Once back in the city, we grabbed lunch (Made in Belfast) and a quick geocache (Callender Street).

Starting the trip off with a geocache at the hotel

CJ, Lesley, Evan and I finally made it to Denmark, and we are so glad to have started the trip off with a geocache right at the hotel. I have to admit that we made this much harder than it had to be, but it was still a neat location and we enjoyed exploring the grounds. If you ever find yourself in Copenhagen, check out The Tower and the Arena.