19 June 2013 Ravens Horn and Cubs

We bid farewell to Wellsboro this morning. We stopped for a last visit at the diner and took a walk around town to visit the outdoor shop and finish the best Whereigo cache we've ever done.

Raven's Horn was one of the 'legendary' caches in the Legacy of Conservation series. Finders spoke of two things, the tough climb up the ridge to the Vista and the rattlesnake at the vista. I'm not overly bothered by climbs. We've done a lot of peaks while hiking so they don't really intimidate me. This one was tough because there weren't a lot of switchbacks, but it wasn't that high so the relative lack of switchbacks made for a short climb to the top. It was a little over an hour from the trail register to the peak. There were also some nice viewpoints along the way to keep me interested.

I expected the rattlesnake to be a telephoto opportunity. I stay as far away as possible from these beautiful creatures, but figured any snake that stayed at a vista where a lot of hikers and cachers visited had to be a calm snake. It was beyond calm. It was quiet and motionless for our entire visit. The overlook was everything we expected.

Ali at Ravenshorn

Follow the arrow to see the rattlesnake

Looking out from Raven's Horn. For us, this is what geocaching is all about.

We continued down to the cache and followed the trail down to make a loop. I like loop caches when they are possible because they give more opportunities to see new places.

Four-leaved milkweed was a new find for us. We found multiple areas in bloom on the way down.

We've seen a lot of gimmick caches. Often we are leery of what we may find and how it breaks the guidelines. The calf's baby bottle hidden across the road from a cacher's diary farm was a new, fun container for us. We enjoyed our visit, then continued our journey to Lock Haven.

By now, you are probably wondering where are the cubs. We found the cubs late in the afternoon in Lock Haven. For once, we were off the trail and exploring a town in daylight. We had been seeing small airplanes in the sky for most of the afternoon. When we were in Lack Haven we realized the reason for all the planes. The Pipers were returning home to the place they were built for a weekend of friendship. They were very friendly. When I explained we just wanted to walk around and take pictures, they welcomed us in. It was awesome.