16 April 2008 Back to the Rookery






It's spring... there's peepers... and the woodcocks are doing their dance. There's lots of time to go other places. This has been an amazing spring at the rookery. We've yet to be there without sightings of herons. The peepers are really loud this year. We got as close to a woodcock as we've ever been. Oh, and the sunsets have been memorable (the moon was looking pretty good too).

15 April 2008 Walking the White Pine Trail






We stopped by a local park to walk the white pine trail. Most of the evergreens here are hemlocks, but this area was a white pine forest and still has a few of the really old white pines. We got started a little late so the bloodroot had already closed for the evening. A short evening out turned into seven miles in the woods, but it was a pleasant walk with a quick stop by a small pool after sunset to watch a few frogs hop in.

13 April 2008 Around Town






The last week had been really tough for both of us so taking a quiet day and hanging around Shaker Lakes seemed like a good idea. We grabbed a few caches and passed a quiet day while waiting. The birds weren't plentiful, but these ducks were great. Afterwards we walked down the road to see the grave of Jacob Russel, a Revolutionary War soldier. It stands alone in a small roadside grave.

12 April 2008 Caching Tuscarawas County









A little farther south made a world of difference in the wildlflower watching. We found sping beauty and spice bush was in bloom. Later in the day, Ali spotted the first orchid leaves of the season.

Goat Haunt had a rare weekend off work when we were in town so he joined us for the fun. We started off in New Philadelphia and moved onto points outside the town including a nice hike at Zoar Woods. We finished the day on the tow path for the canal and a walk along the North Country Trail. Both areas had just recently flooded. Two of the three caches we hunted appeared to have been washed away in the flood. The height the water reached was amazing.

11 April 2008 Spring, Sunset and (lots of ) Peepers

9 April 2008 Centerville Mills








We had never been to this park before. We knew our friend Chris really liked this cache so we were expecting a lot. The area was wonderful. Our first find was near a really outstanding waterfall. We were able to walk down the steps and crawl around the rocks for a bit. We also saw our first ramps of the season in another area of the park.

8 April 2008 Frohring Meadows









We had stopped here in the snow to hunt for a cache. We had a great time with the snowshoes, but no cache. This evening, we returned for a shot at two multis. Success was ours. We found both caches. We had a three-mile walk though the woods. We also heard peepers, saw our first trout-lily leaves, and found this pond with really large egg masses. Hopefully, one of the summer posts will show these fields filled with prairie flowers.

7 April 2008 Peepers and the Rookery









If I go deaf from listening to spring peepers at the Rookery, my ears will have gone for a good cause. It was a marvelous night for a walk. We were on the old interurban grade when Ali spotted a beautiful turtle on a stump. As we watched the turtle, we were joined by this really nice person named Jerry. For the rest of our time at the park, we walked and chatted with this person. All of us were able to enjoy the site of the biggest beaver we have ever seen. We also got a great view of a muskrat. Later we walked to the covered bridge and relaxed to the sights of more beavers. After enjoying the sunset, we were treated to the calls of a great-horned owl and a barred owl. We stopped on our way back to hear a chorus of wood frogs. Our evening ended at the edge of the field as we listened to a pair of woodcocks. Many thanks to a wonderful person named Jerry for sharing his local knowledge and a pleasant evening with us.

My thanks go out to all who have visited this site. I am in awe of the 3,000 hits. I also just realized with my recent posts that for the first time in months, I like my photos again.

6 April 2008 Woodcock Lake

I admit; I've whined about the quality of some AGT caches and judging from a recent thread on gc.com, I'm not the only one. In defense of the AGT, it would have been a while before we found this area if not for another really well placed AGT cache at the actual lake. In general, without geocaching, we may never have come to this area. The location for this cache was outstanding. It had it all... great woods... a scenic stream... a terrain three hike. We stopped for the cache. We stayed to enjoy the surroundings. A sweet little pool near the parking area with a chorus of spring peepers was just an added bit of joy.

5 April 2008 A Peaceful Day







Caching was a quiet release today. We were going to stop at Pymatuning to hunt an AGT and some new caches there. We misfired with a few dnf's, drove well into PA, and stopped for some quiet time and nice finds. We had a good day, and the dogs had fun.

3 April 2008 Deja Vu in South Chagrin








It doesn't seem possible that a year has passed since we held out last big event in Northeast Ohio. With a new job and a lot of traveling, it seemed a good idea to let this year's event pass by. With events in the last two weeks, it seems an even better idea. Anyway, it was fun to have a chance to come to the area, walk most of last year's trail, and find a nice multi at the end. We walked our way from start to finish and made certain to pass a great area for spring peepers on the way home. The red-wing blackbirds were in full song while the Chagrin River was really work the visit. The only sight we missed was a heron or two while on the trail.

2 April 2008 Spring Peepers are Back (Wood Frogs Too)






The sound of spring peepers is still one of my favorite sounds in the world. They're back and we were out listening. We were also hiding a new multi-cache in North Chagrin Reservation. The pool in the photo is a little high up for spring peepers, but it was perfect for some wood frogs. We had a great time.

29 March 2008 A quiet day caching in Lorain and Erie Counties