Geocaching is our family's newest obsession. It has taken us a lot of really cool places that we might not have discovered otherwise. On this trip it took us down a small road where found a cache hidden in a cattle guard, we met a couple of goats and a friendly deer, and then found some trinkets hidden in the trees.
Later on our drive, caching took us to this strange collection of junk in the middle of Johnson City tucked behind some old grain silos. It was full of strange stuff... an old broken down fire truck, a dismantled carousel, a mounted fish with a birds nest tucked inside where the head should be, a house covered in shoes... There were also a load of mosquitoes so we couldn't stay long.
Our final goal was our favorite swimming hole (other than the San Marcos River). We enjoyed a day of swimming in the spring water and hiking around the trails. We saw three snakes while we were there (none of them venomous) and lots of birds and lizards. The only downside was we found fire ants, wasps and poison ivy as well. I will be applying soothing oatmeal baths and anti itch creams to the kids all week... but it was worth it.
We had a picnic near the water. We made turkey, cheese and avocado sandwiches and had fresh fruit, chips and cookies. The strawberries were big and juicy and I decided not to scold the kids for playing with their food.
After a day of fun we headed home and I made spaghetti and meatballs and the kids took a bath and went to bed. We woke up the next morning and the kids had enjoyed treasure hunting so much the day before that we decided to get a few treasures around town before breakfast. We headed for a greenbelt near by, collected the cache, and then sadly got our car stuck in the mud on our way out.
We didn't have our cell phone so we had to walk to the fire station near by to use a phone... The firemen came out and tried to help us get our car out... but we ended up needing a tow truck in the end.
On the bright side... Paul got to ride in the fire truck... and the girls and I got a tour of the fire house and cool new hats. The tow truck cost us 50 bucks... but it's only money in the end... and the kids will remember this weekend for a LONG time.
Cheers,Jenn
You know how to fill a week-end with good stuff! We used to love to geocache, but it's been a couple of years since we last went out. Maybe we need to give it another try. Thanks for the inspiration!
ReplyDeleteSounds like a FUN weekend! What a nice spot to swim, I would love having a little spot like that. And my family has yet to get out geocaching! I know they'd love it.
ReplyDeleteAck! Been there with the car stuck in the mud!!!
ReplyDeleteLove the old silos and the hiking photos!!
I would call that a weekend packed full of Fun! Nice pics to see it with too
ReplyDeleteWhat fun!
ReplyDelete(I wish there were no such thing as mosquitoes.)
=)
You have a fun and interesting blog. I'm following you. :-)
ReplyDeleteLooks like so much fun!!! Wow! unforgettable for sure!! those strawberries look so yummy!!
ReplyDeleteHey, getting stuck in the mud led to more adventures, so it's all good! And how about those strawberries! Could they be any bigger? ;)
ReplyDeleteI love geocaching. About 5 years ago,one of my coworkers was talking about it at lunch. I bought my husband a GPS and a book about it for Christmas. It lets us combine his love of technology and my love of nature.
ReplyDeleteOur biggest lesson was to enter exit coordinates if you are geocaching in the woods. You can't always retrace your steps.