Crazy Scheme #187: Looking for Buried Treasure
As with most members of the human race, I often find myself looking for ways to leave a
lasting impression. I strive to do things that are unique that will make people say, "Wow.
Mark." This website grew out of one of those things. And now, as I'm marching towards an
uncertain future in another country, I find myself again longing to set up something. I want to
establish something in my hometown to leave an impression. Since it's growing rather late in
the year to try and get the county council to build some sort of monument to me, I guess I have
to do something on my own. What I am considering is something I read about on the Internet a
little over a year ago, and I became enamored with the concept. It felt like the perfect way to
honor both myself and the rich natural world that surrounds my hometown. I am, of course,
talking about establishing a geocache.
"Geocaching" was invented by geeks who love their high-tech toys, love the outdoors,
and have way too much time on their hands. You only need two things to find one: Internet
access and a GPS. Littered all over this world are little treasure chests, put out there by great
outdoors-geeks. These chests are filled with all kinds of little trinkets, treasures, stuff, and a
logbook. When you find one, you are supposed to take something out for yourself, and leave
something behind for someone else to find. In the logbook, you write down your name, where
you're from, what you took and what you left. But, how o how do you find these little treasure
chests? That's where your GPS and Internet access comes in. Using their GPS systems, the
geeks who establish these know the exact geographic coordinates of the cache. These geeks
then go and post these coordinates on the Internet, along with an optimal start position and
maybe a landmark or two to help you find your way. You get the coordinates off of the Internet,
plug them into your GPS, and head out to the start position! You are now set for an afternoon of
wandering through the wilderness looking for buried treasure.
I first stumbled onto this sport when "geocaching.com" was the link of the day at User
Friendly. It gained greater prominence in the summer of 2001 when the movie studio 20th
Century Fox established a few Planet of the Apes geocaches to plug the same-named movie. As
I explored geocaching.com, though, I was saddened to discover that there are very few in the
Edmonton/Entwistle area. (Very few in Alberta, as a matter of fact.) Here I was, with my Dad's
GPS, ready for an afternoon of treasure hunting, only to be cut off at the knees. So, since there
are none in this area, I figure that it's up to me to do something about this. I have a website. I
have my Dad's GPS. Let's do this!
Firstly, though, I figure I should select a location to plant my geocache. True, there are
vast woods surrounding my town, but I'm not just going to find some random spot in the woods
to plop down my treasure chest. No, we need to find a perfect spot. From my knowledge of the
great Entwistle forest, I have narrowed it down to one of two possible locations.
Somewhere in the woods behind my old elementary/junior high school are the ruins of an
old log cabin. All that remains of that cabin are three walls, extending up to about waist height.
What better place for buried treasure than old ruins? There's just one problem with this
location, though. I don't know where it is. When I was in elementary school, nature walks
through those woods were a frequent event, and my classmates would often point to an
overgrown path and say, "That's the one that goes to the cabin." I visited it once in grade 8,
when my outdoor education class was orienteering in the woods. My team stumbled upon it
only to discover two of my classmates who had snuck off to it for a make-out session. Ahh,
junior high. But anyway, in some of my free afternoons, I have tried looking for the cabin.
Trees grow a lot in 10 years, and the familiar paths and landmarks are now completely
overgrown and unrecognizable. I would love this location, but to find it would mean a few days
wandering around lost in the woods looking for it.
My second proposed location has the benefit of being one that I know how to get to quite
readily, but the flaw of being in a provincial park, meaning I'd probably have to get government
permission. Down in the Pembina River Provincial Park, there's this trail that starts at the end
of E loop. It's not traveled very often and isn't maintained that much. As you walk down it, the
path eventually runs out until it no longer resembles a path. When this beaten path ends, you
continue forward for a few more meters and turn right. You climb about halfway up the
riverbank, and there, half-submerged in the dirt is an old car. I don't know my cars, but I want
to say it's a Ford Model-T, or at least a car of that era. Surely a treasure chest could be stashed
in the trunk.
So, I've got two proposed locations. Now, I need something to put the stuff in. I need
my treasure chest. This is the dawn of the 21st Century, so it's as easy as going to any office
supply store and getting a weatherproof strongbox. This would be an optimal choice if I were
ever worried about a forest fire wiping out my treasure. Of course, if I want to go for a more
traditional (and cheaper) route, I could build one. There's lots of scrap plywood out in the
garage, and a few gallons of Thompson's water seal and silicon caulking in the seams should
provide enough weather protection. I'm probably looking at an afternoon's construction time,
maybe a weekend.
I have a location and I have treasure chest. It's time to fill the chest! Firstly, I need a
logbook. A coil-bound notebook from any stationary store should do. And I'll need a writing
instrument. You know, when the early astronauts discovered that pens don't work in
weightlessness, the American and the Russians took different solutions. The Americans spent
several million dollars developing a pen that would work in weightlessness. The Russians just
used pencils. I think I'll follow the Russian's lead. I've got a logbook, a pencil, and a treasure
chest. What o what will I put in the chest? Some ideas I have for my buried treasure are:
- a fishhook or two. I did a lot of fishing in the Pembina when I was a kid, so why not? - McDonald's gift certificates. Who doesn't like a Big Mac every now and again, except for vegans? Well, they can have fries. I could also include the geographic coordinates of the nearest McDonald's, which would be the one in Drayton Valley. - A DVD. Right now at work, we've got a couple of bargain basement DVDs for $5.99. - A whole variety of dollar store goodies. - A travel bug. I just found out about these things. These are objects which travel from
geocache to geocache, and it's a sport in itself to track their movements.
That, in a nutshell, is my plan. Scarecrow's geocache. I can see it now. People will
come from all over the world to find the fabled geocache of the Scarecrow. When they go
traipsing through the woods, they will learn things about their surroundings and themselves.
Then, when they get to the end of their strange, wonderful journey, they will find a treasure, and
they will say, "Wow. Mark." Well, a guy can dream, can't he? If nothing else, I'll give people
a way to kill an afternoon.
[Some final thoughts: After writing this, I checked out geocaching.com for the first time
in months. There are now over 150 geocaches registered in Alberta. Sadly, though, all they list
are coordinates, and I don't have my Dad's GPS handy enough to find out how many of them are
close to home. It also says that I don't have to be so extravagant, as most of these treasure chests
are just Tupperware containers and old coffee cans. Setting one up will be easier than I
thought.]
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