"I thought of something to do" [outside]

"There’s nothing you can do outdoors on a day like today,” whined Mike yesterday morning as the wind whistled around our little house.

“Yippee! I can do inside stuff today!” my heart sang.

It was indeed unpleasant outside as strong wind gusts buffeted stationery items. Walking against it was a trial, but walk we did.

 

The first thing Mike said this morning (Sunday, April 14), was: “I thought of something to do. I need to do maintenance on my Vet-Modie multi-cache.”

“There goes the morning,” I thought to myself. I had planned to finish some study notes and retire to my sewing studio.

“I don’t need to go, right?” I asked aloud.

“Oh – you have to go. I need your help.”

So I quickly made hot chocolate for our mid-morning snack, grabbed my waist pack, into which we loaded various essentials, and filled a bottle with some water for Nellie. It was a pretty day, and I took a lot of pictures.

The cache in question is located in the Ruth Rowell Modie Wildlife Park, a mid-town gully near where we raised our second family. In recent years, since we moved, the City of Lewiston has developed this area with a walking path, plantings, and a few interesting structures. 

Near the turn of the 20^th century, pillars were erected here to mark the gateway to the Lewiston Orchards (see photo left). These are recognized as historically significant and attempts have been made to preserve them.  Picking up on the pillar theme, smaller pillars in the same style disseminate information throughout the park. 

 

The park also borders the Idaho State Veterans’ Home.

In a world where communities struggle to beautify, this area is really special. A few years ago, Mike established the multi-cache to give resident and visiting cachers a tour of the park. A cache owner has the responsibility to maintain his caches – replace them when they disappear (or get wet), provide new log books when they are full (or get wet), or make corrections when structures are moved (which happens). 

I took the pictures illustrating this post as Mike checked the three checkpoints and the final cache.

When we returned home Mike made the necessary computer entries – also a part of geocaching – and then prepared for an afternoon bike ride. However, ominous-looking gray clouds brought wind and rain, despite the “0% chance” forecasted by the Weather Channel. Mike left the house only to re-enter immediately. “It’s raining!” he said. I laughed. KW