My First Event

Susquehanna Sojourn was the first event I had the pleasure of attending and I know it will not be my last. But like alot of my letterboxing journeys the road was not smooth and simple. The night before was like Christmas Eve, and it was impossable to sleep. I finally dozed off about 2 hours before my alarm went off.



I quickly got up and started gathering everything we needed to take with us for the day. My boys, the King of Hearts, 5, and Jack of Hearts, 3, were going to be daddys little hitch hikers for the event and they couldn't wait either. I had to grab my dish to pass out of the oven as well. I decided to make baked beans, Enough, it would turn out, to feed the people at the event, my ex in laws, and half of my neighborhood. My phone then rang. It was Red Barn Photos calling to let me know that she was running a little bit late.



The boys soon began with the "Is she here yet" every 3 seconds. We doubled checked the gear and loaded up the Jeep and waited. Then waited, and waited just a little bit more for our trip to begin. Once she arrived, coffee in hand, it was time to set out. We were off and the boys could hardly contain themselves. They were talking about all the boxes they were going to find, the stamps they would get and the people they would meet.

But like all my journeys, there were a few navigation issues. I had the directions, but since I was driving I couldn't be expected to read them, and Red Barn Photos didn't realize that the navigator actually had to navigate. After a quick detour when we missed our exit, we were finally at the event.

I was amazed at all the letterboxers in one place. I saw names on name tags that I had just seen in logbooks or on Atlas Quest and I couldn't wait to jump right in. But where to start? Since it was already hot, and supposed to get even hotter - it was suggested that we get the boxes on the trails first, then come inside for exchanges and event stamps. We quickly agreed and off we went.

As we left the lodge Red Barn Photos commented that she was not really wearing appropriate foot wear for letterboxing, sandals. We set off down the trail and found the first box, then the second. And as we were returning to the trail, foot wear came into play, for our beloved - yet accident prone - Red Barn Photos. Coming down a small incline she slipped and her foot slid under a tree root ripping half the nail off her big toe. She decided it was best for her to head back to the lodge, and the boys, being brave, accompanied her and left me to melt in the heat to retrieve the rest of the boxes on the first trail.

I soon returned to the lodge about 5 pounds lighter to find the boys running around searching for stamps hidden around the room and everyone just amazed at how well they were doing. The next few hours were a blur of exchanges, personal traveller clues, event stamps, and the occasional scavenger hunt for little hearts. By the end of the day I had filled a bunch of pages in my logbook and met alot of people. I even got my first few cooties.

The boys were upset when it was time to go, because they wanted to find more boxes, even though they were clearly tired. On the way home I realized that I missed exchanges with about 1/4 of the attendees, and missed a few personal travellers that I really wanted. I guess there is always the next event.

We got home, found that the boys had cooties too, and ordered a pizza. After dinner it was bath time. Jack of Hearts almost fell asleep in the bathtub, even though he swore he wasn't tired. Once he layed down and was asleep, I decided to quick check Atlas Quest. King of Hearts asked if we could play a game because he "was not the least bit tired." I told him, "5 minutes and I am all yours". 3 minutes later there was the soft sound of snoring coming from behind me on the bed.

I logged my finds, looked at my logbook and marvelled at the stamps that I had found and hoped that one day I can carve as well as some of the people that I met. I tried to sleep, but the King was diaginal across the bed and I was still too excited. I guess the next event can't come soon enough.

Memorial Day Weekend Letterboxing- Remembered

Memorial Day Weekend 2008 will be one that I remember for a long time to come. It was actually my first long weekend letterboxing, and it was also special for so many other reasons. We will have to start out Saturday morning.

Saturday was International Plant a Letterbox Day, so I had to make sure that I planted my "Luck of the Irish" letterbox exactly where I wanted it. When I got to the building where I wanted to place it, there was no real good place to hide it. But with a little cunning, and a bit of searching I soon found the perfect hiding spot for a great little box. This was only the first of my big events for the day. I soon had to drive to Syracuse to pick up a visiting letterboxer from a few states away.

About a month prior a small thread erupted on the Singles Anonymous Board here on Atlas Quest, and I began talking to a fellow boxer named JBBK from Indiana. We started sending e-mails, then chatting, IM's, texting, then phone calls. Well one day she asked me out of the blue what I was doing over the long weekend. She had never been to New York and though it would be interesting to take a vacation here and do some letterboxing. Personally I think she just wanted to try out some of my cooking. So she got a plane ticket and was off.

I picked her up at the airport and we were off to try and find her her first New York letterbox. We had our clue and saddled up to the bar for a drink and slowly started to realize that something was amiss. We asked one of the waitresses a question and she called over the host of the upstairs dining room. He knew what we were up to immediately. The clues to the box were bases on the decore of the bar, but the bar had been redecorated 4 months before. But we were not going to give up.

We muddled through the clues we could, and guessed at the ones we thought we knew, and got the answers for the ones that were still there. Pretty soon JBBK have enough to make an educated guess at the location of the letterbox. I deftly searched for the box and I found....... a guest check that read "Your Letterbox". The box had gone missing about 2 months prior, and when the host noticed it was missing back then, he had placed the note there for anyone that came looking for it. After a slow and partially disappointing start we headed down the road toward some dinner and sleep to start out early the next morning for a lot of boxes.

Sunday morning came, but before we set out I called a frequent boxing partner Red Barn Photos. She had to head to her parents, but said she was game for some boxes. We started out with the box I had planted the day before. After that we were off to Ithaca. We found the next 3 boxes without difficulty, but the 4th elluded us - as did the 5th. But we did get a chance to show JBBK some great waterfalls. But we were far from done. We set out for another series of boxes, Gaia the Great Turtle. As you can tell, JBBK really took a liking to our resident turtle. Then it was off to another box that was planted the day before for IPLD. After a few more finds we decided we better do our exchanges and call it a night. We finished our exchanges as the sun was setting and dropped Red Barn Photos off at her car. JBBK stopped off for some Pistacho ice cream just before the ice cream shop closed at 10.

As I loaded Atlas Quest to log my finds I noticed that 5 more boxes had been planted within 15 miles of my house. I decided I had to call Red Barn Photos and rub it in that she would not get to be First Finder on these since she was going to visit her parents in the morning about the time JBBK and I would be logging into the boxes. Then JBBK uttered some great words "We can go night boxing". And within 45 minutes Red Barn Photos was back and armed with the clues and flash lights we were back on the road. Dressed in an array of shorts, sleep pants, and t-shirts we were wandering through the woods next to a graveyard with our flashlights wondering if we had made the right call. As soon as we found the first two boxes we knew we had. The third proved a bit more challenging, and we walked right past the 4rd in the dark. But we found number 5 without a problem. We logged into the last box at 136 am. A great time to be letterboxing in the woods.

We sent Red Barn Photos home for some sleep and JBBK and I stayed up for about 2 more hours talking about the day and planning her last full day in New York. After breakfast on Monday we went back for the box we had missed. The woods were a lot less daunting in the daylight, and we had walked right by our lone missing box. We then explored the cemetary next door, and went out for a few other letterboxes in the area. I started a giant pot of Venison Stew, in between our letterboxing outings. After we got done eating dinner the phone rang. It was Red Barn Photos telling us about a new box that was just planted. So off we went. It was only about 9:30 pm and it was in a well lit area, but it was still fun.

After getting a few more boxes, JBBK and I retired our boxing bags for the night and took up a Scrabble board. I should have stuck to letterboxing! Tuesday morning it was time to say goodbye. This was something that niether of us really wanted to do. We both figured if we kept going all weekend that the time wouldn't come for her to have to leave.

But on the way to the airport we grabbed another letterbox, and talked about the trip. And also started planning my trip out west. The scene at the airport was one of joy and sorrow. We had one of the greatest weekends, but it was over and we were going to be seperated by 600+ miles again. We text constantly, call several times a day, and e-mail even more. Trips are planned in both directions. We found a lot more than letterboxes that weekend, we found each other.

Quest for 100 - My boxing weekend

Well it all started out innocently enough. I wanted to hit 100 before the end of the weekend. I only needed 9 stamps. I called my boxing buddy up real late Friday night / Saturday morning to tell her that a new box was planted and we needed to go on a midnight run. And sure enough we were off.We retrieved the box by flashlight and I was down to 8. Saturday morning rolls around and I was off. Armed with clues I set out. I was after a box set by Lock Wench. Perched on a log over a stream, I almost fell in when my cell phone rang telling me I had a message from JBBK. Then as I was laying on the log, searching for the box, I got attacked by a muskrat the size of the Taco Bell chihuahua. I stayed dry, and nobody was injured. Moments later I noticed a pepperoni sized spider crawling on my arm. Lock Wench had guarded this box too well for me to find this trip. I found another box near by and was down to 7.
I found the next box without issue and was off to a preserve with 2 boxes in it. I found the first and was up to 95. As I headed for another Lock Wench box I flushed 3 grouse that decided to make a bee line for my head. I ducked out of the way and was safe, for the time being. Further up the trail though I encountered 2 nice sized wild turkey. They decided to chase me for about 50 yards through the woods back up the trail. I found the box, and ended the day with a count of 96.
Today I met up with Red Barn Photos and we found a box leaving me with just 3 to go. I was able to find the next two without a problem. Then I got lost on the strange roads that are the back roads of Central New York. So with a cell phone that was cutting in and out, I called for re-enforcements. I called JBBK, in Indiana, and she was able to Mapquest me out of Limbo and back to civilization and on course to my next letterbox.After a history lesson, a lot of photos, and some searching I stamped into my 100th logbook. And it just happened to be....... a Lock Wench plant. What an amazing weekend. And after dinner, my boys and I are going out for ice cream, and 3 letterboxes that were just planted!