GCP2ZE Adventure 9: Magellan 2005 Contest Cache (Traditional Cache) in Illinois, United States created by Markwell

This cache has been archived.

Markwell: It's time. Hopefully someone else can devote the time to make this cool location a cache that can be maintained within the DuPage County Forest Preserves boundaries.

Thanks to all that found it, and to Magellan for having me set this up. It's been a good run.

GCP2ZE ▼

A cache by Markwell Message this owner

Hidden : 6/12/2005

Difficulty:

Terrain:

Size: Size: regular (regular)

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Geocache Description:

The leftover cache from the Magellan 2005 Geocaching Adventure.

Container has been placed with permission of the DuPage County Forest Preserve. Many thanks to Dave and Leslie, and the rangers who have worked with me for a while to get this historic cache placed.

PARKING
There are only two legal parking areas for this cache:
N 41° 49.109 W 088° 06.794 or
N 41° 49.603 W 088° 08.745
Do NOT park at the Lucent building.

What's this about a Magellan Geocache Contest? Magellan GPS contacted me to place a cache in the Chicago area, and I knew the DuPage Guidelines had just come out. So, I worked with both ends (Magellan and DuPage) to get a placement that I think everyone would be happy with.

This cache was initially listed ONLY on the Magellan site. Not until the cache had been found by the first finders was I able to post the cache page to Geocaching.com. The first finders didn't even know who had placed the cache. You can read the logs from the Magellan Geocache Adventure Site on a subset of my Markwell.us page. I've posted it there for posterity.

There is poison ivy on the ground, and the walk is a long one (I had a great bike ride from the west parking with my 9 year old son to place this cache on an early Saturday morning on Memorial Day weekend).

When the Magellan materials are spent, I'll replenish the cache, but feel free to trade away! Have fun!

Clues from the Magellan Contest JOURNAL ENTRY 1
Leader of the pack
I am so proud of Anthony. He’s about to turn 13 and has already become an expert geocacher. He is a credit to his mother, me and our entire Afetta family and lineage. His great-great-great-grandfather Benedict would certainly be amazed at his navigational and research skills, as well as the technology we have at our disposal here in the 21st century. Anthony took the lead on this new adventure. He guided us directly to N42°03.283,W87°49.833, near Golf Mill. There we left a bit of information about our current quest. Anyone can pick up the clue at the Customer Kiosk there, and at retail locations across the country.

“We’d better check the little park,” Anthony announced as he headed on foot toward the waypoint, which we set before leaving home on our vacation. I’ve long had suspicions about this little patch of urban green. When we arrived, we were surprised to be greeted by a small band of geocachers. There were 13 of them in all. They seemed to have been waiting for us. As we approached, they stood from where they were seated and crowded around us like we were movie stars. One man, who seemed to be the leader of the group, handed me a small scrap of tanned leather as he introduced himself. “I’m Dutch,” he said smiling. “We found this note in the park. We figured you’d be looking for it. Skywiever, here has already deciphered it,” Dutch continued as he gestured toward a young gangly member of the band. “I’m afraid it’s not very helpful.” I examined the note. The scrap of leather was old, tarnished and scratched, but the words on it are still perfectly legible. I read the words of gibberish out loud: “invalid, ask as a kaka.” My wife Alice and I shrugged at each other and looked at Anthony, who returned a bewildered stare.

“It’s nothing,” the young Skywiever chimed, “…just a simple anagram for the original capitol of the state.”

Dutch interrupted. “At least it confirms that we’re on the right track. That is, if you allow us to join you in the search for the forgotten treasure?”

We agreed to meet back here at 7:30 PM, local time, tomorrow evening.

JOURNAL ENTRY 2
A straight drive from Golf

Yesterday, as our family parted ways with the small band of geocachers at Golf Mill, the leader turned and said, “by the way, we believe the second location is much closer to the forgotten treasure.” The entire meeting was a little bizarre and I couldn’t think quickly enough to ask what he meant. We will be seeing the group again tonight. That will give us a chance to find out.

JOURNAL ENTRY 3
We set out this morning along with the group Anthony has started calling the “Geo-pack,” the group of geocachers we met at Golf Mill Park. We spent the day searching many of the preserves in the area. At one of the locations, Anthony commented that the place would have been picture perfect a few years ago. The memories I have of the stories my father told me when I was here as a child are sketchy at best, but I was told that this place started the century of progress. It was established by a settler named Ira. I love the White Oaks; some are over 150 years old.

Daniela, a Latina member of the Geo-pack, tells my wife, who speaks a little Spanish, that we should be looking for a dark well. “Thank you,” my wife says – but in Spanish. “I don’t know where these people are getting their information, but I trust them.”

JOURNAL ENTRY 4
We met up with the Geo-pack again this morning and took a straight drive past the second location. Skywiever, of the pack, suggested that we use some sort of quantum physics equation from the lab to make a minor course correction, as if the Accelerator were a large gravitational body. He explained the equation to me, but it was way over my head. “Don’t you get it, Dad?,” my son said with a smirk. “Our forward energy is altered by the force of the Accelerator, curving our trajectory.”

Adenture Summary
The help of the Geo-pack was invaluable in locating my great-great-grandfather’s cache. We recovered it moments before it receded again into the past. It was a great family adventure. Here are some of the details about the area that have been preserved.

GONIL

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Adventure 9: Magellan 2005 Contest Cache Traditional Geocache

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