Spokane. The lilac city. Home of the 1974 Worlds Fair, and the capital of the inland northwest. From the shores of the Spokane River to to streets of Post Falls, this will be the first ever interstate cache machine event.
So fill up the tank, toss down some breakfast at way-too-early o'clock, and meet in the parking lot of the Travelodge at 6:00 a.m. We'll leave at 6:10 and arrive at the first cache, Grandview Park, at the crack of dawn (about 6:15), and we’re not stopping until the daylight does at 7:15 p.m. Once we’re done, we’ll hit the Spokane Red Robin to recap the day, quaff a few drinks, and embarrass a few waitresses.
The Spokane Travelodge is willing to give us a group rate of $55 per night. Details are in the "Spokane Cache Machine" forum thread
As before, if you find the cache, you'll be the one who has to re-hide it. Hide it as well as you found it.
Bring FRS radios if you’ve got them. We’ll use Channel 2 to communicate among caching vehicles and to say 'Howdy' to listening locals. Suggestions and ''Count me ins'' are welcome below. If you’ve already found a couple of these caches, that’s fine - give us a chance to find the cache, and then we may turn to you for a hint.
The SCM FAQ:
What's the route?
I'm still working on it. Add this cache to your watch list and you'll know the instant I post it.
When is it?
6:00 a.m., September 27, 2003. Latecomers can track us down en route.
Will it be one large group, will we be split into teams, or what?
One giant group, which means we'll hopefully find each cache quickly. Then it's on to the next one. This event is all about large quantities of caches and going to as many neat places as we can.
Is anything going on before or after?
- Electric Babaloo is taking place on September 26, at the Spokane Travelodge.
- As is our tradition/fate/doom, dinner on Saturday is at Red Robin, at about 7:15
- Sunday, I plan on sleeping in late.
A cache on your map shows the wrong place to park.
By all means, let me know. Prior cache machine events wouldn't have been as successful as they were if we wouldn't have had locals help plan the route. If you're a Spokane or Coeur d'Alene area cacher who's found or hidden some of these, I'd love to talk to you about our route.
It sounds fun, but I've already found some of them.
Then come laugh at us, or guess when we'll be at the caches you haven't hit yet. Monitor FRS channel 2.
You don't have X cache on the route. Why aren't we getting that one?
I'm avoiding multicaches, and caches that appear to be overly time consuming. If you think it's quick and easy, let me know.
You have X cache on the route, but it's disabled/archived.
I'll generate a final route around September 21, with updated data. This should catch any new caches that get created in the area, too.
X cache is in an environmentally sensitive area.
By all means, let me know. I'll work with the cache owner to minimize our impact, or skip the cache altogether.
What's this gonna cost me?
Nothing for the caching. Or, at least, nothing more than it would cost than if you did the trip solo (e.g., paying for your own gas and hotel). I'm not collecting any money for this.
Lunch? Breaks? Bathrooms?
Turtletrax is hosting the Spokane Cache Machine Lunch Break near 'Lets Play Ball'.
Bathroom breaks... you'll have to figure out on your own.