This is 1 of 6 caches hidden on a new stretch of the KK River Trail between S. 6th Street and W. Lincoln Avenue. A single element of a number/letter code that will lead you to the location of “FURF FINALE” can be found IN or NEAR each cache. That cache is hidden at a nearby site, not on the Trail.
Parking is available at either end of the trail. Street parking is permitted on both sides of Lincoln Avenue which will put you close to 2-3 caches on the north end of the trail. Parking in the UMOS lot at Chase Avenue and Rosedale Avenue will put you close to 3 caches on the west end of the trail. The distance from cache 1 to cache 6 is about .6 mile. Bike, hike, or roller skate your way to each hide. .
When I was 2 or 3 years old, my uncle Chet, called me FURF. No one in my family remembers why, probably my mispronunciation of some word or another, but for whatever reason, the nickname stuck. Whenever we reminisce about days of yore, the name FURF is sure to be resurrected. It therefore seems appropriate to use that nickname for this series of caches as I reminisce about the 1950’s and the fun times I had within a stone’s throw of this new bike trail.
Memory 1 took place in April of 1956. My sister and I attended St. Josaphat’s School, just to the north of here. We lived on 3rd Street and Holt Avenue to the south. Transportation to school was provided by the Milwaukee County Transit System. 2 busses with one transfer dropped us off across the street from the Basilica. The county bus drivers went on strike on Friday, April 13, 1956. For the next 8 days we were left to our own devices to find a way to school. Staying home was never an option. My mother did not drive, and we only had one car which my dad took to work very early in the morning. So we walked the 1.6 miles to school with my mom on that first Friday. By Monday, my mom thought my sister and I could handle the trek on our own. Heck, Roz was 9 and I was 6, what could possibly happen to a couple of kids walking 20 blocks? Apparently, nothing, since we both survived the experience and gained some major brownie points from the nuns. I remember one of my classmates arriving late for school one day with a feeble excuse and Sister Formincia saying to the offender, “You live one block from school and you’re late. Russell walked 2 miles to school and was here on time.” I was golden for the next month or so.
Look to the west and you can see part of the route little Rusty and Roz walked 58 years ago to reach that green copper dome to the north.
Permission to place this cache has been granted by Michael Loughran, Public Works Coordination Manager.