GC3DHZF Dinosaur Train : Mastodont (Traditional Cache) in Pennsylvania, United States created by Geo-Ben

This cache has been archived.

Geo-Ben: Checked on caches today and they are gone. These Dino caches had a good run. Apparently I have a troll stalking me and stealing my caches. There can not be any coincidence that all 6 of my caches in this park going missing at the same time. I had the same thing happen at some local Game Lands too. Oh well, thanks to some jerk of a human these are no longer available for the families of kids that they where designed for. Hope you feel good about yourself.

GC3DHZF ▼

A cache by Geo-Ben Message this owner

Hidden : 3/9/2012

Difficulty:

Terrain:

Size: Size: regular (regular)

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Geocache Description:

LAKE TOWHEE'S
DINOSAUR TRAIN GEOCACHE

MASTODONT

Mastodons first appeared almost 40 million years ago. The American mastodon (Mammut americanum), the most recent member of the family, lived from about 3.7 million years ago until it became extinct about 10,000 years BCE

While they had a size and appearance similar to elephants and mammoths, they were not particularly closely related. Their teeth differ dramatically from those of members of the elephant family; they had blunt, conical, nipple-like projections on the crowns of their molars, which were more suited to chewing leaves than the high-crowned teeth mammoths used for grazing. The name mastodon (or mastodont) means "nipple teeth."

Their skulls are larger and flatter than those of mammoths, while their skeleton is stockier and more robus. The American mastodon resembled a woolly mammoth in appearance, with a thick coat of shaggy hair. It had tusks that sometimes exceeded five meters in length; they curved upwards, but less dramatically than those of the woolly mammoth.

Its main habitat was cold spruce woodlands, and it is believed to have browsed in herds. They are generally reported as having disappeared from North America about 12,700 years ago. (SOURCE: Wikipedia)

Pennsylvania Fact - Fossils of Mastodont can be found at the Pennsylvania State Museum in Harrisburg. They were discovered in Monroe County, (see map below) making Mastodont a true Pennsylvania Dinosaur.

"Go outside, get into nature and make your own discoveries!" That is what Dr. Scott challenges his viewers to do at the end of each Dinosaur Train episode.

YOUNG EXPLORERS FIELD QUESTIONS:

Were all prehistoric animals reptiles?

Name one reptile and one mammal you may find in this park?
Be sure to tell us when signing the logbook!

For more information on this educational outreach initiative please visit the Dinosaur Train Geocaching Web Page at www.geocaching.com/dinosaurtrain

GEO-CACHING INFORMATION:

Park is open dawn to dusk.

Begin your Dino-Adventure at the posted parking coordinates.
Look for the start of the yellow hashed trail at the posted trail head coordinates.
There are currently five Dino-Caches along this route.
Total distance from parking lot to all five caches is is a little more then 1/2 mile one way.

At one point the trail comes out onto a dirt road and goes back into woods.
Coordinates are posted for this area under 2nd trail head.

I have added a 3rd trail head where the yellow trail intersects with an unmarked trail. This waypoint takes you to a part of the trail where it goes from a wide path to a narrow trail. The path to take for the yellow trail is well marked at this waypoint.

I found the whole park to be very wet and muddy in many areas and in varying degrees.
I would highly recommend clothing and boots you don't mind getting muddy, wet, or dirty.
Now that I have given you everything you need; get out there, follow the yellow-marked trail,
mind the private property signs, and have a Dino-Good time.

Each cache contains a PA Scratch-Off Lottery Ticket for FTF. However, if the FTF'r is the same for all five caches please only take one ticket and leave the rest for the STF, TTF, 4TF & 5TF. Unless of course you are a group then one ticket per individual.

Good Luck Dino-Hunter and Happy Caching.
Geo-Ben

*** Congratulations to TheeNightHunters and Zix7 for FTF on Saturday, March 10, 2012 ***
Honorable Mentions go out to ST.FU and Schtipp for combined STF and TTF

Additional Hints (Decrypt)

"V'z bire urer fpengpuvat zl onpx ba guvf byq fgnaqvat gerr. V znl whfg ynl qbja naq gnxr n anc urer va gur zhq." --- Gur Znfgbqbag Fbzrgvzr orgjrra 09/07/13 naq 10/29/13 fbzr wrex bs n pnpure qrpvqrq gb cnvag gur jbeqf TRB va oevtug benatr yrggref ba gur fvqr bs gur byq gerr gung gur pnpur vf uvqqra haqre.

Decryption Key

A|B|C|D|E|F|G|H|I|J|K|L|M
-------------------------
N|O|P|Q|R|S|T|U|V|W|X|Y|Z

(letter above equals below, and vice versa)