Weedon Island Preserve covers approximately 3,700 acres and is an ecological oasis in the otherwise urban landscape on the shores of Old Tampa Bay. You will have the opportunity to explore this coastal system, comprised of aquatic and upland ecosystems and learn about the rich cultural history of the area BUT, rest assured, you absolutely WILL NOT find a physical cache of ANY kind on the Weedon Island property. However, through the wonders of Whereigo technology, you will have the unique opportunity to explore this natural wonderland with the added pleasure of finding a physical cache within driving distance of the Preserve upon completion of the cartridge.
The Preserve is open daily, 7:00am to time posted at the entrance to the preserve, approximately 15-minutes before sunset. If you would like to visit the Cultural & Natural History Center (not necessary to the completion of the cartridge although it is really interesting!), it is open Thursday - Saturday, 9:00am-4:00pm. ...and the really good news is...admission to both the preserve and the center are free!
Please SAVE, SAVE, SAVE as you complete each stage. The Wherigo platform is inherently unstable and tends to crash. If you don't save and it crashes you will have to return to each of the stages. You have been warned..
The necessary Wherigo cartridge will not come with a download of this cache - you must visit http://www.wherigo.com to download it.
The cartridge is designed such that you cannot complete the game from emulator play. The game is designed where you must input info into a text box or answer a multiple choice question in order to see the next screen or "zone". If you aren't actually at that place, you won't have that information. Good mapping and research might allow you to discover the necessary information from home.
If you don't have a device that will play a Wherigo cartridge, here are a couple of options. 1) Play on the emulator as far as you can - generate some coords for the spot (mapping is your friend) go get the info (or perhaps research for it), then go home and continue the game; or from the location, call a friend at a PC with the emulator and cartridge with the info to continue the game - you'll get the next screen.
Some notes on how this Wherigo Geocache cartridge works. The cartridge has 8 zones (akin to 8 stages in a multi-cache). The first zone, will be active and visible from anywhere. The next zone will become visible and active when correctly answer the question given. "Active" means that your device is calculating a bearing and distance from your current location; "visible" means it shows on your map screen. You'll see it on your locations screen when it is active. If you select it, it will show like a waypoint "go to" - with distance and direction arrow. Once you arrive in a zone, there may be a question to answer before the next zone becomes active and visible. Again, you have to select it from the locations screen to become your next "go to". Zones become inactive as you exit them, to save CPU power; too many "active" zones slows the Pocket PC or Garmin as they calculate distances and bearings to each active location. The geocache location becomes active and visible only after you've correctly entered some data. Coordinates are provided for the geocache. Zones are approx 100' by 100' in this cartridge and are this large to allow for error due to tree cover. Specific information is given for each zone to allow you to complete any question. Once you've entered the cache zone (and completed the Wherigo game) you might need to exit Wherigo and use your GPS, having loaded it with the coordinates provided. The back button will not scroll you back through screens! it takes you back to the main screen, a listing of available locations, tasks etc. If you want to retain data (coords, completion code) you should write it down.
