Welcome to the 1st Annual Washtenaw County Parks and Recreation Commission's Kids' Caching Adventure! This is one of a series of six traditional caches hidden throughout our parks and preserves system. Whether you find one or find them all, we hope you enjoy your visit!
The Kids' Caching Adventure is a high-tech, hide-and-seek game played in six different parks and preserves. Visit each of the six locations and find the hidden geocache! All six caches are hidden with children and families in mind: not too challenging, but not giving the hiding place completely away, either. We hope that, in addition to geocaching, families will also take a moment to enjoy the offerings at these properties, which include playgrounds, splash zones, and hiking trails.
There is no need to register in order to participate in the Kids' Caching Adventure. All you need is a sense of adventure, a GPS or a Smart Phone equipped with a geocaching application, and a parent or relative to drive you to the different parks and preserves. All set? Then let's begin! There are six caches total in our Kids' Caching Adventure, each hidden in a different Washtenaw County Parks and Recreation Commission property. The caches for this inaugural event are listed as follows:
Kids' Caching Adventure - Rolling Hills (small entrance fee)
Kids' Caching Adventure - County Farm
Kids' Caching Adventure - Independence Lake (small entrance fee)
Kids' Caching Adventure - Burns-Stokes
Kids' Caching Adventure - Sharon Mills
Kids' Caching Adventure - Pierce Lake
You may wish to do only one or all six. If you choose to complete the entire Kids' Caching Adventure, you'll need to bring along a notebook, as on the inside of each cache's logbook are code words that directly refer to an aspect of that particular property. To complete the Kids' Caching Adventure, you will need to collect all of the code words and phrases and email them to us along with your Geocaching.com user name, your real name, your email address, and your mailing address. Those geocachers who correctly complete the Geocaching Adventure will receive a Washtenaw County Parks and Recreation Commission 2012 Geocaching Adventure tag. In addition, a special prize awaits the first young geocacher to correctly complete the Kids' Caching Adventure. The Kid' Caching Adventure runs from June 15 through December 15, so be sure to keep this deadline in mind!
ATTENTION ADULTS: this series is intended for children. Do NOT log this find until children or families with children have logged this find as FTF, STF, and 3TF. Due to the spate of adults who found and logged Kids' Caching Adventure caches, we are asking families to please consider posting a photo of your kids holding the found cache to show that this is indeed a cache series meant for kids.
All six caches are regular plastic containers with locking lids, labelled and hidden within a short distance from the main trails. The Kids' Caching Adventure is a family-friendly event, so relatively little bushwhacking is required, if any. As with any geocache, our Kids' Caching Adventure caches are loaded with goodies. You may wish to simply sign the log but, if you do choose to take something, please be sure to leave something in its place. Trackables are welcome guests! Please take care to carefully seal our cache containers and to return them to their original location (and keep them well concealed) in order to prevent the caches from being muggled. Should you find a cache that has been muggled or damaged, please do let us know!
While only 29 acres in size, its long, narrow shape makes Burns-Stokes Preserve feel like a much larger area. River shoreline — about three-quarters of a mile — makes up the entire southern edge of this little gem, and almost all of the property is forested with both rich floodplain forest and drier mature uplands. Start exploring and you'll find some surprises tucked into the woods: sunny little sedge meadows, two prairie remnants along the railroad tracks, and a stone tepee ring that was built by the former owners. While a popular destination for fly fishing, birdwatching, and nature study, the property is valuable from a historical perspective as well. Portions of an old mill dam and race provide evidence of the sites former use and are an important reminder of the water-powered past of local area industry.
Good luck, geocachers, and enjoy the 1st Annual Washtenaw County Parks Kids' Caching Adventure!