A predatory songbird, the Northern Shrike (Lanius excubitor) breeds in taiga and tundra and winters in southern Canada and the northern United States. You won't see one here in the warm months, but I have seen them in the area several times in the winter. They feed on small birds, mammals, and insects, sometimes impaling them on spines, thorns, or barbed wire fences. They have a large head with a black mask, and stout bill with a hook at the end, gray back, whitish throat and chest, and their wings are black with a white patch. The Northern Shrike, like other shrikes, kills more prey, if it can, than it can immediately eat or feed to nestlings. Such behavior was characterized by early observers as "wanton killing," but the Northern Shrike stores excess prey to eat later. Storing food is an adaptation for surviving periods of food scarcity. They normally hunt by sitting and waiting on an exposed perch, and seizes prey near ground with feet or bill. They kill vertebrates by biting through neck with their hooked bill like a hawk.
The container is a camouflaged jar with a logbook and a few trinkets. You will need to bring your own quill (or pen if you prefer) to sign the log. There is plenty of parking on the wide road shoulder. I would suggest starting at the north end and work south, since all the caches are on the west side of the road. The higher terrain rating is because of rough, uneven footing.