THIS IS A NIGHT CACHE - YOU WILL NEED TO BRING A FLASHLIGHT TO FIND IT
THE MISSISSIPPI SNIPE HUNT: A SOUTHERN TRADITION
Back in the good old days, when we didn’t have so many other forms of entertainment vying for our attention, we went Snipe Hunting. Back then every young man looked forward to his first Snipe Hunt. It was pretty much a rite of passage here in the deep south. Unfortunately, Snipe Hunting, like the Mississippi Snipe, has become an endangered species.
This cache seeks to revive the excitement of those fun Snipe Hunts of days gone by.
WHAT IS A SNIPE?:
Snipes are wading birds, characterized by very long slender bills, which they use in sewing machine fashion to find and eat invertebrates in the mud surrounding ponds and marshland. They primarily feed on insect larvae, but also eat flies, beetles, dragon flies, crickets, grasshoppers, ants, mayflies, butterflies, moths, and fingers.
Their primary habitat is swamps and marshland. However, the species of Snipe that lives in Mississippi prefers forests with small creeks and ponds.
Snipes are very difficult to see, much less catch. They have crypsis plumage, which makes them blend into their background like camouflage, allowing them to remain undetected by hunters. Additionally, when the snipe flies, their erratic flight pattern makes it difficult for hunters to estimate a correct aiming lead. This is where the military word Sniper came from. It refers to a sharpshooter who is so skilled that he can even shoot a Snipe.
THE RAREST SNIPE:
Of the 25 different species of Snipe in the Scolopacidae family, the Snipeus Mississippius is considered the most beautiful, with its multi-colored plumage. Unfortunately, it is also the rarest and shyest of the Snipes, which means very few people have ever seen one.
The last surviving family of Mississippi Snipes is rumored to live in the forest at Roosevelt State Park near Morton, MS.
The exact location of their nest is an old family secret. However, in the interest of reviving the dying art of Snipe Hunting, I am going to give you the secret instructions for finding it. Just don’t tell my second cousin, Bubba, that I told you!
IMPORTANT SNIPE HUNTING RULES:
Snipe hunting with guns and other weapons is NOT ALLOWED here!
Snipe trapping is NOT ALLOWED here!
In the old days we used to bring a bag for the first time hunters to catch them in, while the rest of the hunting party stirred the Snipe out of his nest. But that’s not allowed here anymore either.
WHAT IS ALLOWED?:
You CAN go hunting for them with just your eyes and your ears. Not to shoot or capture them, but just to look at them and see how beautiful they are.
ABOUT THE HUNT:
If you carefully follow all of the instructions below, we guarantee you will have a fun and successful Snipe Hunt.
NIGHT CACHE: All Snipe Hunts take place at night. Therefore, this is a Night Cache. As a matter of fact, you cannot find this cache during the day, because it requires flashlights. A good handheld GPS is also required to get you to the parking spot and to get you to the place where your flashlights will take over.
TAKE FRIENDS: Do NOT hunt for this cache alone! Take a friend, or better yet, a group of friends. There is nothing quite as exciting as a Snipe Hunt with a group of friends. So, bring a bunch of people with you and multiply the fun and safety!
ITEMS TO BRING: Flashlights and/or headlamps, extra batteries so you don’t get lost in the dark, mosquito repellent in season, hydration in season, a writing pen to sign the log, a handheld GPS receiver (You will need a real GPS, because your cellphone connection might be low to nonexistent here)
WHAT TO WEAR: Good walking shoes, running shoes, or hiking boots. Long pants (95% of this hike is on a well-maintained dirt trail, but 5% of it is cross country through a pine and hardwood forest, so wear long pants to protect your legs from any brush that might eventually grow up here.
LOCATION: This cache is hidden in the Roosevelt State Park, near Morton, Mississippi. Park gates open at 6:00 am and close at 10:00 pm. There is a $4 per vehicle day usage fee for folks who are not staying overnight. If no one is at the gate house (no one usually is), get an envelope from the honor box, fill it out, put the day use permit on your rearview mirror, and place the envelope with your $4 in the honor box. Park website: https://www.mdwfp.com/parks-destinations/state-parks/roosevelt
PARKING: Parking Coordinates: N32 19.1005 W089 40.6419
THE SNIPE HUNT BEGINS:
Before You Start:
At the parking coordinates you will find a large glass protected sign with information the park rangers have placed there. One of the items the rangers have placed in this sign is a Nature Trail Map showing the various trails which run through Roosevelt State Park. Your first job is to go to this sign and use the map behind the glass to figure out where you are and where you need to go to begin this hunt.
The hunt begins at the Muscadine Trail. However, the Muscadine Trail has two different trailheads. You can use either one, but one of them makes the hunt much easier and faster. We have placed a few directional hints in CAPITAL LETTERS in the Distance & Time text and in the #3 text below, to help you figure out which of the Muscadine trailheads is the BEST one to start from. (Additionally, it is not a necessary part of this cache, but there is a rumor that if you bring a UV flashlight light (black light) and shine it at the trail map on the sign, a ghost on the map will tell you which end of the Muscadine Trail to start on, thus potentially saving you a lot of hiking time.)
Distance & Time:
Night Caches are adventures, meant to be enjoyed, not rushed like a quick Park & Grab. So, prepare to spend thirty minutes to an hour enjoying the special features of this Snipe Hunt. There is nowhere to park at either end of the Muscadine Trail. So, you must either walk to one of its trailheads from the parking coordinates (or from your campsite if you are spending the night), or have someone drive you to the trailhead and drop you off. It is about four tenths of a mile (.42) from the Parking Coordinates to the BEST end of the Muscadine Trail to begin this hunt. At a slow casual pace, it took our Test Team about 13 minutes to walk. At THAT trailhead from this APPROACH there is a wood framed entrance and sign on the RIGHT side of the road where the Muscadine Trail begins.
The distance from the Muscadine Trailhead to the cache is almost two tenths of a mile (.18) as a crow flies. However, you ain't a crow! So, you can expect the twists and turns of the trail and of the short cross-country part to increase the actual distance you hike slightly. From the trailhead to the cache it took our well-lit (with flashlights I mean) Test Team another 13 minutes to hike, find the cache, and pretend to sign the log. Total round trip from and back to the Parking Coordinates took about fifty minutes. (If we had been dropped off and picked up at the trailhead, it would have only taken about twenty-three minutes total time.)
Start:
1. Using your flashlights, begin hiking on the Muscadine Trail. The dirt path and Red Blazes painted on the trees every so often will keep you on the trail.
2. When the trail forks LEFT, begin following the trees marked with Blue Blazes. (Note: The trail only forks LEFT when you enter it from the BEST trailhead.)
3. VERY IMPORTANT: Once you begin hiking on the Blue Blazes Trail, you are very close to the Mississippi Snipe’s nest. The Snipe will flee its nest when it hears you coming, UNLESS you sing its song to it. No, I’m not kidding! This is vital. For a successful hunt, you will need to sing out in a long drawn out, high pitched, but soothing voice “Coo Coo” about every three minutes. This relaxes the Mississippi Snipe and insures that he will stay in his nest. You might even hear him coo back at you.
4. The Blue Blazes Trail will soon go down a hill to a small creek, where a small wooden beam has been installed to help you get across with dry feet, if there is water in the creek. The beam is precariously thin and requires a big step up. So, if you use it, be very careful not to fall. A tall walking stick or friendly hand would help here.
5. At the creek, you will see the first of several reflecting eyes which will guide you away from the Blue Blazes Trail and a short distance cross country to the Snipes Nest. The second reflective eye is straight across the creek, a little farther away. Hike up to it. (Now that you are off the trail, be careful not to trip over logs or step in holes.)
6. At the second reflective eye, shine your flashlight 90 degrees to the left and 90 degrees to the right until you see the next reflective eye. From this point forward each reflective eye will be a dogleg (a 90-degree turn) in your path to the Snipe Nest. Each time you reach a reflective eye, shine your flashlight 90 degrees to the left and 90 degrees to the right, until you see the next reflective eye, to determine which way to turn and hike.
HINT: Hold your flashlights at about eye level or slightly higher to get the best reflection from the eyes.
7. Using the method given in #7 above continue working your way from one single reflective eye to the next until you see THREE vertical reflective eyes looking back at you. You will know that you have arrived when you reach the THREE reflective eyes. Look down, at the base of the tree, for a natural container with the fun instructions for gently removing the Mississippi Snipe from his nest. Yes, you can hold him, if you keep cooing and are very gentle. I hope you brought a pen to sign the log with! Please replace everything where it is supposed to go, so that the next hunters will enjoy their hunt the way it was designed to be.
8. Worried about finding your way back to the Blue Blazes Trail? Simply turn around and follow the reflective eyes back to the bridge at the creek. Cross back over the creek and you are back on the Blue Blazes Trail (follow the blue blazes on the trees). After the Blue Blazes Trail goes back up hill you will soon find yourself back at the Muscadine Trail (Red Blazes). Remember which way you came in on the Muscadine Trail (right fork or left)? Good, follow that back out to the Trailhead.
9. By the way, did I mention the family of alligators that live near the Snipe's nest? You might see their eyes glowing back at you too! :-)
10. If you enjoy this hunt, please tell us about it, and give it a Favorite Point on this webpage.
11. Then continue the tradition by taking other folks Snipe Hunting here.
CONGRATULATIONS TO THE MSGA 2017 FALL GATHERING GROUP FOR BEING THE FIRST TO FIND THIS NIGHT ONLY CACHE!!! EACH OF YOU WHO WERE IN THE GROUP WHO HUNTED FOR IT IN THE DARK AFTER THE POT LUCK FEAST SATURDAY NIGHT MAY CLAIM A SHARED FTF ON IT IN YOUR STATISTICS.!!! THANK YOU FOR MAKING ALL OF OUR HARD WORK PLANNING IT, BUILDING ITS COMPONENTS, AND HIDING THEM WORTHWHILE BY ALLOWING US TO FOLLOW YALL ON THE MAIDEN SNIPE HUNT THAT NIGHT - THE CANEMASTER FAMILY. F