Welcome to beautiful Sinnemahoning State Park. We are very happy that you are visiting our park!
This easy-to-find cache is part of the Ranger Rick Jr. Geocache Trail, a series of kid-friendly caches located near the 40 Maples picnic area in the park. This trail is ideal for families, beginners, and for those bringing their bicycles! Please re-hide the cache exactly as you found it.
The woodland around you is filled with an amazing diversity of both plants and animals. Moist, rich soil, filled with lots of organic matter, is the key to the abundance of life in a forest. This organic matter comes from the trees that grow here. Throughout their lives, trees collect nutrients from the environment and use them to build new bark, wood, branches, and leaves. When a tree dies, its nutrients are recycled back into the environment through decomposition.
While you are here, search the decaying wood around you to find fungi, moss, lichens and other plants growing on the dead and decaying trees. The roots of the fungi and plants penetrate the wood and break it apart. Lichens, as they grow, release a weak acid that breaks down the wood. Moss keep the log moist, making it a suitable place for other plants, and even animals like salamanders, to live.
A decaying tree is a rotten and wonderful place to live!
Thanks for visiting Sinnemahoning State Park!
