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SBG 07 Snowy Heron, or White Egret Traditional Cache

Hidden : 2/13/2021
Difficulty:
1 out of 5
Terrain:
1.5 out of 5

Size: Size:   regular (regular)

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Geocache Description:



Silver Bluff Geoart - Wood Stork 07
Snowy Heron, or White Egret

Please read through the Searching Guidelines below before heading to the geocache.
There is import information to keep geocaching in good graces with the management.

Plate 242
Snowy Heron, or White Egret
Egretta thula

"At the approach of the breeding season, many spend a great part of the day at their roosting places, perched on the low trees principally growing in the water, when every now and then they utter a rough guttural sort of sigh, raising at the same moment their beautiful crest and loose recurved plumes, curving the neck, and rising on their legs to their frill height, as if about to strut on the branches. They act in the same manner while on the ground mating. Then the male, with great ardour, and with the most graceful motions, passes and repasses for several minutes at a time before and around the female, whose actions are similar, although she displays less ardour. When disturbed on such occasions, they rise high in the air, sail about and over the spot in perfect silence, awaiting the departure of the intruder, then sweep along, exhibiting the most singular movements, now and then tumbling over and over like the Tumbler Pigeon, and at length alight on a tree. On the contrary, when you intrude upon them while breeding, they rise silently on wing, alight on the trees near, and remain there until you depart." John J. Audubon

Audubon Illustration of Snowy Heron or White Egret


In Audubon's day, there were two common names associated with Egretta thula, Snowy Heron or White Egret. Today, this beautiful bird is known by a combination of those names, "Snowy Egret." Snowy egrets are common in the Kathwoods ponds during the late spring and summer. All year long, you may also find this regular-size geocache. Enjoy the walk and the very easy find.


Sliver Bluff Geoart Information
The geoart was created at a sanctuary in the area along the Savanna River called, Silver Bluff. The sanctuary is open from dawn to dusk, and permission for this hide was granted by the sanctuary manager. If you see sanctuary personnel during your visit, please thank them for supporting geocaching. The geoart consists of 55 geocaches in the shape of a wood stork. This sanctuary annually has hosted the largest inland concentration of foraging endangered wood storks in South Carolina. There were some caches already existing at the sanctuary, and they were incorporated into the geoart. The difficulty/terrain ratings of the 55 geocaches are all different and provide a diverse geocaching experience. When combined with the related geoart of 26 geocaches, all 81 possible D/T ratings are included.

Searching Guidelines
As you are searching for Silver Bluff Geoart caches, please follow the following guidelines.

  • Parking along roads: There are dirt roads in the area. They are not heavily used, but please be careful. Please do not block the roads or park on the roads. Be sure to pull off of the dirt roads completely.
  • Access to Authorized Personnel Only Areas: You are authorized to go past the signs that say, "Authorized Personnel Only" when searching for geocaches. Near the main office, there is a dirt road that has such a sign. There are some Terrain 1 (wheelchair accessible) caches down the road, and people are welcome to drive down that road into the authorized personnel areas for disability access. If you are asked about entering that area, just kindly mention that you are a geocacher who needs to take advantage of the disability access.
  • Bird Boxes: There are many bird boxes in the sanctuary. No geocaches are hidden in bird boxes and there are no fake bird boxes. There might be some containers attached magnetically to the metal baffles below the boxes or on the ground by the boxes. Please be careful when approaching bird boxes, because there might be birds actively using them in the spring.
  • Main Office, Trail Heads and Parking: You are welcome but not required to stop by the main office during your visit. Access to the trail heads is from the main parking area. There is also parking at Kathwood providing access to the walkways around the ponds.

John Audubon Drawing Information
The image on the cache page is from the original drawing by John James Audubon and was printed between 1827 and 1838. The bird-name link will take you to the complete information about the bird as originally written by John Audubon and have access to a free download of the plate. The description of the bird on this cache page is an excerpt from the original entry in Audubon's field guide.


Additional Hints (Decrypt)

Lbh'ir tbg znvy

Decryption Key

A|B|C|D|E|F|G|H|I|J|K|L|M
-------------------------
N|O|P|Q|R|S|T|U|V|W|X|Y|Z

(letter above equals below, and vice versa)