Iowa - A Place To Grow Traditional Geocache
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This cache is located at Exit 34 of I80 near the town of Shelby in a park featuring prairie grass, wildflowers and a trail. PLEASE SIGN THE PARK GUEST BOOK ON YOUR WAY OUT. THANKS! When I moved to Western Iowa about four months ago from Central Iowa, I discovered I knew little about the beauty and history of the area. So, I decided to set up a series of caches for travelers, and Iowans, that will take them to some of these beautiful places in Western Iowa. This is my second cache. Enjoy the beauty of the fertile farmland between the Nishnabotna River and Mosquito Creek and ride/walk along the Rock Island Old Stone Arch Nature Trail. Be sure to pick up a trail guide for this 3.5 mile trail. The nearby town of Shelby is named for the county and Revolutionary War General Isaac Shelby. It was formed as a railroad town in 1870. Part of that route has been converted to the nature trail that starts near the cache. Along the trail you can see the Rock Island Old Stone Viaduct, a culvert bridge. Most railroad bridges in Iowa were wood or timber, but the limestone for this trestle was believe to have come from a quarry in Earlham, Iowa. Other interesting things to see in the area are the Antique Coke sign in Shelby(original in 1932 and restored in 1986), The Shelby Rock Island Depot which is being refurbished and will be used as a Visitors Center and Museum and Carstens 1880 Farmstead (an 80-acre working farm exhibit, featuring the machinery, tools and primitives of an authentic late 1880’s farmstead). The Stone Viaduct and Carsten’s Farm are listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Shelby has also become the purple Martin Capital of Iowa in an effort to use ecologically sound ways to control mosquitoes. There are over fifty martin houses in the community. This is a theme cache celebrating Iowa agriculture. Please leave something ag related if possible. Original contents include: bull, calf, sheep, hog, pig, and tractor. Please help maintain the integrity of the theme. Thanks!
Additional Hints
(Decrypt)
Vbjn, gung'f jurer gur GNYY pbea tebjf!