Nature Ed at Fern Hill Traditional Cache
Barking Frogz: Unfortunately I haven't heard from the cache owner, so I must regretfully archive this cache.
Thanks,
Barking Frogz
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Difficulty:
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Terrain:
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Size: 
(micro)
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This cache is looking for a new maintainer. It's been here for 18 years, so I hope someone steps up to help! Please message the owner. This micro-cache is located along a public, wooded trail. The path is hard-packed gravel.
This cache contains a log book and maybe some small, high value items. You will need to bring a pen to sign the log for credit. Leave something very small behind if you like. The log is small, so please be brief. Try to hide the cache exactly how you found it, for there are many young two-legged creatures about. Thanks to jbsings2266 for taking over the maintenance of this cache! ---------------------------------- Among the Ferns (Polystichum munitum) Washington's moist and mild coastal climate provides the perfect habitat for ferns to grow and thrive. You may find several fern species close to this cache. The most abudant is a member of the Polypody family (Polypodiaceae), the lush Sword Fern. These ferns grow from a perennial crown base. The crown is a woody clump of rhizomes (root-stems) that may reach 2 feet in diameter, and is covered in reddish brown scales. Roots grow out from the buried stems. Stately fronds grow upward from the crown. Did you know that ferns have no flowers? How do they reproduce? They do so by spores, a primitive means of reproduction dependent on wind and water. You can sometimes see the sporangia below the frond, tiny sacs full of spores. Spores drift to the ground and can only grow on moist soil. Frail gametophytes arise, containing only half the genetic array of the parent. Gametophytes have male and female structures and depend on sperm to swim (this is a wet climate, right?) to fertilize the female egg. Only when fertilized can a proper leafy plant arise. These ferns range from Oregon through B.C., Canada almost to the Yukon border. They especially like to grow near the western red cedar (Thuja plicata) where rich nutrients seep through the ground. Okay, we're hungry! Native Americans used the ferns for various purposes. In Spring, you can dig up the rhizomes, clean them, and cook them in an open fire. Like the natives you can peal them and eat with grease (or butter) and salmon eggs. The young fronds (fiddle heads) can be cooked and eaten fresh. The adult plants form nice decorations. Take a few minutes to notice the ferns, as well as the foreign, invading blackberries at the cache site. I don't think anyone would mind if you wanted to clip, pull, or at least step on a blackberry vine or two. CITO is always welcome!
Additional Hints
(Decrypt)
Na byq tvnag jnf xvyyrq naq unhyrq njnl ybat ntb.