The Rice Pine Traditional Cache
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Difficulty:
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Terrain:
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Size: 
(regular)
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Park at the metal gate and follow the path to the Cache. Watch for the Rice Pine along your way.
On May 18th, 1940 The Civilian Conservation Corps established Base Camp S-138 on the outskirts of the Village of Lake Placid. The purpose of this Camp was to re-plant the Forest from the Village of Lake Placid to the State Hospital at Ray Brook. This area had been devastated by Forest Fires, now known as Wild Fires, mostly caused by passing trains. The re-planting of this area had been begun in 1909 by the State of New York.
These Boys and Men were from various parts of New York and the Eastern United States. Known as “Roosevelt’s Tree Army” it is rumored that they planted over a million Scotch Pine Saplings in the area that became the Clifford Pettis Memorial Forest. The legend of the “Rice Pine” is part of their legacy.
The Legend as it was told by Bill McLaughlin appeared in the Adirondack Daily Enterprise and went something like this. When the Cook arrived at camp he discovered that most of the food supplies were Government Surplus. There was the usual items and something that he had never seen before. That was surplus Rice. Hundreds of 50 lb bags of Rice! He set about sorting his food stock and knew when the Men returned that evening they would be hungry. He needed to cook a quick meal so he read the directions for cooking the rice. Finding it to be easily cooked, he took two of the largest cooking pots, filled them with water and put them on his fire to boil.
He went on about the business of cooking the meat. When the water came to a boil he decided it was time to add the rice. He didn’t have any way to measure the rice so he just poured a couple bags of rice in each pot and covered them. After a few minutes he heard a gurgling and turned around just in time to see the lids blow off his rice pots! Rice was boiling out of the pots and onto the ground. He tried in vain to recover the pots to contain the rice.
Needless to say there was much more cooked rice than the men ever could eat! The cook, in an effort to hide his mistake, went out from camp and buried the excess rice. He put a sapling on top of this pit for camouflage.
This sapling started to grow! It grew much faster and larger than any other sapling planted! It allegedly grew to maturity within just a few years! It was the largest and tallest Pine in all the Forest. The story goes on to say for years afterward people arriving by the New York Central Rail Line could see this “Frankenpine” (I just couldn't resist!) perched on the hill for miles before entering the Village of Lake Placid.
The location of this Camp and Tree has been reported as being in one of two places. One by the locals and the other by the Newspapers. I placed the cache at one of these two places that I found to be more likely.
The entrance to the trail is on the Old Military Road. It is an old Fire Road on the left hand side as you're driving towards Route 86 and Saranac Lake. About a mile and a half up the hill from the Fire Station. If the road you find is driveable you aren't at the right place!
The cache is a Fifty Cal Ammo Box with the usuall trade items.
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Treasures
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