Having participated in my first CITO event last year in
Garland, I wanted to host one closer to home this year. Doe Branch
Park is one of my favorite places to cache and hike. It's basically
a large undeveloped park with dirt trails at
Lewisville Lake, north of Little Elm. The park is maintained
by the US
Army Corps of Engineers and patrolled by
Texas Parks and Wildlife. It's great place to hike and cache
with a beautiful view of the lake, as it's on a peninsula.
Since it is a somewhat primitive park, it's not monitored
continuously. This means dumping and littering does take place.
Scout troops have cleaned it up in the past, but the debris has
accumulated again, particularly in the parking and boat ramp area.
Our objective is to bring this park back to a respectable state
once again for enjoyment of cachers and others.
As with many CITO
events, we are hosting this on Earth Day, April 22. The trash
pickup will begin around 10:00am, though organizers will be showing
up around 9:00am. Weather may be a factor, so keep an eye out for
updates here.
We are organizing this event with the cooperation of the
Army Corps of Engineers, who are very pleased to have us out
there. Also, Boy Scout Troop
871 has approached us about having a joint project for the
cleanup, which we have gladly agreed to. The Corps is providing
trash bags and a trailer to haul the trash. We are working with the
Scouts and perhaps some local businesses to provide other materials
and resources. The Scouts would also like to paint the fence
railings and clear some brush around the parking area. More details
to come on these efforts. There will be prizes for drawing and
contests. We will be grilling up some hot dogs for the volunteers
and water will be available for washing and drinking. Thanks to the
Town of Little Elm, we will have some portable bathroom facilities
available, in addition to paint and a mowing tractor.
This is a great way to benefit our environment and preserve our
natural areas on Earth Day. As cachers, it's important we support
sites like this which provide wonderful areas to geocache, hike,
and enjoy nature. (And, of course, you earn one of those impressive
CITO icons!)
It is recommended you bring a cap/hat, work gloves, bug repellant,
sunscreen, and extra water. Shorts are not recommended. Bring a
camera to log your photos! An FRS radio would be handy, too. There
are currently thirteen
caches in and around the park. Nearby Mosley Wildlife
Management Area also has quite a number of recent caches to hunt,
listed
here. Alchemist2000 also has a Terracache in this park.
Since there are participants involved who are not cachers, we have
set up a Yahoo group to discuss the detailed planning:
Doe Branch
Park Cleanup/CITO 2006
Thanks to
Loco Lupine for his support on this project!
FOOD LIST (as
of 4/19):
LOCO LUPINE: Baked beans
CAVEMAN2040: Paper plates
KLCE: Chips
DREAMCACHER V: Chips
9KEY: Several soft drinks and water cooler
ZEKE'S UNCLE: Cookies
SPORTSTERS: Mustard, Catsup/Ketchup, Sweet Relish, Dill Relish,
Mayo, cookies, Doritos, and napkins
BOY SCOUTS/FELIX: 5 gallon water cooler (and grill)
CORPS/TIM: Ice and water jugs
CACHESAFARI: plastic utensils, disposable cups (and grill)
SANDIEGOSUNRISE (and family): condiments, buns and various side
dishes (and grill)
ALCHEMIST2000: soda, bottled water, and cookies
NON-FOOD LIST
(as of 4/19):
EVERYONE: chairs, bug repellant, sunscreen,
cap/hat, work gloves, camera, FRS radio
SCOUTS/FELIX: Canopy tent, first aid kit
LOCO LUPINE: Canopy tent, disposable gloves, prizes, cache
container for contest, event sign, water for washing hands, CITO
handout kits, tables
TOWN OF LITTLE ELM: mower tractor, paint, large item trailer, (2)
portable bathrooms
CACHESAFARI: prizes, event logs, power pruner/trimmer, tables (if
room in vehicle)
CORPS/TIM: trash bags and trailer for trash
MILKBONE15: Cutting/trimming tools
JIMBROWNG: two tables
ROCK HOUNDS 5: chain saw (tentative)
ZEKE's UNCLE: cutting/trimming tools
ALCHEMIST2000: prizes
 Kid Friendly  Cache In - Trash Out!
 Dogs Allowed
Available year-round  Bicycles
permitted on paths  Less
than 500 ft. from car to cache
 Long pants
suggested  No restrooms available
Off-trail Hiking Required  Scenic View  No Offroad
Vehicles  Fire Danger, No Campfires
 Weather
Permitting  Wear bug repellant!
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