Letterboxing Amusements

Knoebels Amusement Resort lured us to Cyclonic's 3rd annual gathering of letterboxers. We had a hard time getting all of our camping stuff out the door as our kitten thought he was going with us again this year. We reminded him how he gets all introverted around people lately, must take after me, and he allowed us to go. Because we were cat free we were looking forward to riding some rides and playing DDR at the arcade.

On route, RGBisME and I had a great time finding a couple of boxes near Montoursville. The first took us to a park we knew nothing about; the best kind of letterboxing experience is finding a new cool local place. The walk was decent and the history was very cool. The second box was a bit more remote and hidden near the great Loyalsock Trail. A hand carved stamp with a appropriate theme made us remark pleasantly. Being on the trail made us want to keep on hiking in our soul filling PA wood but our plans took us to Elysburg and beyond.

Just before reaching our destination, we saw a local church with a memorial Field of Flags that made us turn the car around and stop to recognize the loss of life that has occurred. The death of our many folks in the US military are recognized as individuals, one flag each. Seeing a number, a big number like 4,163 is never easy to visualize as a physical volume or presence but this memorial brought it home. The flags flapping freely in the breeze reminded me that just as many individuals, each someone's baby, was no longer able to move or live their lives. I am grateful that I am free to move and live.

Setting up camp was fun. It was so cool to use the big canvas BSA tent my Toolman Luke gave us. We brought so much stuff, even an extra tent. Having an electric hook up expanded the list of things we had brought along. We felt a little goofy stringing up purple lights but were glad when it got dark to have a way to clearly find our spot. A hammock was another thing that felt like a silly indulgence but between JBZfarm (our camping neighbors) and us, it got a lot of use.

A trip into Ashland with some of the others that were camping made for a nice change of venue. We took over a large table in the back of Devito's resturant where we enjoyed a good meal with Schizokeet, Cyclonic, JBZfarm, Pink Panther and Gerania. There was no local girl cat fight as entertainment this year but plenty of good food and conversation was had. Pink Panther treated us all by picking up the tab! A joyful and generous person, thank you Pink Panther I wish we had been able to visit more.

The event in the morning drew folks much farther than just central PA, I sometimes got confused as to where each letterboxer was from so apologize to Schizokeet whom I forgot was from VA not somewhere in NE. I plopped myself down in pretty much one spot to share exchanges and personal travels with many good letterboxers. A highlight of the morning was being reunited with my hiking stick. As was promised, Bibliochicks returned my stick which they has found on a long hike near Ithaca. Amazing coincidence that they found it, picked it up, and located me!

After sitting for so long, we were glad to be treated to some challenging letterboxes. Aweomse boxes planted for the day by JBZfarm, Cyclonic, Phynstar and Felix Felcis were hidden right in the park.

Cyclonic's event series of 4 came together to make an image that reflected the great times we had in the park that day. We will never forget the excitement of waiting and watching to see how each of the letterboxers in front of us jockeyed themselves in line to get the exact car on The Flyers ride to find one of the four event stamps. As we stood in the sunshine Lotus was the first we saw get into the correct car and she had her head down, stamping in, during a long time as the ride spun her car into the air. We minimized the time we would waste by having the ink we needed and log book ready to go, I didn't want to get sick looking down and stamping in the air.

Before the ride started with it's next group of passengers, the sky started to fill with a few clouds and a little breeze picked up to cool us off. We allowed the kids behind us to get go ahead so we would be first in line and have our choice of cars! Sheba and Phynstar had no problem getting into the only car that had the stamp. It looked like they stamped into both of their logs and got them packed away even before the ride started up! Excellent except... was that the sound of thunder? A few drops of rain started to fall as Sheba and Phynstar disembarked from the ride. Would the operator tell us The Flyers were closed for a while?

Even in the light rain the operator oened the gate to us! Thanks to being in front we made a bee line to the #1 car that was secretly monopolized time after time by an odd group of people who insistited on groping the seat of their car the moment they sat down. Near my knee I felt for the 1" x 1" stamp that had a magnetic strip on it's back and success! RGBiMe and I stamped into the framework of the main stamp we had stamped onto 3 separate cards. I had no idea if I was going to mess up stamping on the ride so I wanted a few tries, all three turned out really well. We packed the log away and settled in as the ride lifted us into the air.

We weren't sure if it was raining harder or if it was it that the ride pushed us onto the raindrops with more force. As the wind picked up and whipped the leaves on the trees around the ride, the screams of glee took on a more panicked sound. The skies opened up and we screamed as we were pelted with what could only be classified as stinging rain. I was glad the log books were packed away and I looked down to see the line for the ride clearing out a bit except for a few die hard boxers that were standing there drenched.

We exited the ride and the rain let up some. We stood with Diane von der Insel to watch as her husband Dave handed the operator his ticket for the next go round. Oh no! A little girl made it into car #1 but Dave walked on. From a distance, we watched as he stood and chatted with the girl for a few seconds. She calmly got out of car #1 and walked to another car! RGBisMe, Diane and I totally cracked up into laughter; only Dave could successfully and kindly talk a girl into moving to another car on the same ride. As it turned out, he had told the girl that when he was a small boy that someone had photographed him in that very car and that he was hoping that his wife could take a photo of him in the same car. Would she mind moving? Apparently she didn't mind. Dear Dave, the most disarming spinner of tales we know.

After finding some amazing carvings by JBZfarm and finally riding some rides just for fun. Our evening was filled with visiting at 2 different campfires. The big party had many letterboxers, old and new. The friendship and laughter shared at this campfire was peppered with great stories of good times, letterboxing and otherwise. RGBisMe were a little overwhelmed with some attention and interest we received. It is very amusing to have folks who have never logged any of your letterboxes come up and want to chat you up about your carvings. Personally, I am much more comfortable talking about any of my boxes as a whole experience but have no problem sharing carving and design techniques. I guess my comfort level also increases with smaller groups; quietly sharing a few good stories with the 4Rhines, Wanting Snow and crew, and/or JBZfarm at the campfire near our tent holds even warmer memories for me. Learning how PA Paddler can make some great french press camp coffee and flip a mean camp pancake capped off our very full weekend. Thank you to everyone who came together to make this event what is was.

Can You Keep a Secret?

Our good friends Mososo Kruppe pointed out that this past June 12, Gae Kane wrote an article about letterboxing for The Progress in Clearfield area. It featured a couple of letterboxes, one of which was ours. It shared photos of the boxes, stamps and locations of the boxes. We, nor the other box owners, Mososo Kruppe, were interviewed. I have a hunch she used one of our info sheets to gather some info on letterboxing history. Having, a year before, attempted one of our boxes that had gone missing, Gale left a message in a bottle for us in a place where she assumed the box was to have been. Mososo Kruppe found it and told us about it.

I am not sure where she got some of her ideas, some make me chuckle, others just scratch my head. I would share an online link to the article but I do not think one exists for this small newspaper. I will share the article with you by typing it out.

Clues lead to 'treasure' in Clearflied County
Shh... can you keep a secret? If you promise to keep this a secret, then I'll tell you about the tiny treasures hidden right here in our very own backyard. These treasures are part of what is called "Letterboxing." Devotees of letterboxing, which is the English version of orienteering, search for hundreds of thousands of small containers hidden all over the world.

"Letterboxers," who are part of a very discreet group of people, spend their evenings searching for clues and answers to questions posed by other letterboxers who have hidden tiny treasures in the most unlikely of spaces.

These treasure hunts are mental challenges that require the use of maps, compasses and finding solutions to clues, convoluted riddles or questions. The key to letterboxing is doing it without detection by the general population.

There are hundreds of boxes hidden all across this region. Each one of them has been created and placed by letterboxers. These treasure hunts go without any official sanction or governing organization; in fact, the whole idea grew spontaneously. Most of the letterboxes range in size from film canisters or pill bottles to small plastic containers.

Recently, Chris and Brad Waddell and their two daughters, Kelly and Heather, invited my granddaughter Molly and me to go along in search of these tiny treasures.

The first was in downtown Clearfield. While walking downtown, we discussed the rules; first, letterboxes are placed where it is safe to find them; second, and considered very important, nothing surrounding the letterbox is to be disturbed; third, letterboxers should remove any litter found along the way to the letterbox site; fourth, respect property ownership by avoiding doing any damage, sticking to paths and fastening gates; fifth, protect wildlife, plants and trees; and sixth, never remove a letterbox - always put it back where you found it for the next person.

The Waddells made it very clear that while searching no attention should be drawn to the activity... it's a secret, so please keep it that way. Letterboxes are usually so well hidden that you can pass by them for years and never see them.

Once in the general downtown area we discussed the clues, which were downloaded from Letterboxing.org, Now all we had to do was resolve the best possible answers for all of the questions. This is where a touch of area history and general knowledge of the town proved to be very important.

The first site we selected was not correct, so we reversed our steps. Once on the correct site the girls found the answer to the first clue and aligned their compasses to pace off the correct number of steps, eventually leading them to a letterbox.

This all sounds easy, however, the letterboxer had a few twists and turns in store for us before we actually found the box. In a couple of minutes after the discovery, we all settled down to stamp up.

Hidden inside the letterbox were a handmade rubber stamp and a notebook. Letterboxers always document their finds through unique rubbers stamp signatures in their personal logbooks and in the logbook within the letterbox. Each of these are dated, the hometown of the finder is noted, and usually first names are added.

During the inspection of the logbook, the girls found many were from the area, but an almost equal number were from the distant reaches.

The sun was shining and the Waddells had another letterbox for us to find hidden at S.B> Elliott State Park, so we moved on. The park proved to be an excellent place to search because the hiking trail was well marked and didn't require much more than a walk in the woods; plus we were alone for our search.

Its(sic) rather nice that letterboxers seldom cross paths, but they do keep in touch with each other through the logbooks and online. Being the first to find a newly posted letterbox carries with it high prestige. Most people who participate in letterboxing, orienteering, or geocaching have children who are participating, and generally take along picnic lunches.

Some of the letterboxes require some degree of physical fitness while others are accessible by those with physical considerations.

Letterboxes are generally posted online, but a few are by word-of-mouth only. The clues for these are circulated from one person to another. Letterboxes can also be "travelers" which are carried by people who are letterboxing. A moving letterbox is found inside another box and is then moved to the next letterbox visited, permitting the letterbox to travel around the world.

Letterboxing began in 1854 when an Englishman put his calling card in a bottle and left it in the English countryside. Other walkers quickly left cards and then began to add post cards that were mailed back to their owner detailing the find.

Geocaching is a rather new, but rapidly growing form of letterboxing the requires the use of Global Positioning System units. Today almost 70,000 caches are active around the world. The biggest difference in geocaching is that the finder takes something from the cache and leaves something behind describing what was taken and left in the logbook.

Going over a summer's logbook is fun on a cold winter day. Some letterboxers even frame the stamps they have collected or mount them in scrapbooks.

Letterboxing seems to give a sense of adventure, achievement, and satisfaction because it combines treasure hunting, hiking, orienteering, map reading, exploring, puzzle solving and creative expression in a very unique activity enjoyed around the world.

In Western Pennsylvania there are more than 125 letterboxes and more than 36 in the Clearfield County area.

Happy treasure hunting!




The full page with detailed photos of the boxes, locations and close ups of the stamp images also included a side bar highlighting:

Tools for Letterboxing
• Homemade rubber stamp
• Logbook
• Homemade rubber stamp
• Compass or Global Positioning System device
• Good shoes - sneakers or hiking boots if you plan to cover difficult ground
• Long pants
• Small first aid box with basics
• Insect repellant
• Water bottles
• Flashlight and stick to probe dark spaces before reaching in
• Binoculars
• Camera
• Picnic lunch

An August Month

We spent all of August visiting with our son. We took some road trips, ate out at Korean restaurants, and laughed together a lot. Picnicking at Alan Seeger Natural Area with Maga11 and Toolman Luke is an annual highlight. We joked around, cleaned up the stream and cooked over the fire. While Ravenboy went on a solo hike I got the stupid idea of moving all of our stuff to another picnic site. This included carrying the burning logs and coals to a new fire ring. Upon his return, Ravenboy's reaction was anticlimactic. "Why did you move?" and Toolman kept up a constant whine that the chipmunks were cuter at the old site. It was a lot of energy expended for a very little laugh.

Thinking of energy, it sure was nice to have some extra muscle around the house. Mowing the lawn can be drudgery in the middle of summer but it was a fun way to work out for Ravenboy. He was not happy that I took his picture but I did it anyway.




I had already blogged about a couple of outings with Dabralady but didn't mention that we went over to her camp in Poe Valley. Visiting with her mom, Marge, and Amish Punk was just like old times. A rustic theme again with the sitting around an open fire yet Marge offered us something we do not have at home. She had television and we watched the final "So You Think You Can Dance." We had never seen the show before but had heard that one of Ravenboy's former coworkers had a good chance of winning. We watched the lame dances and Danny Tidwell came in second. Danny had the best training but Ravenboy pointed out, "America loves an underdog." The winner had only been dancing for 4 years.

A trip over the mountain to play some badminton and croquet at Toolman Luke and Maga11's was a must. Badminton may seem like a cakewalk; playing a game where you bat a little birdie lightly over a net while the sun is kept off of the players with the parasols they hold in their non-racket hands. WRONG! We play killer olympic style badminton, regulation court dimensions with blistering fast volleys and carefully timed sleeping lobs that send the players diving head first into the lawn to try to keep from losing a point or their serve. I am still slowly recovering from a pulled muscle from my first ever badminton victory over Toolman Luke who had once beaten an olympic badminton champion.

One final indulgence was a trip to the local Grange Fair. As a family, we have enjoyed taking time to visit the live stock pens. Sometimes we would take sketch books with us since the animals there have to hold pretty still the way they are kept. It is bittersweet seeing the beautiful animals so close yet knowing they are there being sold for slaughter. We bought a pet rabbit once at the fair, she was a lovely rex named Hyznthlay.

Food is another theme of the Grange Fair. It is fun to walk through the displays of harvested produce, pies and canned items that are being judged. It is also hard to avoid grabbing a snack at some of the food venders. Fair food is not some of the healthiest stuff out there but splitting an order of fries 3 ways made me feel a little less lead filled. Carnival games flashed everywhere and I was able to talk Ravenboy into one game of Dance Dance Revolution. I almost did ok but my pulled muscle held me back, I think.

The month came to an end all too soon. We drove Ravenboy back to NYC on the first of September. We stopped near our typical halfway point to enjoy one last walk in nature and find a pleasant letterbox. My muscle was still hurting so I hobbled behind my two fellows and snapped some candid photos. The one I liked best though was our posed shot with the view behind us. It was a gorgeous view that reflected the great month I had.

Changes in Platitudes

After a work week of drudgery and recovering from a summer cold in the family we found ourselves shifting gears a few times. First was what I liked to call the Buffett Buffet. Jimmy Buffet impersonator, Tom Watt, gave a performance at our local Toftrees resort. It was a mellow evening chillin' by the pool wit a bunch of self purported Parrotheads and food and booze.

The next day we escaped to my very favorite little slice of paradise. Although there were no cheeseburgers there, sorry, we built up a fire and sat around shooting the breeze all day at Alan Seeger Natural Area. Sure there is a letterbox there. :)


Today has us visiting Ravenboy's former ballet instructors who are currently his local employers. He has enjoyed a couple of weeks of giving back to his hometown what he has been learning as a pro. We will have an evening of being entertained by the hosts and their 6 kiddos, all well versed in all of the performing arts. Along with the promised Italian meal, we will most certainly be treated to a variety of song, dance and merriment.

Heat Shield Stonehenge

Summer offers an added bonus with the heat and rain contributing to ongoing rusting. I am really excited at the progress I am making with my heat shield project! Let me know if you would like to contribute.

Across the Universe

It's only going on a year and a half since we hid it but Across the Universe is our only letterbox which has not been found. I am not saying that folks don't have ideas where it might be but, as far as I know, no one has gone looking for it yet. This is kind of exciting. I don't need to have all of our boxes found but when one is, it confirms that they are findable and not just trash in the field.

The Mustard Ultimatum

We were trying to find out just how far we could push it at the drive-in movie; we brought our own snacks. How much spicy mustard we could get through in one evening?

The pretzel bag was just opened when a series of unforeseen catastrophes thwarted the efforts of the characters in the movie and the snackers in the car. Mustard was all over the front seat of the car and not one pretzel had been dipped as a sniper zeroed in on the main characters. Studied yet casual camo pants and a very classy shirt from a hoity toity SoHo shop were covered in bright yellow mustard as Matthew Bourne ran helter skelter across the screen. Napkins were rushed from the snack bar just as the hero seemingly escaped catastrophe.

Calm ensued but a surprise attack came from the assassin on the screen and the same mustard found it's way onto the back seats of the car and onto my sneakers and pajamas. Frantic clean up efforts echoed the giant cinematic figures looming over our car hood. As they escaped again, we settled down to watch the rest of The Bourne Ultimatum with the distinct and pungent aroma of vinegar in the air.

Pennsylvania Renaissance Faire

Ravenboy is home for the month and we love reliving good old times. Really old times in this case, this family and Dabralady spent the day in Mt. Hope at the Pennsylvania Renaissance Faire. Set in 1601,the entire festival celebrates the end of the Spanish Threat to English sovereignty and to the glory of the colonies in the New World. You can spend an entire day, 11:00 am - 8:00 PM, within the festival grounds and not see even half of everything that is going on. Shows included bands playing period instruments, vocalists with tawdry song and dance, and Shakespearean plays all performed on outdoor stages. Many performers are not miked so it makes it hard with untrained and noisy audiences attending.

From as far away as West Virginia, Maryland and New Jersey revelers travel to Mt. Hope and join many locals in period garb to fully experience the day. Pennsylvania Renaissance Faire has been established for over a quarter of a century and falls mostly during the month of August weekends so it is very difficult to avoid the heat. We went on a beautiful day and did our best to seek the shade of some of the old growth trees on the grounds. It was hard to avoid the sun though as we sat at the edge of Bosworth jousting field to watch the royal falconer give his show.

Dabralady found a lovely ring of silver filigree in one of the many fine shops along the merchant's row. RGBisMe and I were glad to try some fine Honey Mead and ended up purchasing a couple of bottles. Ravenboy was glad to be able to attend the acrobat's performances. He has a friend who was blowing fire in a performance at Arlington racetrack pretty much at the same time as we watched another young lady accomplish the feat.

If you have attended this faire in the past you may not realize how much is has grown. Yes, the mud pit, beggars and Sir Walter Raleigh are still on the scene but they now utilize so much more of the enclosed grounds that had been stretches of open grass before. There was something going on everywhere I looked and although I was tired and over-stimulated by the end of the day I was also very satisfied and felt I had gotten more than my money's worth.

Susquehanna River Trail

Last year an exciting letterbox appeared on our radar. Jbzfarm planted what was classified as an extreme letterbox, Susquehanna River Trail. I looked at the clues and quickly determined that it was not something I could just paddle out to and back on an inner-tube because there were no access points right by the island on which the letterbox is planted. It is also in the middle of a mile wide river. Rivers have current and larger fish. Larger fish mean larger teeth. That was pretty scary so I quickly determined it was extreme indeed and that I would have to try to find a canoe to borrow. Preferably with someone to show me how to use it.

I threw out some feelers earlier this year and the 4Rhines said that they were in the middle of planning a trip to get the same letterbox with KellyandBen. I stepped up my efforts to find a canoe and started researching the stretch of the river so that RGBisMe and I might be able to join them.

While researching, I foundthe clues to the box have a couple of great links. I had no idea the river is treated like an actual trail, with registers and folks who maintain certain stretches. I enjoyed reading about what areas of the river were preferred for travel and started checking out the gages that gave what level the river was at and the flow rates.

About a month ago, I broke down and asked jbzfarm if they might have a canoe to lend. They were excited to hear that a trip was in the works and suggested we might all go together, the more the merrier. It became clear that this family loves the river and they wanted to share the island that they maintain as a small camping spot. I was surprised, I thought they had pretty much just randomly chose a secure spot on an island to plant a box. These folks clear debris from the river and keep a couple of islands upriver from Duncannon in camping condition.

Maga11 & Toolman Luke had been planning a big yard sale and I remembered they wanted to get rid of an inflatable raft. Since jbzfarm said the river was at a level that it would be more fun to use tubes anyway I thought that trying this old raft might work. I took time to inflate it and leave it for a few days, it held it's air and Toolman Luke assured me the bottom shouldn't have any holes either.

They day before the trip, I wondered if it might not happen at all. Logistics of the excursion shifted a bit radically, the originators of the August 4th plans KellyandBen and 4Rhines had things come up at the last moment. The river was down to a typical August level and we were in the middle of a terrible heat wave. Worst of all, jbzfarm pointed out that I was missing a most important piece of equipment, a couple of closed cell foam... drink coolies. D@ng, where was I to find something like that in less than 24 hours? I had already rented 2 PFDs and a paddle, I hadn't seen anything like that at the outfitter. Joe assured me this was essential as the river gets very hot and how would we keep our lagers, cosmos and mojitos cool?

Thank goodness for old friends! Good ol' noxer, DaBraLaday came through and said she had 3 to bring for a price. DaBraLady wanted to join the party and even wanted to join in the letterboxing! YAY! We carved her a signature stamp and cootied her, first thing that morning. She had see us magically pull boxes from locations over the past years. At times she had just rolled her eyes at us but I could tell as she inked up her stamp and asked just how to huff it that she was going to get the hang of it quickly.

It was hazy and hot as we started our trip. We were a happy group putting in at Montgomery Ferry. The water was surprisingly warm. We had 5 miles to float during a pretty hot time of the day so I could tell there was no way I was going to stay in the raft, big fish or no. It was shocking that the water was usually only waste deep!RGBisMe and DaBraLady took to the tubes first while Evelyn and I took the raft. Evy was a great lookout for rapids and rocks and would let the group know when some appeared on the distant horizon.

There were exciting things to see along the way. RGBisMe and Joe pointed out an immature eagle. We saw a lot of different birds, butterflies, dragonflies and darning needles. The only fish I saw were tiny little ones that liked hiding under the raft. They looked like tetras. After about a mile, Joe called to a flock of geese. They ignored him but he did draw the attention of a fellow from a notorious picnic area along our right.

After another relaxing mile of great conversation, bouncing blown bubbles and fumbled nerf tosses, we stopped to snack a bit and refresh our all important drink coolies. Becky had a wonderfully refreshing mix in her nalgene bottle which she generously shared. Who knew those bottle were good for anything other than water! As we set off again RGBisMe managed to separate himself from me with the drink we had been sharing. He grinned in his quiet way as he lifted the red cup as a salute to me and the current swept him away. I took to my bottle of water and tried some tasty Propel.

I was pleased that the cool map I bought was keeping me oriented properly. This was such a unique experience; no blazes, no trail intersection signs, just islands and the curve of the river to help you know where you were. The beauty of the area just surrounds you. It is like walking a large alpine ridge top, constant views all around you. As we passed under the crackling powerlines, we knew we were about a half of a mile from Island #89. It is one of the islands that river travelers are allowed to camp on and our goal for the day.

As our hosts unloaded their boat and collected firewood, we took out the clues and zeroed in on the expected location of the letterbox. DaBraLady checked out a pile of rocks and soon we were able to shout, "We have decon!" It is pretty funny that the first letterbox DaBraLady has ever stamped into is an "extreme" letterbox. She earned it honestly and deserved the right to stamp in ahead of us. It was a special moment finding a box in the middle of the river. Jbzfarm always have great locations and carvings, this one did not let us down.


Our hosts made a fire and cooked up some grub with no delay. We were all a little fatigued and the meal put us in the mood for a nice nap. Instead we chatted about things around the fire. Danek told us about his week at Boy Scout Camp. It was great to get to know each other even better before we had to pack up and cut across the mighty river once again. A wonderful way to spend a brutally hot summer day. I hope we can do it again, next time perhaps KellyandBen and 4Rhines can join in.

The Amazing Franklin

This weekend we found ourselves staying home for a few reasons. One was that Franklin, our 6 year old Red Eared Slider, has been very needy. She gets something like wander lust a couple of times a year and refuses to stay calmly in her 50 gallon kidney bean shaped tank. During these times I worry about her a lot because she also starts refusing to eat. After a week of her not eating, I get really stressed.

This week her wander lust set in and for the first time she was finally large enough to get out of the tank by herself. We can't leave her out on her own when she gets in this mood because she will sometimes flip over and not easily be able to right herself. Turtles can die of twisted bowels when they get flipped so we try to watch her as she walks all over the place.

We know that she is getting toward the end of her period of needing to roam when she finds a place in the house she likes to dig and tread with her back feet. I have always wondered if she is pretending to dig a hole to lay eggs. The only time she had ever laid an egg was far removed from her wandering spells, in her own tank.

She had been digging a bit by the front and back doors this time. It was the first time she ever got like this in weather that allowed me to let her outside. She walked across the back porch, into the grass in the back yard and within 2 minutes started to dig a hole.


She dug for a couple of hours as RGBisMe and I took turns watching her. As unsettled as she had been all week, we felt allowing her to dig until she had her fill was the best. I had to take a break in the house for a minute and when I came to the back door I saw she was taking a little rest with her one foot in what was at that time a hole, 3" x 2" on the surface and about 6" deep.

I was shocked to see her move her foot to the side and start to lay an egg. I called to RGBisMe who had been watching her while walking the kitten nearby. He came over and said, "She is laying another!" Franklin just kept laying eggs until I saw that the hole might easily fill. I started playing turtle midwife and catching them, putting them to the side so she would not feel like the hole was full. My concern was that she lay all she needed to so she would not become egg bound.


Franklin laid at least 13 eggs and took another hour to cover them and tamp them down until she was satisfied. One exhausted turtle slowly started to walk away from the area that was just a little patch of brown grass, you almost couldn't tell she had dug it at all.

We took her back to her tank and because her float bladder had been filled to buoy her when she was filled with eggs, she bobbed on the surface like a cork. We offered her some food but had to let out a lot of air before she could swim down to get it. She was ravenous and ate huge portions of avacado, watermellon and scrambled egg.

I welcome any and all suggestions how to build her a place to dig if this happens at a time during the colder months. A few key ingredients to a perfect spot must include: grass/ carpet like surface, something like sand to dig down into about 8" - 12", it has to fit in our house in the winter, Franklin has to access it from the floor.

30 Years Later

What did Cyclonic get me to do that no one else could? Not family nor boyfriends nor all of the fates combined could get me to cave in to watching the iconic Star Wars until today. For years I stubbornly refused to not only avoid it in the theaters but liked to smugly shock people that I had escaped all of the many times the movie was on television during the holidays. Cyclonic did what noone else ever had the guts to do, he handed me his copy of Star Wars and said, "Watch it." If he cared enough to remember my bragging about not seeing it, for him I would watch it, and I LIKED IT!

With years of hype about the movie making me determined to avoid seeing it, it did get me into trouble a few times. It caused a few arguments with lesser friends, made me clueless as to what my family was talking about and made me wonder what all of the merchandise on the store shelves was all about. My junior year in high school found me at an apathetic loss for what to write for a paper in English class. My sister had been doing some writing in her spare time and it wasn't too bad. I snatched up her idea, copying most of her lines verbatim. The paper was part of a project in class where it's grade was determined by classmates. The girl who graded mine turned to my best friend and said, "This is Star Wars! Why did she write that?" My friend honestly told her, "She has never seen the movie." I think I got a "C" on the paper.

It was so odd to watch a film for the first time yet to recognize every character and reference. First the Storm Troopers talking with their dark lord Darth Vadar about the Death Star and watching Princess Leia (Carrie looks like a young Debbie Reynolds!) shoot to defend herself. All 30 years since it's debut, my thoughts on it follow.

I never realized just how young the Luke Skywalker character was meant to be against the desert-like backdrop of the late 1970's imagined outer space. When the little holographic image of the princess appears and pleads to Obi-Wan Kenobi, my main hope was that Luke could get together with him and start to learn to flesh out the the young space farmer he portrayed. It reminded me of a scene out of Oklahoma and was sad when he didn't break into song about a bright golden haze on the droid as he looked out onto the 2 setting suns.

The sand people really spooked me and their attack on C-3PO made me think of the poor Scarecrow from the Wizard of OZ who was torn apart. I was grateful Luke could put him back together. Earlier this week, I devoured the final book in the Harry Potter series and kept wondering as I read if J.K. Rowling was going to pull a "Luke, I am your father," moment. Star Wars is a huge part of how people in our society make reference to things. It made me feel badly that I had waited so long to watch Star Wars that special scenes in the film have become so characterized that I couldn't appreciate them solely as the meaningful moments they were intended to be. Thanks to all of the You-tube videos of the Star Wars kid, I couldn't be impressed with Luke's rite of passage receiving his futuristic samurai sword. I cracked up every time I saw a lightsaber.

Even after years of up to date Disney graphics the space port where Obi-Wan and Luke meet Chewbacca and Han is still visually well done. The scene holds up well more than a quarter of a century after it's introduction to celluloid. The bar was, years later, well echoed by Quark's in Star Trek's DS9. Colorful characters must have been a real feast for the eyes and I am envious of those who innocently saw it the year it came out. They, however, did not have the pleasure of being reminded just how handsome Harrison Ford has been for oh so many years. If you are a fan and never saw The Conversation, make sure to see it.

I was shocked that I had built Jabba into a much bigger Hut than he actually was. Never having seen the character but hearing people make reference to him, I used his name in describing a nearby mountain. He is only an overgrown slug.

Before their escape from the Death Star, the masked Darth Vader meets hooded Obi-Wan. Maybe it was that their light sabers looking like wands but no, it was Obi-Wan allowing himself to be struck down that put to mind Dumbledoor stepping down to allow Harry's battling Voldemort. Young blood taking on the centuries old theme of good vs evil.

I admire this movie for representing the diversity of the universe. Not only in races but species and the many languages. It was a bold thing to suggest, I can't say that I have seen any other movie that has succeeded in pulling it off to this extent.

Cyclonic was right, I am grateful for hearing the origins of many of those great lines that have been the spice of our conversations for years. It is one thing to hear people quote them but the aplomb with which they are delivered by the characters is priceless. I might not remember all of the great lines and scenes as the die hards, just remember that I have only seen Star Wars... ONCE.

Trail Magic

I had always heard through-hikers speak of trail magic when hiking long distance on PCT, AT, even the MST. I am happy to report that it can happen on even shorter trails.

A month ago, Janila, Cylconic, Pink Panther and I tackled a few miles while finding letterboxes on a series of trails south of Ithaca. The letterboxes were a great group of called the Twelve Moons of Shindagin Hollow. It was a good hike and I took my Bob Weber hand carved hiking stick I had purchased at the Camal general store in Pine Creek Valley. I usually do not carry a stick but I didn't know what I was getting into. About two miles into the hike I told Cyclonic, "I am going to forget this."

Say it and it is so. Just finishing the last mile and 2 boxes, I turned to Janila and said, "I left my stick at one of the boxes." She was aghast and said, "We will go back!" I felt my feet throbbing and said, "We will not." I intended to contact the owner of the boxes and let her know I had lost it. By the time I remembered to do so, 2 other letterboxers had completed the same hike. I wrote to them with no luck. Something either Angsaidso or Cars replied to me convinced me that it was long gone. They mentioned how many mountain bikers were in the area. I was certain my stick had found a new home and wished it well.

While chatting online with Cyclonic this afternoon, he mentioned that the Bibliochicks had just contacted him about a stick they found while hiking Shindagin Hollow. They had contacted Angsaidso and Cars who said another boxer was looking for a hand carved stick they had lost!! One thing lead to another and, my stick seems to be in the hands of the wonderful Bibliochicks. It looks like I will be reunited with my stick in September at the Knoebel's gathering. Bless the Bibliochicks and good trail magic!

Summertime

In some ways, yesterday felt like a good old summer day from my youth. I was sitting around, enjoying a soda and laughing with friends. Yesterday's remarkable letterboxes, exceptional company, and scorching heat came to an end and our friends are planning to return home. Maybe that is why it makes me feel like summer itself is drawing to a close. The impending closings of all of PA state parks over a budget impasse certainly enhanced the feeling. Today, all non essential state employees are furloughed until the budget it passed.

It was an iced coffee that got us onto the road and energized us the whole way to Watervillle. We had our wits about us enough to tell the 3rd base side from the 1st base side of the ball field this time and we were able to to find jbzfarm's Pine Creek #8. Another masterful carving in a town where we spent many pleasant hours today. Supposedly the final in it's series, we will always hope for more.

Along a trail in Little Pine State Park, Mososo Kruppe made it possible for RGBisMe and and me to be able to see our first Bald Eagle's nest as well as a couple of mature Bald Eagles and their fledglings. A rolling hike also lead us on a hunt for a couple of mythical beasts, Harpy Hag and Agropelter. The hike and clues to these boxes were just right and if we hadn't been distracted by chatting, we might have correctly counted the number blazed trees. After realizing our mistake, the hunt went off without a hitch and two swank images now adorn our log books. These fearsome critters are in our central PA woods but their classy log books, locations and images are worth the fright.

It is always good to find letterboxes planted by people whose influences are at least slightly foreign to our own. It is one way to become inspired. Mososo Kruppe have the tradition of including generous first finder prizes. We have been lucky enough to have been treated to a PA Wilds pin that reflects a minimum donation to Pennsylvania Parks and Forests foundation, a gift certificate to a local restaurant, a bison figurine and a special card allowing us access to their multi leveled personal traveler It could be your Lucky Day!

The above mentioned personal traveler is a great idea. With a roll of a 20-sided die, you also roll your fate. Each number on the die represents either a good or bad luck icon. Each encounter with Mososo Kruppe allows a letterboxer another chance to roll for better luck or at least a new stamp from this collection. Between RGBisMe and myself we have 11 of the stamps, not bad for living hundreds of miles away from them! We know a new roll is a much coveted thing amongst some of their letterboxing acquaintances so I had to push my "luck" as it were. Every time we talked away the evening hours, closing down a couple of restaurants during their visit, I would ask if it counted for a new roll since it was after midnight. My trying to wheedle another roll was all in jest but the game is much fun for a PT!

Don't be sad Mososo Kruppe, I am sure that owl died of natural causes. There is a slight chance we won't see our friends for a while. Even with Dobsonflies (AUGH!), Hellgrammites and the promise of a chance encounter with Antlions here in PA, they have wonderful things ahead for them at home. Wedding plans, lessons plans and boxing plans are greeting their return. A big old empty space in our hearts and no state parks to hike in is going to drive us south, I swear.

More tom-foolery below!