Chambers Island, Door County, WI

The Geocats and family members got their first first-to-find after boating out to Chambers Island in the middle of Lake Michigan's Green Bay. (Click map to enlarge.) Each year in June, the family gathers for a week's vacation in Door County, Wisconsin. This year we took advantage of the warm weather with a boat ride out to the island.

The sky was a brilliant blue and the sun was shining. The water was flat, and warm enough for a swim - rare for this far north in Lake Michigan. We had to take care of the many shoals in the area, skirting the north point of Chambers Island by more than a mile. Death's Door is close by, so boaters beware! The water was so clear, however, the shallows were easy to spot.

We beached the boat in the cove on the island's north shore. The sand beach provided a great place to toss the Frisbee around. After a bit of play, we started or search for the cache. And although it should have been easy to find, inexperience with the GPS and over-looking the obvious made it a challenge. Matt, lower right in the photo, was the actual finder. Tonka_Boy, in the center, and Wayfarer222, on the right, pose with the sisters and nephews.

Update on Chambers Island: Another cache was placed on the island last September. Next summer, we are so there!

Geocaching on Horseshoe Island

The weather was perfect for boating this week. And geocaching! So we packed the boat and made the trip out to Horseshoe Island.

Horseshoe Island, Door County, WI

This photo was borrowed from sfgamchick on flikr.

Named (of course) for its distinctive shape, the island is part of Peninsula State Park and is a popular destination for boaters. On a calm day, it's reachable by kayak. There is only one geocache on the island, but geocaching was only part of the fun. The crystal clear water allowed us to spot and easily catch some good-size smallmouth bass, and the water temps made it perfect for swimming in the hot sun.

The author with nephews, Brian and Matt

The shoreline was pretty rocky, so we anchored out just a ways. That was OK though, it made for better fishing and diving off the back of the boat.

Lost Lake Micro Cache

A warm June day and time for a trip over to the new docks on Lost Lake. Lost Lake is a part of Lake Minnetonka that has completely filled in, and is now a large wetlands area. A few years ago the decision was made to dredge a channel through Lost Lake to accommodate the new docks and slips for downtown Mound, Minnesota.

New Slips at Mound

The new slips don't get much boating traffic. Maybe that because no one on the lake knows about them, or maybe it's because there's very little to do in Mound once you get docked. The nearest bar/restaurant is a three-block walk down the street. And although the docks are great, and the Mound greenway is very pretty, it all seems to have been built for a party that has yet to happen.

Near a sign commemorating a walking trail dedicated to the Andrews Sisters, we found the micro cache at Lost Lake. That's not all we found. Here's a picture of a garter snake sunning itself among the gardens there.

Geocache at Lake Minnetonka Regional Park

Chris and I have joined the ranks of semi-tech nerds by finding our first geocache. . . Pioneers: Lake Mtka Reg. Park. It was not far from home, so it was just challenging enough for our first. The coordinates posted on the internet led us to an informational sign describing an original settler's home. Remains of the home are still standing, but fenced off because of the dilapidated condition of the stone construction. Following the instructions given on the internet, we used the date of the home and deciphered the coordinates of the geocache.