On Holiday in the UK and Republic of Ireland - May 25-June 15, 2012

Day 1:  Today we flew out of Orlando, Florida, at 6:15pm for a 3-week adventure in the United Kingdom and the Republic of Ireland.  We lucked out and had three seats on the plane to ourselves.  Sweet!  Unfortunately, in spite of the extra space, we both still had a tough time sleeping during the flight but tried our best so we could hit the ground running when we flew into London's Gatwick airport bright and early the next morning.

Day 2:  Blimey!  We're in England.  Long live the Queen!  The flight through the night was bloody turbulent, which wasn't quite our cup of tea, but we arrived safely only 30 minutes late.  We hopped on a train and rode into Victoria Station in downtown London and then caught a taxi to our hotel.  We were able to check in early, then we gathered together our GPS, camera, and sheets with information about a few waymarking targets in the London area.  We were knackered, but determined to adjust to the new time zone as quickly as possible.

The Marine and the Tax Post

So, off we went to learn how to use the Tube in London's extensive Underground system.  It was actually very simple.  Our main target for the day was to find a rare London Coal Tax Post, which are iron posts or granite obelisks that were erected after 1861 to mark the boundary of London for taxation purposes.  These historic tax posts form a ring around the city in an approximately 15-mile radius.  There are only about 200 of them still in existence.  We read that there was supposed to be an unclaimed one in the Chigwell area of London, so we decided to try to locate it.  We walked and walked and walked and walked looking high and low, but no luck.  After a couple of hours, we finally gave up and headed to a different tax post that was reported to be in the Romford area of London.  This time we had to take not only the Underground, but also the National Rail and then more walking and walking and walking... you get the picture.  Our feet and calves were in agony.  However, we did get the rare waymark!  Woo hoo.  Yes, the Biologist is insane.  Sad, but true.  Oh, and we also found a UK Post Office.  Two new waymarking icons in one day!  Cha-ching.

Banqueting House of Whitehall Palace

Day 3:  We spent today, our second day in London, on a hop-on hop-off, double-decker bus tour and a river cruise on the Thames.  We were gobsmacked by all the traffic in London, which was apparently worse than usual because of the preparations for the Queen's 60th Jubilee, celebrating her 60 years on the throne, and a half marathon in the city.  Thankfully though, someone else was doing the driving!  We learned a lot from the tour guides on the buses, as well as the boat. We hopped off the bus in a couple of locations, including one near the former Whitehall Palace.  All that remains of the Palace is the Banqueting House, where King Charles I of England was executed on a scaffold in front of it in January 1649.  The Biologist wanted to check out this Great Building of the World just in case the potential new waymarking category for Monarch Execution Sites ever gets approved.  While we were here, we also spotted a World War II Memorial.  Then, on the way back to our hotel, we came across a Citizen Memorial, as well as a Blue Plaque for Tubby Clayton, an Anglican clergyman and the founder of Toc H, an international Christian movement.

Guard at Tower of London

Day 4:  Today, our last day in London, we stopped to check out a sign of Ancient Roman Civilization, the remnants of the London Wall, on our way to the Tower of London.  Then we skedaddled to the Tower to beat the crowds of tourists.  The Tower of London is absolutely packed with history for such a small area.  It gave us goose bumps to think that we were in the location where Anne Boleyn was held and executed to name just one piece of the history of this place.  It's also the home of the Crown Jewels of the United Kingdom, and the bling was absolutely blinding!

Victorian Post Box

After leaving the Tower, we hopped on the tube and headed to Buckingham Palace to get a better look than what we saw from the tour bus yesterday.  Unfortunately, all the preparations for the Queen's Jubilee really took away from the appearance of the Palace as they were erecting a 12,000 seat stadium right in front of it.  The good news is that we found several more waymarks while we were out and about, including a few Pictorial Pub Signs and a couple of Victorian Post Boxes (another new waymarking icon, woo hoo!).  For dinner, we headed to The Crutched Friar, a pub a stone's throw from the door of our hotel with a nice Pictorial Pub Sign, and enjoyed dinner and a couple pints.  The Marine had the Bangers and Mash, while the Biologist had the Pappardelle and Goat Cheese Pasta.  Both dishes were jolly good!


Day 5:  This morning we left London via a high speed train ride to Bath where we picked up a rental car.  The Marine took on the role of chauffeur and did a great job driving on the left side of the road from the right side of a car for the first time.  He took to it like a duck to water, although we both got a bit nervous on some of the narrower roads and he did run up against several curbs while getting a feel for the vehicle.  We joked that the car rental companies probably have to replace the tires on the left side of their cars a lot more often than the tires on the right.

Does this place really need a caption?!!

We quickly checked into our hotel, then made tracks back toward London to Stonehenge.  We could not possibly come to the U.K. and not go to Stonehenge.  This Megalithic Monument did not disappoint!  The audio tour was nicely done.  Although there were lots of tourists there, it was well worth the stop.  Plus, we found a virtual geocache here, our first cache in England.

The Raven Pub in Bath

We then headed back to Bath and went to The Raven, a great little free house pub with a wonderful Pictorial Pub Sign, for dinner.  We've finally gotten comfortable not having a waitress come take our order since in a pub you order your meal at the bar and they bring it to you when it's ready.  The Marine had a Raven Ale Pie (West Country Beef, onions, carrots, Raven ale, green peppercorns, and thyme with a Guinness and red onion gravy) on a mash, while the Biologist had a Mushroom and Asparagus Pie (wild mushrooms, asparagus, shallots, white wine, and black pepper with a vegetable gravy) on a mash.  The food was bloody fantastic.  Of course, the Marine had to try a couple pints of the Raven Dark Ale and the Raven Gold Ale, which he greatly enjoyed.  It's a good thing the pub was within a 15-minute walk of our hotel!

On our walk back to the hotel, we stopped in Queen Park, a Municipal Park, to watch some lawn bowling and check out the large Obelisk in the park that was placed in 1738.  We also stopped along the way to admire the Holy Trinity Church.  This Old Church is a former Anglo-Catholic Church.

The ancient Roman Baths

Day 6:  Before leaving the city of Bath today, we visited the Roman Baths, an historic public bathing site.  This site of Ancient Roman Civilization is extremely well preserved and had us oohing and ahhing over its beauty and history.  So of course, we had to take a Tourist Stamp Photo!  Being a Jane Austen fan, the Biologist was very excited to check out the sites associated with Miss Austen and her novels while in Bath.

The Marine and Rodney Point sign

In the afternoon, we drove southwest to Newton Abbot where we decided to lodge for the night.  Along the way, we stopped for a U.K. Trigpoint (also considered a European Historic Benchmark) located on a footpath at a public golf course.  Yea, another new waymarking icon!  After checking into our hotel, we drove down to the coast at Exmouth to check out some the sites and find some waymarks.  We spotted a wishing well, which was an International Rotary Marker, some colorful Beach Huts (new icon!), and a Miniature Golf Course.  But the highlight of the trip to Exmouth was our visit to Orcombe Point, a National Trust U.K. site (yep, it's a new icon!), where we got some spectacular views of the English Channel.  On the way to the summit, we passed a Your Name Here sign for Rodney Point, where the Marine couldn't resist hamming it up.  At the summit is a 16-foot tall Obelisk known as the Geoneedle that was sculptured from all the different types of rocks found along this lovely coastline. Also at the summit was a great Compass Rose.

Beach Huts in Exmouth

Bovey Tracey Churchyard Cross

Day 7:  This morning we left Newton Abbot and headed to the town of Bovey Tracey just outside Dartmoor National Park.  Bovey Tracey is a lovely small town well worth a walk through.  We parked the car and checked out the You Are Here Map near the parking lot to orient ourselves then made our way through the center of town on foot.  We passed by an old Water Mill with a Water Wheel before coming to the Bovey Tracey Market Cross, an ancient Christian Cross made of Dartmoor Granite (yea, new icon!) at the Town Hall.  The Market Cross now doubles as the town’s Non-Specific Veteran Memorial and has a Red Telephone Box located near it.

We continued through the town to the Parish Church of St. Peter, St. Paul and St. Thomas of Canterbury, an Anglican Church.  This Old Church, a 13th century church, is believed to have been commissioned by Sir Henry de Tracy (who later became the first Lord of the Manor of Bovey Tracey), as a means to expiate the sin of his kinsman, Sir William de Tracy, one of the four knights who murdered Thomas Becket in Canterbury Cathedral in 1170.  According to the church's website, in the 14th century the church fell into a sad state of neglect likely caused by the French wars and the Black Death.  All that remains of the 13th century church is the Bell Tower.  In the Churchyard Cemetery, a Worldwide Cemetery, is the Bovey Tracey Churchyard Cross made of Dartmoor Granite.  Adjacent to the church is the "Church Steps" cottage, a Thatch Cottage that is a grade II listed building.  As we passed back through town back to the car park, we spotted a lovely little Tearoom called the Old Cottage Tea Shop.

Church Steps, a Thatch Cottage

Hedgerows all around!

We spent the majority of the rest of the day exploring Dartmoor National Park.  The Marine had some hairy driving situations, but the moors are awesome.  We stopped at Hound Tor and climbed to its top and over to view the Hound Tor Medieval Village behind it.  Lots of fascinating history in this park.  Of course, you can hardly take a step in England without encountering a fascinating piece of history.

Okehampton Castle

After leaving Dartmoor, we visited Okehampton Castle, our first castle of the trip.  The castle has Norman origins and dates from the late 11th century.  They offer a very good audio tour and we enjoyed wandering around the castle ruins in despite a slight drizzle.  After leaving the castle, we made tracks for Wales, where we ended the day in Newport in southeastern Wales.


Day 8:  It's hard to believe we've been in the U.K. for a week already!  Time sure flies when you're not working!  Today, after checking out of the hotel, we stopped to find our first geocache in Wales, which was located only about a half-mile from our hotel.  We then visited the town of Caerleon, Wales, where we wandered around a Roman Amphitheater (90 AD), Roman barracks, and Roman baths; lots of signs of Ancient Roman Civilization here.  We also checked out a couple of Old Churches and spotted a Victorian Post Box just outside one the Church grounds.  On an old inn in town, we spotted a Blue Plaque for Lord Alfred Tennyson where he began writing his "Idylls of the King" in 1856."  Sweet!  This is also a Dead Poets' Society Memorial since Lord Tennyson was the Poet Laureate of the United Kingdom during much of Queen Victoria's reign and he still remains as one of the most popular poets in the English language.

Raglan Castle

After spending a few hours in Caerleon, we took off for Raglan Castle, which is a Cadw (Welsh Historic Monuments) site and a new icon!  This late medieval castle dates from between the 15th and early 17th centuries and was well worth a stop (we can't seem to stop saying that during this trip).

Old Gore Wayside Shrine

The stops in Caerleon and at Raglan Castle burned up most of the day so we meandered our way through some back roads to Old Gore where we came across an historic Wayside Shrine (new icon!) and then to Clifton on Teme, a small village in Worcestershire, where there's an old Automobile Association Sign (another new icon!) on the Lion Inn.  We planned to stop here and eat in the inn's pub, but they weren't serving yet. We can't get used to the strange hours for eating here.  We then made tracks to Warwick (just outside Stratford-Upon-Avon) where we checked into a hotel.  We plan to spend a couple of days here exploring Shakespeare's hometown.

Automobile Association sign in Clifton on Teme

Day 9:  This morning we had to attend to some more mundane matters... laundry.  We were starting to smell a bit rank!  We spent the afternoon taking a hop-on hop-off bus tour of Stratford-Upon-Avon where we saw Shakespeare's alleged birthplace, a restored 16th century house where it is believed that Will was born in 1564 and spent his youth.  The tour also took us by his wife Anne Hathaway's Childhood Home, a beautiful Thatch Cottage.


Day 10:  Today, we drove to Cambridge, but stopped for a few Greenwich Meridian Markers (new icon!) along the way.  Two of these markers were in the town of Somersham, where we also spotted a marker Made for the Millennium, a World War II Monument, a Red Telephone Box, a Former Schoolhouse, a Baptist Church, and a Teahouse!  Wow, lots of waymarks in a very small area here!  On our way to the third Greenwich Meridian Marker of the day, we made a stop at the St. John the Baptist Church and it's Holy Well.

Swavesey Town Sign

Back on track to Cambridge, we stopped briefly in Swavesey where we found a Pictorial Town Sign, a Pictorial Pub Sign, a U.K. Post Office, and a couple of Thatch Cottages.  After checking into our hotel in Cambridge, we drove by the University.  The traffic was very busy, but we still managed to see some of the sights.

Greenwich Meridian Marker

Day 11:  Our first stop of the day was Frampton, England, where we found another Greenwich Meridian Marker made out of a Millstone, a couple of Made for the Millennium markers, and a lovely Old Church with a Churchyard Cemetery that is the final resting place for at least one Centenarian.

Our next stop was Nottingham of Robin Hood fame.  We had lunch  at Ye Olde Trip to Jerusalem, which is the oldest inn and pub in England and the subject of a Tourist Stamp.  It was actually built into the side of a mountain with Nottingham Castle on top.  We pondered buying one of the three remaining medieval homes in town that was for sale, but the location was on a busy street so we passed!  Settled in for the night in Derby.

Gib Hill Barrow Cairn

Day 12:  Today we drove through the Peaks District National Park.  We stopped at the National Park Visitor Center in Bakewell and got some information about nearby sites.  The ranger at the Visitor Center pointed us to Arbor Low Henge and Barrow, a Megalithic Monument, and Gib Hill Barrow, a Megalithic Monument and Cairn (cha-ching!).  We had a wonderful day wandering through the park.  It's an absolutely beautiful place to visit.  We ended up in Bradford for the night and spotted a couple of Silhouette Sculptures, City Hall, Victorian Post Box, a Community Commemoration in the form of a Mural, and a Compass Rose made with Mosaic Tiles on our walk to and from dinner.  Sweet!

Day 13:  We spent all day driving today, but through some jolly good areas.  We passed through the Yorkshire Dales National Park and the Lake District National Park.  We wished we had more time and could actually stop and explore these parks, but we wanted to spend a few days in Scotland before leaving for Ireland.  Three weeks just isn't enough time!

The Biologist at Gretna Green

We stopped for the night in Gretna Green, a village in the south of Scotland, famous for elopements (the UK's Las Vegas?).  According to Wikipedia, "Gretna's famous "runaway marriages" began in 1753 when Lord Hardwicke's Marriage Act was passed in England; it stated that if both parties to a marriage were not at least 21 years old, then parents had to consent to the marriage.  The Act did not apply in Scotland, where it was possible for boys to marry at 14 and girls at 12 years old with or without parental consent.  Many elopers fled England, and the first Scottish village they encountered was Gretna Green."  Today, Gretna Green is one of the world's most popular wedding destinations.  We actually saw a couple getting married while we were there and several others all dressed up and waiting to take their vows!  Oh, and we also spotted a marker for a Railway Disaster Site and an Outdoor Maze and found our first geocache in Scotland!

Threave Castle

Day 14:  After leaving Gretna Green, we decided to take the coastal route around southeastern Scotland.  It was a beautiful drive that would have been even more beautiful if there had been any sun, but even in the rain it was pretty impressive.  We stopped along the way to see Threave Castle, which included a mile roundabout walk and a very short motor boat ride to and from the island where the castle is situated.  A very cool castle that's a listed Historic Scotland property, and yes, it's well worth the stop.

Once back on the road, we saw a sign for the CairnHoly Chambered Cairns.  These Megalithic Monuments were... you got it... well worth the stop.  A must see if you're driving around the coast here.  We passed by a few other castles without stopping.  If we stopped for every castle we saw a sign for, we'd still be in Wales!  Anyway, we spent the night in Ayr, Scotland, and ate dinner at the oldest restaurant in the city.  We've discovered that understanding the Scots with their heavy brogue accent is quite challenging.  Very charming though!

Bothwell Castle

Day 15:  Our goal today is to reach Edinburgh, Scotland.  We only made one stop on our way from Ayr and that was at Bothwell Castle, a medieval castle located on a steep bank above the River Clyde.  Construction of the castle began in the 13th century to guard a strategic crossing point of the River Clyde.  The castle played a key role in Scotland's Wars of Independence and changed hands several times over the years.

Muschat's Cairn

Day 16:  This morning we drove into Edinburgh hoping the traffic wouldn't be too bad on a Saturday morning.  We were right, traffic was light... at least when we got there.  By the time we finished exploring, the tourists and traffic abounded!  We first headed to the Holyrood Park where we found Muschat's Cairn, which according to Wikipedia "...commemorates an event on 17 October 1720 when Nichol Muschat, a surgeon, dragged his wife to a nearby spot and brutally murdered her.  He was eventually tried and hanged for this crime.  At his trial he said that he had simply tired of her."  A wee bit extreme, twasn't it?!

Robert Fergusson Memorial

Next we drove into Edinburgh's Old Town and found a spot to park the car.  Then we made our way down High Street on foot to a stop for the Edinburgh hop-on hop-off, double-decker bus tour.  We spent the next hour riding the bus around the city and learning numerous interesting tidbits about its history.  After the tour, we spent a little more time walking around High Street and spotted a Dead Poets' Society Memorial for Robert Fergusson in front of the Canongate Kirk, a Presbyterian Church.  Construction on This Old Church was completed in 1691.  In the Churchyard Cemetery, we discovered the Grave of a Famous Person (the aforementioned poet).

After a bite of lunch and a little souvenir shopping, we made our way back to the car and headed back to our hotel to get some rest before our flight to Dublin tomorrow.

Day 17:  Not much to report today.  We slept in, then had breakfast and made our way to the Edinburgh Airport to catch our flight to Dublin, Ireland.  Our flight was a bit delayed, but we eventually made it to Dublin by around 5pm.  We picked up our rental car, checked into our hotel, went out and had some dinner, and went back to our hotel to make plans for the next few days.  Tomorrow, we're off to Northern Ireland for a quick visit before heading back to the Republic of Ireland for the remainder of our holiday.

Giant's Causeway

Day 18:  We made our way to Northern Ireland this morning and headed to the north coast In Search of the Celts.  Our first stop was the Giant's Causeway, an amazing collection of about 40,000 basalt columns on the coast that resulted from volcanic activity.  The basalt rocks that flowed out during one period of volcanic eruptions left the fantastic basalt rock columns that are mostly hexagonal in shape, although some have more or less sides (up to eight).  It's hard to believe, but these columns are naturally occurring! We learned about this wonderful geologic formation during a trip to Charleston, South Carolina, where we came across one of the basalt columns (visit link).

We also stopped at the nearby Dunluce Castle,a very impressive medieval castle surrounded by very steep drops on either side.  Dunluce Castle has a rich history, which is briefly described in a Wikipedia article about it.  We also located a virtual cache at the castle!

We ended the day in Londonderry.  Tomorrow, we plan to head back into the Republic of Ireland on our way to the Ring of Kerry and the Blarney Stone!

Ballintuber Abbey

Day 19:  What an amazing day! We discovered that St. Patrick's Causeway (Tóchar Phádraig) was on the way to our next destination. St. Patrick's Causeway is the 55-km pilgrimage route St. Patrick walked from the vicinity of Ballintubber Abbey (which is located on the site where St. Patrick built one of the first of his many churches) to Croagh Patrick (a 2,057-foot cone shaped mountain where his journey ended and where he devoted himself on the summit, fasting and praying for 40 days in the cold, wind, and rain). We decided to visit various sites along this pilgrimage route, including stops at Ballintubber Abbey, which was built in 1216 and is the only working Church in Ireland founded by an Irish King, a now empty Holy Well in Aghagower that was blessed by St. Patrick as he passed through the area, and a 10th century round stone tower in Aghagower that's from a medieval church that was constructed perhaps 100 years after St. Patrick's death. While walking to the ancient well, we spotted a Town Pound as well. Sweet!

Croagh Patrick

Pump inside Patrick's Well

 Day 20:  We spent last night in Castlebar and made our way to Killarney today.  We spent most of the day driving, although we did make a short stop in Patrickswell to try to find an Automobile Association sign.  We had no luck with the sign, but did spot Patrick's Well, for which the town was named.  This ancient Holy Well dedicated to St. Patrick is the namesake for the town.  In 2002, an old Hand Operated Water Pump was placed in the well.

After checking into our hotel in Killarney, we decided to drive a small portion of the Ring of Kerry, a Celtic tourist trail through some absolutely beautiful Ireland scenery.  The rhododendrons were in bloom and it was absolutely gorgeous.  We just wish we had more time to spend here!

Along the Ring of Kerry

Blarney Castle

Day 21:  Alas, today's our last day in Ireland before flying home bright and early tomorrow morning.  Although we're sad to see the vacation coming to an end, we are excited about going home and sleeping in our own bed.  On our way from Killarney to Dublin, we stopped in Blarney to visit Blarney Castle.  It was a rainy day, but we couldn't miss the chance to see the Blarney Stone.  While neither of us chose to kiss the rock wall, we watched several people give it a smooch.  We also found a virtual cache on the castle grounds, our first cache in the Republic of Ireland.  We checked into our hotel in mid-afternoon and called it a day.  We are now officially traveled out!

Day 22:  Homeward Bound today.  We caught an early flight from Dublin to London, where we caught our connecting flight to Orlando, Florida.  The flight was a smooth one and, as on the flight to England, we had three seats to ourselves, so we could spread out and be comfortable.  It was sad to see our vacation coming to an end, but we were very excited to be getting home!  We've said it before and we'll say it again, there's no place like home.

Oh, Canada! - October 8-15, 2011

With some use or lose time on the line at work, the Biologist decided to take a Fall waymarking trip to Canada.  Unfortunately, the Marine couldn't go with her due to his full class schedule at the University of North Florida.  She couldn't let that stop her though, so she took off on her own for another great waymarking adventure.

Day 1:  The Marine took the Biologist to the Jacksonville, Florida, airport bright and early and off she flew to Syracuse, New York.  However, she didn't take the most direct route available.  Instead, she routed through Washington, D.C. and scheduled a 6-hour layover there in hopes of waymarking a very rare target in the United States.  Upon arriving in D.C., the Biologist quickly grabbed her backpack and wheeled computer case and hopped on the Metro at the National Airport station.  She got off at the Van Ness Metro stop to make her way to Rock Creek Park.  Not knowing the best route to take from the Metro station and unable to find a taxi, she decided to take the shortest route on foot, which, as is often the case, was not the best route to take.

ANWB Paddenstoel

She ended up on a busy two-lane road with a minimal shoulder area while pulling along her computer case.  Just before getting to a one-lane bridge, a kind man in a truck rolled down his window and asked if she needed a ride.  "No, that's okay, I only have two-tenths of a mile left to go," she replied.  Yikes!  This was not the smartest thing she'd ever done but she persevered all the while muttering under her breath that the darn target she was going after had better still be there.  And, alas, it was!  An ANWB Paddenstoel.  Sweet!  There are only seven of these in the United States, and the other six had already been claimed.  This one is located 0.9 miles from the Netherlands Embassy and was the first Paddenstoel placed in the United States.  Whew!  That one took some effort.  On an easier walk back to the Metro, she stopped and admired the newly restored Working Water Wheel at Peirce Mill and the Peirce Mill Springhouse.  Then back to the airport to continue her journey north.

Shop24 Machine

The next flight took the Biologist into Syracuse where she arrived at about 4pm and quickly rented a car and started making tracks for another rare waymark.  In 2009, Morrisville State College had a second Shop24 Machine installed on their campus in Morrisville, New York.  She found it without any trouble and enjoyed a short drive around campus to check it out and to visit the other Shop24 Machine that was installed in 2005.  What an excellent day for finding rare U.S. waymarks!  Then it was time to find a place to bed down for the night.  It was a few hours away, but the Biologist made her way to Rochester for the night so she would have a shorter drive the next morning and could get across the Canada border near Buffalo before it got too late.

Battle of Cook's Mill

Day 2:  Off to Canada today!  The Biologist got up early and made her way toward Buffalo along with a lot of Bills and Eagles fans.  She watched a group almost comes to blows at a rest area.  Wow, these fans are a bit rabid.  Anyway, after crossing over the Peace Bridge and answering the questions at the Canadian border crossing, the Biologist started making her way to the site of the Battle of Cook's Mill, a Canadian National Historic Site.  She passed a Welland Welcome Sign and a Welland Population Sign on the way and a Niagara Falls Population Sign on her way back.  After passing Niagara Falls and on her way to Niagara-on-the-Lake, she stopped and found the Marine Biologist team's first geocache in Canada, a virtual titled "The Other End of the Trail" that was also a Cairn waymark that she visited.

Inukshuk

After reaching Niagara-on-the-Lake, the Biologist stopped at Fort George and wandered around this very nice reconstruction of the Historic Fort.  Then onto the historic Butler's Barracks after a quick stop to take photos and coordinates for an Inukshuk in a nearby neighborhood.  At Butler's Barracks, she spotted a War Museum, two Boy Scouts Memorials, and a Non-Specific Veterans Memorial.  It was a beautiful day to wander through this historic site.

Ontario Provincial Plaque

Then it was time to move onto London, Ontario, where she planned to spend her first night in Canada.  After checking into the hotel, the Biologist made her way to the historic No. 5 Fire Hall, a Converted Firehouse that is also an Ontario Heritage Property.  Then onto the Dundas Street Centre United Church.  This Old Church, a Methodist Church, is also listed as an Ontario Heritage Property, and has a lovely Bell Tower and a Dated Cornerstone.  On the way to downtown Victoria Park, she spotted an Ontario Provincial Plaque about Harold A. Rogers, the founder of Kinsmen & Kinette Clubs of Canada.

London War Cenotaph

The first stop the Biologist made in Victoria Park was the striking London War Cenotaph, a Canadian Legion Memorial Cenotaph.  After paying tribute, she walked over to the nearby St. Peter's Cathedral Basilica, an absolutely amazing Catholic Cathedral with two Bell Towers, a Unique Steeple, and three lovely Doorways of the World.  This Old Church, which has its own Wikipedia listing and a Dated Cornerstone, has several Gargoyles guarding its entry.  By now it was getting to be late afternoon and time to start wrapping things up for the day.  After a few more stops, it was time for dinner, some posting of waymarks for new icons, and sleep.

St. Peter's Cathedral Gargoyle

Canadian Benchmark

Day 3:  This morning it was time to start moving west.  The Biologist decided to take some back roads toward Toronto rather than the freeway and was very glad she did.  While passing through the rural town of Innerkip, she spotted a Canada Post Office.  Then further along the way she spotted two Inukshuks for the Milton Heights Campground.  How excellent!  Next was the beautiful Humber Arboretum.  It was a perfect day for a stroll through this lovely garden, and the Biologist spotted a Canadian Benchmark while wandering though it.

She finally reached Toronto and stopped at the Black Creek Pioneer Village where she spent a bit of time admiring the historic structures and re-creations, including a Blacksmith Shop, Old Mill, Working Water Wheel, and One Room Schoolhouse.  Then further on into Toronto where she found another Canadian Benchmark in Corby Park, which has a lovely Rose Garden.  It was getting late by this time, so the Biologist continued heading east and stopped for the night in Napanee.

The Holy Well

Day 4:  Today's primary goal was visiting the small village of Mount St. Patrick and its wonderful Holy Well.  So the Biologist headed north out of Napanee and passed the Artistic Welcome Sign for the town of Renfrew.  Then onto Mount St. Patrick.  After paying homage at the Holy Well and giving thanks for a safe journey, the Biologist started the long drive to Montreal.


Day 5:  Montreal is a scary place to drive.  The Biologist started to do a little exploring after checking into the hotel late yesterday afternoon, but the traffic was horrendous and she chickened out after about 8 miles and went back to the hotel, but not before stopping and finding a geocache in Quebec.  This morning, after checking out of the hotel, she decided to head to the quaint little town of Chambly before making her way back to the United States.

Mairie de Chambly Marker

Chambly was a wonderful place to visit and was filled with lovely historic buildings and scenic water views.  It was also a great place to find Quebec Historical Markers, including ones for Marie de Chambly, Le Couvent des Soeurs de la Congrégation de Notre-Dame, Caserne de pompiers de Chambly-Bassin, and L'église Anglicane de St. Stephen (St. Stephen's Anglican Church) which had a Churchyard Cemetery with some impressive Mausoleums and a Broken Column Headstone.  After stopping for a few more Quebec Historical Markers along the way, the Biologist made her way to the Canada-United States border.  It took a bit longer for her to get back into the United States than it did to get into Canada, but the wait wasn't too bad.  She had a great few days in Canada, but was happy to be back on U.S. soil.


She had hoped to stay the night at a Hampton Inn in Plattsburgh, New York, but there was no room at the inn so she kept on going and took the back roads over to Watertown.  Along the way, she spotted numerous unclaimed New York Historical Markers, a cool Bear Statue and Neon Sign at a restaurant in Malone, and a Worldwide Cemetery.

Cobblestone Building in Cemetery

Day 6:  Today the Biologist rolled back into Syracuse where she planned to stay for the next two nights.  Today she spent most of the day wandering around back roads north and east of Syracuse and found several historic Worldwide Cemeteries where she found many Zinc Headstones waiting to be claimed!  They came in all shapes and sizes and were quite beautiful.  She also found a Woodmen of the World Headstone and several more New York Historical Markers.  While in Altmar, she spotted a sign for the Salmon River Fish Hatchery, where she took a tour of the facility.  It was quite interesting!  She also stopped to see the historic Riverside Cemetery in Altmar and spotted a darling little Cobblestone Building, a Civil War Memorial, and a Non-Specific Veterans Memorial.  Both memorials are listed in the Smithsonian Art Inventory.  What a nice surprise!

Am. Rev. War Grave

In the historic Fairview Cemetery, she spotted an old Hand-operated Water Pump and a Citizen Memorial on the shelter protecting the water pump.  In the 7th Township Cemetery, she found six American Revolutionary War Soldier Graves.  Then on into Cleveland, where the Biologist stopped in a small park with a lovely Gazebo that was built as a 9/11 Memorial.  After stopping to take photos of a Cobblestone House in Cleveland, she next spotted a sign with a Kilroy Was Here character!  Wow, she sure didn't expect to come across something like that.

Kilroy Was Here!

Trinity Episcopal Church

Next came Bernhards Bay, where St. Leger's Army (denoted by a New York Historical Marker) passed during the American Revolution, and an Out of Place Grave in a lakeside park.  In the town of Constantia was the rustic old Trinity Episcopal Church.  This Old Church is listed on the U.S. National Register of Historic Places and has a Churchyard Cemetery.  The Biologist's next and final stop for the day (before calling it a night in Syracuse) was the city of Brewerton, where she visited a Fireworks Tree, explored the former site of Fort Brewerton and its Blockhouse History Museum and Historical Society Headquarters.   The fort site and its original earthworks are listed on the U.S. National Register of Historic Places.  The final waymark of the day was a Neon Sign for Fran's Florist in Brewerton.  Whew!  This was a busy day with lots and lots of waymarks.

Fran's Florist Neon Sign

Hitching Post

 Day 7:  With only today left before catching a flight home, the Biologist decided to once again travel the back roads, this time down to Cortland.  She again stopped at several Worldwide Cemeteries and spotted many more Zinc Headstones.  There were also more unclaimed New York Historical Markers to read, including one for the Birthplace (Childhood Home) of Francis B. Carpenter, a famous painter of Abraham Lincoln giving his Emancipation Proclamation, and another for the Birthplace (Childhood Home) of William Osborn Stoddard, assistant secretary to Abraham Lincoln during his first Presidential term.  Both these markers were in the village of Homer, which had a couple of Historic Hitching Posts.

Two Zinc Headstones

After reaching Cortland, the Biologist decided to make a quick stop by the State University of New York to find the new Shop24 Machine there.  She decided not to post it since they are such a rare find, but to be ready to visit it as soon as someone else posted it.  After a couple more stops at old Cemeteries and waymarking more Zinc Headstones, it started to rain.  Time to head back to the hotel in Syracuse and a little down time before tomorrow's trip home.

Day 8:  Well, as they say, all good things must come to an end.  It was a fantastic trip, and the Biologist found 11 new icons for postings and 1 new icon for a visit during the week.  These were for the following categories:  ANWB Paddenstoelen, Shop24 Machines, Canadian National Historic Sites, Ontario Provincial Plaques, Ontario Heritage Properties, Inukshuks, Canadian Legion Memorials Cairns and Cenotaphs, Canada Post Offices, Canadian Benchmarks, Holy Wells, and Quebec Historical Markers, and a new icon for a visit to a Cairn.  Sweet!

Westward Ho! - August 5-12, 2011

With the Marine's break between summer and fall classes approaching, the Biologist saw an opportunity to get away on a waymarking adventure.  After a little bit of thought, she chose Nebraska, Kansas, and Colorado as the destination locations.  Kansas and Colorado were the only two States in the continental United States where we hadn't yet found caches.  Also there were a few waymark categories the Biologist needed icons for.  So we made our reservations and off we went.

Day 1:  We flew out of Jacksonville, Florida, bright and early and made our way to Omaha, Nebraska, with one stop in Memphis.  As we were approaching Omaha, we spotted massive flooding along the Missouri River.  I-29 and many homes, farms, and businesses were under water.  Wow, we didn't realize the flooding was still a problem in this area or that the flooding was so extensive.

Sokol Omaha

After picking up our rental car, we took off to our first goal, Sokol Omaha, an historic Sokol Center in town. According to the Dated Cornerstone, it was constructed in 1926.  Next we headed to BrewBurgers, a restaurant featured on Diners, Drive-ins and Dives, for a bite of lunch.  The Marine ordered the Cheesy Sacramento Burger and the Las Vegas Fries, and the Biologist ordered the Vegetarian Burger and Homemade Cole Slaw. We also order the Spanish Onion Rings as an appetizer. We've been to numerous restaurants featured on DDD, and this was by far our least favorite. The food was either flavorless or had an odd flavor to it. Although the woman who served us was very friendly and attentive, we definitely won't be going back. Oh well, you can't win 'em all.

Forest Lawn Memorial Park Marker

After lunch, we headed to the Forest Lawn Memorial Park, a Worldwide Cemetery.  No, no, the food wasn't quite THAT bad; we just wanted to read the Nebraska Historical Marker about the cemetery and see if there were any interesting headstones.  The cemetery is believed to be Nebraska's Most Beautiful Cemetery, and it was Superlative for certain.  In the cemetery we found a Headstone for a Centenarian, a Civil War Monument within a Veterans Cemetery section, four pieces of Static Artillery, a Sundial, four Woodmen of the World Graves Markers (including one belonging to Joseph Cullen Root, the founder and first president of the Modern Woodmen of America organization), and a couple of lovely Mausoleums.  After leaving the cemetery, we decided to check into our hotel for night.

St. Cecelia's Cathedral

Day 2:  Before leaving Omaha, we decided to spend half a day wandering around town.  We found a few more Nebraska Historical Markers, including one for Malcolm X at the site of his birth home.  Adjacent to this Civil Rights Memorial is the Malcolm X Foundation headquarters.  We also stopped by the Historic Prospect Hill Cemetery to read the Nebraska Historical Marker located in this Worldwide Cemetery and came across several Zinc Headstones, a Broken Column Headstone, and four Woodmen of the World Grave Markers.  We next spotted St. Cecelia's Cathedral and stopped to take some photos of this beautiful Catholic Church and its Dated Cornerstone.  This Old Church is also listed on the U.S. National Register of Historic Places!  On the way back to the car, we spotted a Cycling Route sign!  All in all, a really good stop.  We also stopped at the Kountze Memorial Lutheran Church, which was located right next door to the Super 7 Doppler Weather Radar.  We stopped at several other locations before heading out of Omaha.

The Marine & the B-52

Our first stop outside Omaha was at Offutt Air Force Base to find a virtual cache.  As we approached the entrance to the base, the Marine was very annoyed to see a group of protesters who were protesting the bombing of Japan.  Maybe they would have felt differently if their grandfathers had died during the Japanese bombing of Pearl Harbor or while attacking the Japan mainland.  Then again, if their grandfathers had died, they probably wouldn't be here.  Anyway, the virtual was at a B-52, a Static Aircraft Display.

Our goal for today was to reach Topeka, Kansas, by dinner, but we took a little side trip to Gretna, Nebraska, to visit the gorgeous and peaceful Holy Family Shrine. It's a lovely location and well worth a stop if you're in the vicinity, and there's even a virtual cache here!

Holy Family Shrine

The Marine at the Holy Family Shrine

Bobo's Drive In Neon Sign

From the shrine, we backtracked a little to get back on our way to Topeka.  We passed through the Potawatomi Indian Reservation along the way.  Upon arriving in Topeka, we first stopped by the former Patty's Place restaurant, now Bill's Diner, which was featured in a 2006 Zippy the Pinhead comic strip.  It was a little early for dinner, so we kept on going and checked into our hotel.  After relaxing for a short time, we made our way to Bobo's Drive In, a restaurant featured on Diner's, Drive-ins and Dives in 2008.  The Marine had the Cheeseburger, Chili, and Homemade Apple Pie with vanilla ice cream, while the Biologist had their signature onion rings and a chocolate malt.  It was delicious!  Guy Fieri has redeemed himself after the BrewBurgers fiasco in Omaha yesterday!  After dinner, we drove around downtown Topeka and waymarked a few gorgeous churches and found several cool Neon Signs after dark on our way back to the hotel.

Old Dutch Mill in Wamego, Kansas

Day 3:  Today we headed west through the heartland of Kansas.  Our first stop was a Kansas Historical Marker about the town of St. Mary's, a nice small town with an Artistic Welcome Sign and an Oregon Trail Marker denoting the location of this famous Wagon Road and Trail.  As we passed through Belvue, Kansas, we spotted a little shrine along the side of Highway 24 and thought it might qualify as a Wayside Shrine, but alas it didn't.  We'll have to wait until we travel to Europe to find one of those.  We can't wait!  We also stopped for a virtual cache in Wamego, Kansas, at the Old Dutch Mill, which has a wonderful Windmill, as well as a Kansas Historical Marker about it.

Marine and Johnny Kaw

We meandered along the backroads of Kansas until we came to Manhattan where we spotted a fun Googie sign at Vista Hamburgers.  Then we went to the Manhattan City Park to visit Johnny Kaw, a 30-foot tall Statue of a Fictional Figure that was the subject of a Zippy the Pinhead comic strip in 2005.  That Pinhead sure does get around.  Anyway, in 1955 in an effort to get the public and the media interested in Kansas history for its centennial.  George Filinger, a Kansas State University professor, came up with the tall tale character of Johnny Kaw who used his cradle scythe to create the Kansas landscape, geography, and pioneer trails.

BOD Marker

Next we made our way to Ellis County to find some Butterfield Overland Dispatch Markers, one of our key goals for this trip.  We drove up and down the dirt roads that passed over the old trail and found several of the markers.  You had to pay close attention to spot them because they were designed to look like the historic stone fence posts in Kansas. Next we made our way to the city of Hays to bed down for the night.  As we drove into town, we spotted a Neon Googie sign for Al's Chickenette, which was featured in a Zippy the Pinhead comic strip in 2005.  Sweet!

Dodge City Silhouette Sculpture

Day 4:  Today we thought it might be fun to head to Dodge City, the old Wild West town where Wyatt Earp once served as an assistant marshal and which also served as the setting for the Gunsmoke television series.  However, upon arriving in Dodge City we were overwhelmed by the cattle stench from the stockyards.  OMG, it was really bad!  Soooo, needless to say, we got the hell out of Dodge as quickly as possible, but not until we'd taken a photo of a cool Silhouette Sculpture.  After leaving Dodge City, we spotted some interesting Kansas Historical Markers along the way though, including one that was the subject of a virtual cache.  It pointed out some old ruts along the historic Santa Fe Trail, yet another famous Wagon Road and Trail, still visible from the pioneer days.  How cool is that?

Hand-operated Sluice Gate

It wasn't long after we passed over the state line into Colorado that the Marine exclaimed, "Hey, I think that's an old Hand-operated Sluice Gate."  The Biologist, who had been looking down at the map on the laptop, jerked her head up and saw that he was right, so we pulled over.  Isn't the Marine amazing?!!!  A new waymarking icon!  Woo hoo!

Soon after we stopped for our first cache in Colorado, which was a virtual cache about Camp Amache, a World War II Japanese-American Relocation Camp.  We took a drive through the old Camp.  About all that remains are the foundations of all the buildings that were used to house the Japanese-Americans.  Next we passed through the town of Lamar where the Biologist found her first Colorado Historical Marker about the city of Lamar at the city's Colorado Tourist Information Center located in the historical Lamar Train Depot.  Outside the depot was a small Equestrian Statue, a Figurative Public Sculpture of a Pioneer Woman, a steam Locomotive, and a Windmill.  Cha-ching!  This place is a waymarking hot spot! It was getting late by this time so we made a beeline for Colorado Springs and called it a day.

Pike's Peak Cog Railway Train

Day 5:  Today we had reservations to take the Cog Railway to Pike's Peak.  After checking out the Penny Smashers at the depot for this Engineering Landmark, we hopped on the train and enjoyed the ride to the Mountain Summit.  A couple from Key West, Florida, was sitting across from us and we had a nice time learning about their retirement adventures during the trip.  By the time we got off the train at the 14,100-foot high peak, we were quite lightheaded and had a difficult time walking around.  Lack of oxygen will do that to you!  The Biologist convinced the Marine he should pose in the Photo Cutout of Pike's Peak bears at the summit.  We really enjoyed the beautiful, clear views in all directions and took a photo of the Elevation Sign before we had to board the train to head back down the mountain to Manitou Springs.

Neon Sign in Manitou Springs

In Manitou Springs, we spotted a few old neon signs that we couldn't resist stopping to photograph then we drove over to the Garden of the Gods, which our new Key West friends told us was a must-see while in the area.  They were absolutely right!  This place was absolutely gorgeous and reminded us quite a bit of our honeymoon in Nevada where we visited Red Rock Canyon and the Valley of Fire.  It even had a huge Balanced Rock!

Garden of the Gods

Marine and the Balanced Rock

Overland Park Marker

By the time we finished wandering around the Garden of the Gods, it was mid-afternoon and time to start making tracks to Denver.  After checking into our Denver hotel, we grabbed a bite to eat then went and did a little exploring.  We found another Colorado Historical Marker and another virtual cache at the most unusual Sundial we had ever seen before.  It was located in the War Memorial Rose Garden, which had a lovely Fountain, a Gazebo, and a couple of Citizen Memorials.  After finding a Dairy Queen and getting a couple of Blizzards (yum), we decided to call it a night and headed back to our hotel.

Pawnee Woman's Grave

Day 6:  Today we needed to start making our way back to Omaha for our flight home on Friday.  We decided to spend a little time looking for a couple of virtual caches in the Denver area before heading out of town.  We decided to take some back roads through Kansas and were bored out of our skulls, so we decided to re-route and head north to Nebraska a little sooner than we had planned, because we just couldn't look at another corn field.  Yea, we crossed the border into Nebraska!  Toto, we're not in Kansas any more!  Thank goodness!  Unfortunately, there a lot of corn fields in Nebraska too, but at least there were some rolling hills and several Nebraska Historical Markers along the way.  Woo hoo!  Our favorite was the marker about a Pawnee Woman's Out of Place Grave.  After a long day of some of the most boring travel we've ever experienced, we decided to stop in Kearney for the night.

Day 7:  This morning we decided to wander around Kearney a bit before heading northeast to Omaha.  We stopped by the Kearney Cemetery, an historic Worldwide Cemetery, and spotted a Woodman of the World Grave Marker, two Broken Column Headstones, an Occupational Gravestone, a Firefighter Memorial, a Citizen Memorial, two Static Artillery Displays, and a Military Ground Equipment Display.  Wow!  Who would have thought there would be so much to see here?

Googie Sign

After leaving the cemetery, we started making our way to Omaha.  It wasn't long before we spotted a sign that said we were on the Lincoln Highway!  We didn't even realize it went through this part of Nebraska.  What a nice surprise.  Along this stretch of road, we spotted several Nebraska Historical Markers, some interesting Lincoln Highway sites, an old Neon Sign, a couple of cool Googie Signs, and a beautiful Roman Catholic Church and Cathedral.

With all our stops, it took a lot longer to get to Omaha than we had anticipated, but we still beat the rush hour traffic.  We checked into our downtown hotel and then went out and wandered along the riverfront for a little while, but part of the area was underwater due to all the recent flooding.  We even found a virtual cache while we were down there.  Then we made our way to a large downtown park where we walked around and looked at a few Fountains that would have been really interesting to see if they were running, an Architectural Remnant of the historic U.S. National Bank Building Arches, which are now Freestanding Arches, and a really fun piece of Artistic Seating in the shape of a frog with its tongue extended as though to catch a fly.  By this time it was getting late and time to head back to our hotel.

Day 8:  Today our vacation came to an end.  We made our way to the airport, turned in our rental car, and boarded our flight for home.  There's no place like home, there's no place like home, there's no place like home...