I mapped out a route so I could make a giant circle and limit backtracking. I started out with Pump Station (GC54C1Z) a cache that I couldn't find back in 2016 because it wasn't there! It was there this time. It was literally a park and grab and I was glad to get it off my DNF list.
I knew this was a long shot because of all the logs but I drove out to My Favorite Cache (GC53AJ1) in hopes of finding it quickly. I had an idea on what to do but didn't know I would need another TOTT with me. I gave it a good try but didn't find it after a few minutes. I knew I was on the right track. I would have to come back later.
I moved onto the park series, which is why I was here today. The first one I went to was Stan Hedwall Park - Chehalis Park Series (GC7HWMT) which I wanted to visit before while there were more caches here. Those have been since archived. I pulled up and parked as close as I could to the cache. The only other person here was a guy playing frisbee with his dog. I walked towards the coordinates and saw that I would have to cross over onto Scout Island to grab it. I read some of the logs and it sounded like it was in the sticker bushes. Ugh sticker bushes. Luckily when I did find it I didn't have to go into the sticker bushes. It was near the anchor point to the bridge. I signed it, got the code and put it back better than I found it.
The next one, Recreation Park - Chehalis Park Series (GC7HWMK) took me a while to orient myself. I park super far away and walked (not sure why I did) and didn't really understand the hint because I was on the wrong side of the playground equipment so I had to call Bev and she said to look for a hand. I was like, a hand? What? She said you will know when you see it. I wandered around some more and finally saw the hand I was looking for. It wasn't as obvious and the cache owner might have thought. When I did find it I thought that this cache was going to go missing a lot because kids are going to see it. I signed my name and got the code.
Nestled inside of a neighborhood is a really run down park. When I drove up to it I really wasn't sure why it was a park. It was a grassy field with a really sad looking tennis/basketball court. Millett Field - Chehalis Park Series (GC7H6A2) took me a few minutes to find. It was tied with a fishing line to the chain link fence. I can also see this one disappearing a lot in the future. I got the code and signed my name. I tried to hide it better to keep muggles from seeing it.
The next one was not a part of the series but grabbed it anyway. It took me to a park just below the hill. I parked the Escape next to the building on the little driveway and tried to find a trail that would take me to The Ivy Patch (GC72R0X). I found the trail and it took me right to the cache. It was shoved inside of a stump with ivy covering it. I signed my name and went to the next one up the hill. Now to find the correct trail.
I oriented myself onto the correct trail that would take me up the hill. I knew this one was going to be a little harder just because of the uphill battle and the trail was wet. I had been out here before a few years back with grandma grabbing the McFadden Park cache. I got to ground zero and saw the old gate with the Dobson-McFadden Trail - Chehalis Park Series (GC7HWM7) cache nearby. It has to be hanging inside one of the poles. Sure enough it was. I got the code and signed my name. I walk back down to the Escape.
I drove into town to grab Rock Around the Clock (GC4XT38) and since it was a weekend this corner was pretty chill. I parked right next to it to shield myself from the traffic on the road. I looked in a few places before I found it and it was covered in oil, which makes sense because it was right next to a car repair shop. Luckily I had wipes with me so I didn't get oil all over everything. Signed it and put it back in a place that wouldn't get oil on it.
There was one more just down the street in the middle of town, WPC (GC6TD78) and it took me a bit to find a parking spot so I didn't have to walk a really long way. The coords took me all over the place and the hint sucked. This one took a while to zero in on. Once I did find it I felt dumb. I signed my name and moved onto the next one.
The next one took me to another park I have never been to. Westside Park - Chehalis Park Series (GC7H68F) could be in one of the two spots inside the park...the tree or the covered picnic area. I chose the covered picnic area first and I had to stand on top of the table just to reach the corners of the roof. There it was! I didn't have to look in the other place. I signed it quickly because there were people coming to use the park.
Earlier I had texted Liz letting her know that I was in Chehalis if she wanted to hang out at some point. She texted me back telling me to stop by. I told her I was going to Alexander Park and she was like, that's right down the road from my house!
Lintott/Alexander Park - Chehalis Park Series (GC7H69V) was the third cache I've gotten at this park over the years. They have been archived and then replaced by a new one. This was the current one at this park. I parked in the parking lot and walked the 500+ feet to the cache. I wasn't sure where it was going to be because my coordinates bounced all over the place. I finally zeroed in on the planter box and found the film cannister.
Since I was already this way I decided to go to Liz's house for a bit before I go and get the final inside the last Chehalis park on my way home. I was over at her house for a good two hours before they had to go to Juan's house for dinner. We watched Santa Clarita Diet and chatted about random things. It was a fun visit.
I put together all the codes I collected and got the final cords to Henderson Park - Chehalis Park Series - FINAL (GC7HWN3). It took me a little bit to find a parking spot because the driveways and side streets were one way. Once I found parking I made my way to a utility building and scanned spots were the cache could be. It was hidden hanging inside a tube on the backside of the building. I signed my name and put it back quickly because of the traffic on the main road.
I was hungry so I saw that Dairy Dan's was nearby. I've heard people talk about it but I am not sure if I have ever been here. I may have decades ago while playing sports tournaments here. I got there at the right time because I got my food before a bunch of people came in. I ate, cleaned up and left in about a half hour.
I hit up the Walmart because we were out of a few things and stopped by the Goodwill to see if they had any cool stuff. I did find an old metal med container and that sparked my idea for my travel bug hotel cache.
I got home and cleaned myself up after being out in the rain today. I logged my caches and relaxed for a bit. It was a good day and I hoped I can get out there again so I can finish the Planetary Pursuit before it ended.
Next Adventure: Heading Over to Spokane
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