The Not-So-Elusive Alpha Male

Ned was clean and dry and ready to head so we headed back over to his Aunt Ruth's favorite area. This time I brought reinforcements (gloves and spade). 

Again I followed the clues and again they brought me to the same scene. I dug until I found a few suspicious rocks and what-do-you-know, there was the Alpha Male in all of his glory! 

He was also wet and dirty so I invited him over for some R&R. He was anxious to get back on the road so he headed back out the very next day. 

I am thrilled to have met Ned, especially after all this time. What made it even better is meeting him in Cape Cod in the fall. It's sublime. Just ask Ned, Nancy, and Aunt Ruth!

Meet Up with Ned

 

The meeting almost didn’t happen. The Alpha Male was elusive. But we persevered and found him having Midadventures with Nancy. 

Some care was needed so I invited Ned to come over for some R&R. I will drop him back off in a few days once he’s clean, dry, and buttoned up ready for some more misadventure. I also plan to return with reinforcements to look for that alpha male.

The mystery continues…

Shootflying Hill

 

Bill-lay and I wanted a quick outing and decided to check out this friendly hike where we looked for a fox, a whale, dolphin, and shark, and a friendly contest over baked goods. 

It was a blustery day but the sun was smiling on us. We enjoyed all of our finds, but came up short on the shark. But overall it was a great little walk in the off season.

X Marks the Spot

 Hot Lava and I got out and looked for the X that marked the spots. Lots of social distancing going on. But nice to be out and about on this beautiful day.

Hay There!

We didn't have to go far to find the Hay Boat at Salt Pond Visitors Center but we decided to adventure further anyway.

It was a misty and foggy morning.  It was a beautiful walk and we enjoyed meeting up with a little bunny along our way.

Remembering

This was the perfect walk on a beautiful Cape day with Cubed, Hot Lava, and Joe Money! I read the comments from challenged "In Memory of" finders. After some deep searching, we found it.

It's in great condition but the logs which it was under have rotted. We moved it just a little bit under two small fallen limbs between two standing live oaks that are beyond the large pine referenced in the clues. 

It's such a great carve, we don't want it to be impossible for others to enjoy it as well. 

D.e.n.i.e.d.

AAAARRRRGGGGHHHHH! 'Nuff said!

Off-Season Magic

Gotta love the off-season… and some of the comments from previous finders helped too! I struggled to find all three sisters in the summer but now, in the fall, the finding was a snap! The oak for the second stamp has been cut and now has shoots growing out of the stump. In summer, "green, leafy plants" abound. But in the off-season, I found the perennial shrub easily. FWIW, I would describe it as a yucca-type plant.  

These are great stamps. Glad they are all still active! This is such a neat spot! 

Bass River

It seems like ages since I’ve been a first finder! It was wonderful to get out after all the rain and snow! I was happy to stroll along this beautiful river. What a lovely hike and a beautiful spot! I can see why the native americans would choose to winter here.

Retired Sea Creatures

It had been 3 years since the last find. So I decided to retire these sea creatures. Kind of seems ironic to retire them since sharks and seals are such a large part of this area now. They weren't nearly as much when E-man and I first planted these seven years ago.

One had become surrounded by a sea of poison ivy so it seemed like it was time. This is one of my favorite spots on the Cape. Such a great little hike. Beautiful views.

Denied, denied, denied

I was feeling lucky and it had been years since I tried so I gave it another go. Nope. Denied, denied, denied. I know I'm right there, just can't quite come up with the prize.  The sea of poison ivy didn't help.  

If anyone out there wants to join forces with me on this, drop me a line. Maybe another point of view or set of hands could help... ARGH!

Catch of the Day

I was very excited to find a fresh catch of the day just minutes away. Seems like it has been a while since I've been FTF! Pretty cool to see this view from this vantage point, as we are often seeing it from the water.

Soaking it in

Fort Hill View

I absolutely adore Cape Cod.  We often talk about living here some day.  But for now I have to settle for a handful of weeks each year.  So when my time here is over I get very despondent and just want to soak in as much of the area's beauty and fun as possible.  So today, in between loads of laundry and packing I stole a few minutes to take in a visit to Fort Hill, Penniman's House, the Eastham windmill, and to Stage Harbor in Chatham.

Eastham Windmill

Funny story about our trip to Penniman's House. The visit went great. Hot Lava was telling me about how he played the game camouflage when he visited here with his camp.  It was a delightful walk to find the box. A really great hidey hole. It was a little buggy as we rounded a bend but then as it opened up to the view the bugs left us alone.  Just then we spooked a large deer who bounded away from us.

Stage Harbor

We sat on the bench and logged in while taking in the views of Fort Hill.  As I was putting my stuff back in my bag I realized that I didn't have my car keys.  I began to freak out a little so Hot Lava and I booked it back, retracing our steps, looking for my dropped keys. We didn't see them.  We raced to my car and realized that not only had I left the car open, but I had left the keys in the car as well.  I guess I was just so excited about getting my fix of letterboxing that I spaced out.

An Artisan Show at the Brooks Academy

Since we had to drive right past the Brooks Academy to get back home, we decided to stop by. Much to our surprise, there was an artisan show set up right in the sunken garden.

We milled around and I made a few purchases.  Cape Cod artisan shows are the best places to get one-of-a-kind gifts!  So I stocked up on a few.

I was milling around, surreptitiously reading the clues and following the directions. Once I figured out where the box was exactly located I put my purchases down and pretended to arrange all of my bags while I reached down and took care of business of retrieving and logging in.  I don't think anyone even noticed anything out of order.  It was perfect: letterboxing AND shopping all in a beautiful and historic spot.  What a wonderful combination!

History Lesson in Harwich

 At a delightful little hike in Harwich we learned about some Civil War nurses.  Clara Barton I knew about already but was interested to learn of Walt Whitman and Harriet Tubman's involvement in the Civil War.  And I met Dorothea Dix as well.

a cute little swing on the trail

Fortunately there were benches nearby three of the four boxes because there was a man hiking behind us who apparently thought I was relieving myself at the first box. I was squatting down to retrieve it and he kindly gave me some space and looked the other way.  He was so quiet and stealthy I didn't realize how close behind us he was.  It would have been *even more* awkward if he thought I had to "go" again and again (and again) at the other boxes. HA!

A Six Sided Surprise

I nabbed a six sided surprise today. It was superb! And, by the way, it made my fingers all inky too, fil.

Arnold's is pretty fun too. But we didn't stick around to eat this time. We had things to do!

Kent's Point

I knew Kent's Point was a popular spot to walk your dog but I had no idea!  Everyone and their brother was walking their dogs at Kent's Point today!  We were the only ones with our dogs on a leash.  Seriously, are leashes not required in this park?  And what about poop bags?  Also not required apparently. Ick. Hot Lava got a hot mess all over his shoes.  :(

Great walk for us and the dogs, though. Nice views. I was able to find A-bear lying low as well as work out some clue updates for Licks.

A Gogo

 I had been here before several times but it is such a nice walk that I thought it would be perfect for the day. Besides, the h2o a gogo gave me another reason to return.

I brought along some others who often complain but they seemed to enjoy it today, much to their surprise.

The views are spectacular and the hike is very nice.  The boardwalk over the swamp is easy to travel and allows great views of the neat ferns, mosses, and shade loving growth.

Cold Enough for Snow

The turkey was cooking, the Turkey Trot was run, but football wasn't on yet so we decided to make our own snow scene.  There was no snow but it was surely cold enough for it!

We had a nice little hike through the woods.  Had trouble finding the snowman. (We never did.) But found another that was cleverly hidden!

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

Stony Brook

Over at the herring run in Brewster we had a beautiful walk. There's a fantastic little picnic area with a delightful vantage point.  Although I've been to this spot several times before, I hadn't taken in the view from this spot before.  I greatly enjoyed the local color.






Unfortunately, the herring wasn't spawning today. But the spot was gorgeous and we were glad to walk around and check things out.

The grist mill is also quite scenic and not to be missed!