The Legend. The Cache. The Architect.
- Details
- Written by Terri Nealon
- Hits: 1880
In pitch black, with walls and low ceiling of cold, damp stone, and floor wet with inches of water flowing like a stream, they question what form of mass lunacy has possessed them to venture far underground, bent over with aches and pains. But then...they spot a metal tag with an imprinted code.
Up, up, up along rustic trails, over rocky terrain and through forest undergrowth, they wonder why they follow one another, each step bringing more muscle fatigue, huffing and puffing toward some unknown. But then...they encounter a container with hidden clues.
This is the reality of what many have grown to love and 'hate' about the infamous, highly favored, D5/T5, St. Louis area, legendary geocaching adventure known as 'The Architect' (GC4CQ0V).
Published on August, 26, 2014, this Forest-Ghost (Ethan Rogers) and Curlycue109 (Julie Rogers) geocache was inspired by Ethan's love of adventure and finding hidden places. Indian Jones was another of his inspirations, but a Mississippi geocache he experienced, called '3 Degrees: BLACKOUT' (GC1KFAD), might have been the final catalyst. Upon his return, he knew he wanted to create a similar thrill in St. Louis. Ethan recalls spending the next couple years searching for tunnels around the area. "In 2014, Julie and I spent the good part of a year designing the cache (layout of stages, puzzles, story, containers, and finding the rest of the tunnels). The process was very difficult, but the final product achieved my goal of creating an epic adventure that would bring geocachers down in the tunnels of St. Louis."
Wolf Creek Bike Trail (Eagle Geo-Art) Adventure!
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- Written by Terri Nealon
- Hits: 2038
The Wolf Creek Bike Trail/Eagle Geo-Art, in the Wolf Creek area of Mark Twain National Forest near Poplar Bluff, has been out since 2014. L Frank and Denmother (John and Laurie ElFrank) have been looking for the right time to get down there and accomplish the 68 relatively high terrain traditionals in one trip, which meant they would need three days, according to their plan. While years passed with different factors preventing their trip, finally in January 2023, after Publiclandfun posted 'The Eagle has Landed' event, the Elfranks checked their calendar and the caches, and decided that with additional cars and geo-friends, this challenge could actually be done in two days (Friday afternoon, all day Saturday, Sunday till noon). So after a Facebook invite, BnDMoritz (Bill Moritz), Geokid12 (Robert Klemme), and Joebum (Drew Gourley) accepted the challenge. The following is based on L Frank's account of their epic adventure.
A Cabin Fever Favorite - Winter Potluck 2023
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- Written by Terri Nealon
- Hits: 1322
Our SLAGA Winter Potluck, held at the Pavilion at Lemay in the unique and historic Jefferson Barracks Park, is the perfect cabin fever escape to enjoy good food, hear latest SLAGA news, win prizes, find caches, and meet up with friends.
Santa Cachemas Steps Down from His Sleigh
- Details
- Written by Terri Nealon
- Hits: 1317
Santa Cachemas has been flying his sleigh over St. Louis since 2015, but at the end of December 2022, he parked the sleigh and set down the reins, as he stepped down from coordinating our holiday caching fun we all know as Cachemas in St. Louis. But Major134 (Peter Shaw) wasn't SLAGA's first Santa Cachemas, as that honor goes to the creator of the 'game,' 87preludea20a3 (Brandt Teske), for whom we are all grateful.
As a matter of fact, Pete was an FTF hound himself in those early days, that he says were very competitive. He was fortunate to make two FTFs and get the coveted ornaments that Brandt made back then. Pete recalls his first thrill of Cachemas: "In 2012, I was traveling down I-270 with Nick1081, when Nick’s phone pinged for a new cache. It was Day 7 and in Winter Park, Fenton. We were right at the I-44 exit so we immediately exited, raced over to Winter Park and were able to make the puzzle FTF, a co-FTF. I gave the ornament to Nick since he solved the puzzle while I was driving. It was being “in the right place at the right time” that allowed us to log the FTF as the parking lot filled with cachers just minutes behind us. Both of us were hooked on Cachemas."
Cachemas 2022 Hall of Fame
- Details
- Written by Robert Klemme
- Hits: 1269
Congratulations to all of those who chased after a coveted Cachemas ornament this year! Will next year be your year?
Average time to FTF this year was 33.5 minutes, the shortest was Day 8 at 13 minutes, the longest was Day 11 which was an hour and 13 minutes.
Link to this year's Cachemas caches: https://coord.info/BMBTHBQ
Group at Cachemas Day 6
SLAGA Sticker
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- Written by Robert Klemme
- Hits: 1599
Introducing the SLAGA Sticker!
This 3” by 5“ oval sticker is the perfect way to show off your membership to others, especially when attending MEGAs or just out and about. Get yours for only $2 and display it proudly on your car, luggage, clipboard, or other surfaces where stickers are commonly placed. Available for purchase at most future SLAGA events.
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