Number 500

We planned this weekend for our number 500 cache a couple of months ago...
For this joyful event we picked a night cache (GC17BYW-Waardeloos!). It is a cache that first starts with a series of mysteries to be solved at home. These mysteries were solved in May of this year.
We invited a couple of caching camper friends.

It was a very funny cache at one point somebody had to climb a tree, so Rob went up.

We walked about 19 Kms and were out there in the forest more than 7 hours...
So the bench we encountered at a certain way-point near the end was welcomed by half of the team.

The cache-box was discovered and opened at 01:15.

Making our total caches 500
We earned the next banner:


Inside the cache box was a so-called hitchhiker cache (GC1A74-Hitchhiker 42 (Making 'Waardeloos' valuable)), it is a cache that is traveling around itself, this was our first and we logged it at 01:16 .
And after this it was time to enjoy our mobile home for a good night sleep (well actually a half night sleep...)

Sweet Seventeen

On Friday we will go for our number 500 cache. To reach this amount we still had one cache left to do. The cache of choice was GC18VZP-Sweet-Seventeen.nl a solved mystery cache. We logged it at 12:00 making our total caches found 499, ready for the big 500 this weekend.

Magical World

This week the schools are having a week autumn holiday. I took my two nephews out caching. We chose a multi-cache nearby where they live.

While walking this cache we passed by a traditional (GC1JGWM-Bomruiming Meerhoven) that we found at 13:40.

At one point we had to count big rocks laying around, but one of my nephews laid down one one of those rocks.

We found the cache GC1RXTE-De verdwenen magische wereld at 14:35.
With still some time left we tried another cache, but we had to cancel that one because we could not find one of the way-points, so reason to come back sometime.

Finishing the Triangle Series

Today I visited the third and last traditional cache of the Triangle series (GC1WN6D-Triangle I: Jachthaven) we logged it at 14:25.
With this last we were able to figure out the bonus of the Triangle Series:
GCJ0MG-De enige echte Triangle
For this one we had to find the correct information on the Internet to composite an email address. Sending an email to this address returned the approval to log the final cache, we logged it at at 15:20
We earned the next banner with finding this complete series.

Congo-West

We drove to Belgium today to enjoy the fun of the multi-cache (GCR8ND-Xmas-2005 : Congo - West(°)) a cache that brought us to the first way-point.

And we had to find the way with the use of pictures that were given but in the wrong order, so every crossing had to be examined with care, to figure out where to go next.

We found the final box and added our name in the logbook at 14:15.

On the drive home we passed by a location with a mystery cache that we solved (GC1TMJ5-Weerspreuken) we logged it at 15:30.

This making our status after today:

Doggy Style

For today we picked a multi with an applicable title (Walking doggy style through woodland freely translated), a cache placed by a dog owner.

And while we were walking from way-point to way-point answering all kind of questions:

We made a little detour and we walked around a ruin of a castle and found the cache GC12DWG-Gemasten 1: Kasteelruïne Asten at 14:35

And when there is castle most often there is a moat which is always fun to enter....

A little bit further another cache was hidden (GC1GZGF-Week 41: rondje om de kasteelruïne) we logged it at 14:45.

And the back to the trail of the multi-cache (GC1T4RJ-Op z'n hondjes door de "Polderse Bossen"), we could finish with success and logged it at 15:50, it was a very nice cache-box.

Sculptures in Waalre

A while ago we did a cache in a small village nearby where we had to combine sculptures and pictures of parts of those sculptures to find a cache. The cache-owner created a same-type cache and made it a series with a real bonus.
Time to find the sculptures for this cache (GC1ZF6K-'Beeldig Waalre II') it was lovely weather to walk in so no punishment at all. Found the cache box at 15:45.

Time left to calculate the coordinates of the bonus cache (GC1ZGQW-'Beeldig Waalre Final') and found this one as well at 16:00.

Geleen

This Sunday we had a walk scheduled with a lot of bearded collies. So no geocaching walk today...

Although we passed by a couple of caches that we couldn't resist. One (GC1B432-Geleen III) at the way over there within 500 meters from the parking. We logged it at 12:30.
Then we went for the walk and we passed by the cache GC1R8Z5-Kasteel Terborgh, we actually had a drink at the castle so extra funny, logged it at 14:00.

And on the way back to the car park we passed by the cache GC1EBYT-De Bruidsschat, so I jumped into the forest and wrote our name in the logbook at 15:45.

So we found three caches after all making our total caches found 487, important since we are heading for our number 500 cache next week.

Nordic Walking

This day we only wanted to go for a walk, not to far from home and not to long. The choice was GCW6VF-Anc(h)or's Nordic Walking Cache. A nice walk with one hard waypoint, where the exact spot is not clear until you find it. And we searched different information along the way, but it wasn't the correct info again and again.

This cache I tried before, but wasn't able to find the needed information then. Now we were here as a team and had more eyes to look for the information and we found it.

This time we found the cache and logged at 17:30.

But we came very close to the cache GC1WN6F-Triangle II: Engelse Tuin, the second cache from the Triangle series, that we logged at 17:50.

Eindhovens Quartet

Yet another series of caches are hidden in the Eindhoven area, and we looked at them several times. Now the time arrived to go and try to find them all.

The first were found at Sunday and I started the round with the cache most far away from home, GC1FKR2-Eindhovens kwartet (Noord-Oost), it was a little wet out there and it rained a little while we walked.

Found the cache at 15:15.

Then the second for today was the cache GCBB12-Eindhovens kwartet (Noord-West), it brought us to a piece of nature close by the Canal. We walked around a golf course and we even found a couple of golf balls for the bears.
We had to find a lot of numbers, but these weren't the correct ones.

But we managed to find all information and could write our name in the logbook at 16:25.

And then the last of the day, the cache GCBB14-Eindhovens kwartet (Zuid-West), logged it at 17:50.

Then is was to late to finish the last in row, and for sure to finish the series with the bonus, so I left them for tomorrow.
So the series continued on Monday, it was lovely weather, sunny and dry much better than yesterday.
The fourth of the series was the cache GCBB15-Eindhovens kwartet (Zuid-Oost).
Logged it at 13:40

Then time for the bonus cache GCBB11-Eindhovens Kwartet Compleet!. With the information found in the four caches a coordinate could be created that seemed plausible. It brought me to a park in Eindhoven, and indeed the cache was there. Logged it at 14:35.
And for an extra fun experience to end this beautiful day, a letterbox-hybrid called GCPDE4-VII Benkskes. Fun to do and was able to log it at 16:05.

Time to go home.

Saying Goodbye to Goedweerloper

We visited an event that was organized to say goodbye to the cacher Goedweerloper who is moving to another province in the Netherlands.
It was a nice gathering and we also walked a special event cache with some fellow cachers. In this way you get to see the faces behind the caching names, interesting...

Before visiting the event site we searched and found another of the weekseries caches, GC1GAEW-Week 38: rust en onrust – de traditional, logged at 10:10
Actually that was the exact time that the event started, so we arrived a little late.
The event cache (GC1WJDY-WWW 5 1/2 event) was logged as our number 475.
After the event ended we had some time left, and since I visited the way-points for the cache GC1THE9-'A Star Is Born' yesterday, and last night I figured out the possible location of the cache, we went for it after the event to see whether my calculations were correct, it seemed that was the case and we logged at 15:15.

Triangle

This afternoon the sun was shining and I decided to go for a trip with the bike to visit some way-points of a cache nearby. I couldn't visit all the way-points but I came close by a cache out of a series called Triangle.
This series consist of three caches hidden on spots that form a triangular shape, when looked at on a map. They contain information that should make it possible to find the bonus of the series the real triangle.

Today I visited the first of the series, GC1WN6G-Triangle III: Buitengebied, I was able to find it fast, but it was hard to open the container, but with some creativity I managed to open it after all.

Smokkelroute

Today we selected a series of 12 traditionals with a 13th cache as bonus.
This series is called "Smokkelroute" which can be translated with smuggling route. It is an official bicycle route and along the way you can find caches at interesting spots. We couldn't do this series with our bikes, so we decided to take the car and use our feet as much as possible.
This is the order that we visited the caches and the time that we logged them.
GC1TQR0-smokkelroute 8: IJslandse pony's, 13:00

There are some pony's grazing here, but today not spotted by us.

GC1TQR1-smokkelroute 9: Vogelkijkhut "het Goor", 13:25

This cache was hidden near a bird-spotting shack.

GC1T5GH-smokkelroute 7: Oorlogsmonument Gastel, 14:00

Hidden near a memorial statue for three English soldiers that died here in 1944.

GC1RF7D-smokkelroute 6: Kapel Sint Cornelius, 14:10

GC1RGEQ-smokkelroute 10: Kasteel Cranendonck, 14:20

GC1T5FQ-smokkelroute 11: Bijen- en bloementuin De Immenhof, 14:35

Hidden in a garden with a lot of information about bees and flowers.

GC1TQR3-smokkelroute 3: Kantine Zinkfabriek, 14:55

GC1RGFA-smokkelroute 4: Gevangenis Dorplein, 15:00

Hidden near an old prison. Where the smugglers were locked in when they got caught.

GC1T2TM-smokkelroute 5: Douanepaal van de admiraliteit, 15:15

Near an old border pole.

GC1TQQZ-smokkelroute 2: Molen Zeldenrust, 15:25

Hidden near a mill, that was turning when we visited.

GC1RJ2K-smokkelroute 1: Schepenhuis, 15:40

Hidden at a busy point in the village centre. We first didn't realize that is was a nano, so we searched and searched, once we figured out about the size of the cache we almost immediately spotted it.

GC1T5G3-smokkelroute 12: Monument Dr. Anton Mathijsen, 16:00

Hidden at a monument for Dr. Anton Mathijsen, who discovered the plaster bandage that us used to heal bone fractures.

GC1X2VJ-smokkelroute 13: de bonus, 16:30

So with the completion of this cache we realized a new maximum caches in one day record, being 13 caches.