Staten Island Rock Sculptures

New York’s little Stonehenge is to be found just south of the Lemon Creek Pier in Mount Loretto State Park on Staten Island. The GPS location is 40.506552,-74.213588. I’ll be adding this to the list of day trips we’ll do this Spring, hence this post being still under construction.

Still to research: urbanspoon.com for a local brunch and geocaching.com for some local caches to find. Unfortunately the old orphanage on this property burnt to the ground in 2000, so there is no urban exploring to do — that I’m aware of yet.

Hey Wow! This was a fabulous Father’s Day …

Bo brought a tear to my eye with this sentimental card …

Caumsett Caches: Reaching only one of two today …

Found GCM325 “almost conneticut” (sic) up a hill and then, on my way to GC1M7KY “Eikosi” I slipped down a ravine and injured my leg. Hopefully just a sprain. I hobbled back to the the entrance on a makeshift crutch while my wife went ahead to find a park ranger — who came to fetch me in a snow plow truck.

Using Google maps as a poor man’s GPS …

Find a location on Google maps using coordinates: Typically people use Google maps by entering addresses. You can also enter coordinates. If you were trying to geocache without a GPS, for example, you could enter the coordinates given — and thereby locate the hide on a map before you even leave home. This works well in an urban setting with many landmarks — not so well out in the wild unless you’re very good at orienteering — in which case you should print both the satellite and the terrain views.

Let’s demo an example: GC1Y8D0 is one of my caches called “An American Hero” where the coordinates are given as N 40° 53.040 W 073° 25.158. Copy-paste that into maps.google.com and you’ll immediate know where to look for the cache. Not as much fun as approaching the hide with a GPS; certainly more efficient!

Caching Caumsett

A walk through Caumsett on Lloyds Neck, Long Island yielded two caches, three benchmarks and several samples of moss and lichen — not to mention an enjoyable walk on a brisk but sunny day.

GC1B07D Sticks and Stones (above)

Adventures in Geocaching: Livingston County House, Geneseo, New York

Headstones with age and initials only: What’s the story behind this interesting find?

There are several aspects of geocaching I most enjoy: In rough order of preference they are the exposure to locations I would not otherwise have visited, the history that goes with it, the occasional opportunity for urban exploration, the follow up research it inspires — and the technology which drives it. Of course many geocaches don’t meet all the criteria, but we look for those that do.

Catching the Geocaching Bug …

Bo-Ashley (geocacher BoDash), my buddy Paul Everitt and his son Ryan help me find GCRY62 and GCYFT9 in Froelich Farms, Huntington. We also picked up Travel Bug “Bob” YRWT3B which wants to travel to the four corners of the country.

Hey Boet: Rest In Peace my good buddy! Here’s wishing you a speedy recovery

UPDATE Tuesday, July 28th, 2009: Alfred died today, in hospital. He did not recover from the stroke he suffered on Sunday, July 12th. In addition to my family he’s survived by his sons A.J. (we know him as Alfie) and Mark — and their children, Carmen, Joshua and Nikki. He was a good man and a fabulous brother.

My brother Alf is seriously ill in hospital. Our thoughts are with him and our wish is for a fully and speedy recovery. Harry, Carolyn & Bo-Ashley

Suggested links: Photo gallery: Remembering Alf | Geocaching Travel Bug TB2T4PG — a trackable item hidden in GC1Y8TK with the goal of completing a motor bike trip Alf had planned from South Africa through Botswana, Zimbabwe, Zambia, Tanzania, Malawi and Mozambique. A trip he started earlier in the year and then aborted when they crashed into a cow, at night, in Zimbabwe | Alf’s blog

Gilbert Potter

GC1Y8TK: The challenge, for those landing on this page from a geochaching clue is to locate Stage #3, a Town of Huntington historical sign marking the one time residence of Gilbert Potter, which hides the directions to the final Stage #4 of a multi-stage cache …

Gilbert Potter 1725 – 1786

Gilbert Potter, a resident of Huntington, now buried in the Old Huntington Cemetery on Main St., was a patriot of the American Revolution, a doctor and a commissioned officer Gilbert Potter as listed on page 512 of Frederic Gregory Mather’s book “The refugees of 1776 from Long Island to Connecticut.” He was known for the patriotic saying “I am determined to live and die free.” The cemetery in which he is buried, also known as the Old Burial Hill Cemetery, is considered by The Long Island Paranormal Investigators to be a haunted site,