What a glorious day for a bike ride but we decided to make it more interesting and do some geocaching along the way. We have a new Garmin GPS specifically for this purpose. This one can be used in forests or cloud cover and doesn't lose satellites. Before heading out you download the coordinates from the Geocaching website on your computer onto the GPS. This makes it so much easier since clues and all the needed information are right on your device. John has a mount for it on his bike so you are hands free and can watch your progress while cycling.
We were not entirely successful at first. We headed out on Driftwood beach and soon realized the cache we were looking for had to be more inland. But the ride was amazing since the tide was low. We saw lots of jelly fish.
We turned back onto the marsh trail after Driftwood beach. With the help of the clue "hanging skeleton" provided for this cache...look what we found! We did not climb the tree to get this one down. We were just happy to have found it.
We continued south on the east side of the Island and soon had to turn into the centre since the GPS was indicating a cache in this direction. We narrowed it down to a spot near this interior fresh water pond. We have not been to this pond before, at least not from this angle. How beautiful! We tramped around in the bushes being careful of snakes, bugs, alligators etc. but did not find the cache. No worries, we found the pond and that's good enough.
Now onward to the Historic District where several caches were beckoning. After a couple of misses, a tour through Goodyear House Art Gallery and the shops, we ended up here at "the hydrant eating tree." I have been to this tree many times but had never noticed the hydrant. Look up about 8 ft. and you will see the tiny cache or at least what's left of it in a wee hole. It needs to be repaired but at least we found it! Some cache masters have become diabolical. We had a couple of clues that were very complex requiring mathematical calculations to take you to another coordinate. We did not have a calculator or patience for those today. Also, some were so deep in the woods or marsh that we were afraid to go after them!
As we headed toward home, now on the west side of the Island we were diverted by the possibility of another cache down another road we had never taken. We came across this gateway to the Amphitheatre, something we didn't know even existed and we have been coming here for years. Once again we didn't find the cache but finding this Amphitheatre in the woods was treasure enough. Azaleas bloomed in the forest. Apparently this was used for theatrical productions in the 90's but fell out of use and into disrepair. I have to do more research to find out when it was built, but it was definitely post Club Era. I now know there is a movement to revitalize the Amphitheatre but other projects are taking priority on Jekyll at the moment.
We continued along the bike path toward the campground stopping along the way to look for a couple more caches. No luck with one but then we did find the canister in a palm tree making us feel competent once again.
We thought we would head home to watch the Masters but got side tracked by the possibility of another cache! This is addicting. We headed toward the centre of the Island once again on a path we have never travelled and look what we came across. A silo made out of tabby, and the cache nearby. I have since looked up the history of this silo and it was part of the "Club Era" farm. From the late 1800's until the 1940's Jekyll was a hunt and recreation club for powerful millionaires who came here in the winter months with their families. This silo was attached to a dairy barn at one time. The silo is amazingly intact. During the Club Era all their food was grown or raised on the Island.
We figured we would be out for a couple of hours but we were over 4 hours having got wrapped up in finding caches and other treasures we have never seen on Jekyll. What a great way to explore and take the path less travelled!
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