Letterboxing With the Wind

March was a busy month for me. Lots of projects and two trips - one to Texas and one to Tucson. Yesterday I completed a couple of major projects which made me happy enough to jump up and down. I spent the afternoon on Saturday cleaning up my craft area and getting some things organized. So that left today pretty open for just about anything. I did have one very important thing to do - make a special delivery. I will write about that in my next post.

Yesterday while organizing things I went through some clues I had printed out for boxes recently planted in New Mexico that I haven't yet had the time to go out and find. Two of those were in Santa Fe. So I gathered all my letterboxing stuff and the clues and headed out. I think Thomas had had enough of letterboxing in Tucson that he declined to join me on my hunts.

My first stop was at Old Fort Marcy Park and the Cross of the Martyrs. When I left home the wind wasn't all that bad but by the time I parked the wind had really picked up. So I read the clues in the car and and then folded and rolled the clues so I could hold them tight enough not to have them fly away. I followed the clues to a certain spot and then had to unroll them to check the next part. Not thinking, I wasn't holding the paper tight enough and the wind decided that I needed a little chase before finding the box. Lucky for me a bush intervened and stopped the paper and I didn't have to chase it very far. Now I kept a good grip on the page and made it to the box. I grabbed the box and was going to go and sit on a bench nearby but realized that it was out in the open and unprotected from the wind. So I found another bush and sat on the side that would block me from the wind. I still had a challenging time but I got through it. And WooHoo! - I was the first finder of the Twinville Trekkers' Beatles Series #15 "Revolution" letterbox. I got the box back into place and hidden well and returned to my car.

On to the second box. This box is Hi Desert's A Slice of Life box. I made my way up Hyde Park Road to the Black Canyon Campground and parked. It was a great drive, not too many people on the road and I always love the scenery. So I parked in the parking area for people only using the campground for hiking and started following the clues. I didn't actually go into the campground but hiked into Hyde Memorial State Park which is right next to the campground. Thankfully up here the wind wasn't as bad and I had plenty of trees to help block it anyway. I found the box which is hidden right near a creek. I found a spot to sit and I stamped in. I enjoyed the box and the area - I ended up spending about 45 minutes up there. It was such a nice day.

So I had a great time finding these two boxes and I enjoyed my time in the mountains. I am just waiting for it to get a little warmer so I can get out more often.

A Great Trip to Tucson

Thomas and I made it home safely from our trip to Tucson. We had a great visit to Tucson and really enjoyed the 7th Annual Tucson, Arizona Letterboxers Gathering. It is always a pleasure to visit with the Tucson Letterboxers and they always have great boxes to find. I really appreciate all the images I have in my logbook. I am really happy to have completed Azroadie's Geology 101 Series and I enjoyed all the great hikes these boxes took me to. You can read about the whole trip by going to The 7th Tucson Event.

Off on Another Letterboxing Adventure

I recently returned from a big Texas letterboxing trip and all as soon as I recovered and got caught up I started planning the next trip. Thomas and I are leaving tomorrow for Tucson, Arizona. We will be letterboxing throughout Tucson and attending the 7th Annual Tucson, Arizona Letterboxers Gathering. The event is being held at Colossal Cave Mountian Park in Vail. I always enjoy letterboxing in Tucson - they have some great letterboxers and letterboxes. I have found some incredible boxes there and have been on some great hikes. We are looking forward to the trip and I am sure we will have a great time. You can read all about our adventures by clicking on the picture.

I Went Native and Now I Am Home

Well, I had another incredible trip, this one to Texas. I left New Mexico and traveled through Lubbock to Abilene. Then on to Waco and then down to Lake Somerville and then stopped in College Station. I then made my way to Mexia for the T.A.L.E. 8 - Going Native! event. From there I traveled to Dallas to visit a friend before heading to McKinney, Quanah, Turkey and then Canyon. Now I am home and I had a great time. I am finally settled, the laundry is done and I finally have blogged the entire trip and logged in all my finds. You can read all about it by clicking on the Texas flag. Thanks to all the Texas Letterboxers who placed boxes and thanks to Silver Eagle and Baby Bear for a fantastic event.

Going Native!

I am off on another trip - this one is to Mexia, TX to attend T.A.L.E 8 - and I am really looking forward to it. I am hoping the weather will be good and that the letterboxes will be plentiful. I am also planning on replacing a couple of my boxes that have gone missing while I make my way to the event. I will be traveling down through Lubbock to Abilene. Then over to Waco and down to Somerville before making my way to Mexia. After the event I will drive to Dallas to visit a friend before making my way home. You can read all about the trip by clicking on the picture. Can't wait to tell you all about T.A.L.E. 8!

A Walrus and A Rose

Two new boxes were planted in Santa Fe in the last few days and I just had to go out today and find them. Both had neat clues and both were in the downtown area so I headed into town and went on a quest.

I first drove and found a place to park near the plaza to find another one of the Twinville Trekkers' Beatles Series. I parked and made my to the location where I needed to start to look for the box. I found the hallway with the crows, eyes and clouds. It was actually a pretty neat mural. I got the information I needed and figured out all the steps and turns and made my way to the hiding spot. Then I had to wait and walk around until the area was void of muggles before retrieving the box. When I had in my hot little hands I went back to where the mural was and sat and stamped in. Putting the box back in place was much easier. Thanks Twinville Trekkers for another nice box.

I made my way back to my car and then drove to Amelia White Park to find a box by Hi Desert. She is fairly new to the letterboxing scene in Santa Fe. The box I found today was her second planted box and it is the first one of hers I have found. The other one is a little ways away and I haven't had time to get out there and get it. But today I solved the little puzzle she has for the clues and found Amelia's Rose. I am glad that the weather was nice today and I didn't have to be out in the cold trying to solve the clue. I enjoyed finding this box, thanks Hi Desert. I am looking forward to more of your boxes.

I had a pleasant afternoon walking around downtown and visiting Amelia White Park. It is nice to have boxes to find close to home. And next week I will be in Texas for T.A.L.E. 8 and I am so looking forward to it.

5 Year Letterboxing Anniversary

Back in November 2005 while searching the internet for information about personal journaling I came across something called letterboxing. I took a little time to read about it but then moved on to my original project. A few weeks later I went back to the letterboxing information and read more. It really captured my interest and I kept reading as much as I could and then gathered the materials to carve my first signature stamp. Then on February 16, 2006 I ventured out on a very cold morning to find my first letterbox. That box was Silver Eagle's Santa Fe Trails Microbox. As I sat on a cold picnic bench and stamped in I knew I was hooked. So here it is five years later and I am still hooked.

So to celebrate this day I decided to go letterboxing. My first order of business was to get a box planted. I put a box together to commemorate this anniversary and I wanted it planted today. I
made my way to Amelia White Park and found a good place to hide the box - the box is called lionsmane's 5 Year Letterboxiversary. I picked this park to plant the box in because this is where I found my first box 5 years ago today. After the box was placed and the clues written I decided to check on Silver Eagle's box just make sure it was still in place - and it was. Now to go and find some letterboxes.
I left Santa Fe and headed south to Albuquerque and drove to the Volcano Area of the Petroglyph National Monument to find Wronghat's Volcano Aslumber. You may have read my post; Volcanoes - 1, lionsmane - 0, where I attempted to find this box once before. I am not sure why I had problems finding this box on that visit because today I found it without any trouble. Once I retrieved the box I looked for a nice spot to sit and stamp. I found a nice flat rock with great views of the Sandias and enjoyed Wronghat's carving. After stamping in I decided to walk the entire area before returning to my car. I had a great morning at the Volcanoes.

My next stop was to find another of Twinville Trekkers' Beatles Series. Finding the box was pretty easy - but retrieving it was much more difficult. This was a very busy area and I had to wait for a little while before I could grab it and then again I had some difficulty putting it back in place. But with a little patience and stealth I managed to not get caught. I am enjoying the Trekkers' Beatles Series and I really liked this stamp.

I had a great day of letterboxing and it was a perfect way to celebrate my anniversary. Thanks to all who have planted boxes that have helped me to enjoy this hobby.