The+Adventures+of+Turbo+Pig+and+Lady+Rider


 * Leigh Senter, Hayley Redding **
 * Geocaching Recount Narrative **





It was a beautiful Friday afternoon, October 4th to be exact, and Turbo Pig (Hayley) and Lady Rider (Leigh) were ready for an adventure. Disclaimer: Turbo Pig and Lady Rider acquired these names from a previous mission! Anywho, back to the Geocaching Adventure of Turbo Pig and Lady Rider. Before embarking on their journey, the duo sat down at Lady Rider’s kitchen table and conducted a planning meeting. They scoured the Geocaching website for caches in Fuquay Varina, NC. Lady Rider researched the available caches for the area as Turbo Pig frantically wrote down coordinates and clues for desirable caches. With their options all penned out, they set out on their very first geocache in the Silver Bullet (also known as Lady Rider’s silver Suzuki Forenza). Racing down the back roads of Harnett County, Turbo Pig and Lady Rider were hot on the trail of the first cache...

Lady Rider, here to report about Operation Girl Scout Cache. I am happy to report that was the first cache that we had been on. We set up our geocaching headquarters at my house. While researching we found a cache that was only 4.5 miles from my home, so we chose that as our first one. Through a little research, we learned that it was planted at the Carroll Howard Johnson Environmental Park. Because it was created and hidden by a Girl Scout troop, we were confident that this one would not be too difficult to find. Our thought was that if a group of little girls created and hid the cache that we would certainly have no problem finding it. Well, it was more difficult than we thought. I downloaded the geocaching app, so we decided to try it out for this cache. Into the thicket we trekked. Now, I should go ahead and say that we unintentionally entered the “exit” of the trail and could have found the cache in less than five minutes, but of course we like to make things challenging. As we followed the direction that my phone was leading us, we became more and more wary of the trail ahead of us (some of us more than others…cough coughTurbo Pig). Despite the countless spider webs, rough patches of terrain, and an unnerving shack (that Turbo Pig was very concerned about even though it was broad daylight), we continued on until we neared the site of the cache. Based on the comments we read on the website, we were expecting to find an ammo box out in the open. However, it was in the thicket of the woods, and you will see from the first video that I, Lady Rider, had to brave the woods and spider webs to locate the cache because Turbo Pig refused to enter the poisonous jungle until I cleared the spider webs (Did I mention that I am terrified of spiders?). Never fear though, we found the cache. Unfortunately, we left our trinket in the car, so we were unable to trade for any of the treasures, such as an acorn and a homemade handicraft, at this cache. Cache One: SUCCESS!! And we completed the cache with no poison or spider bites (that we are aware of). This cache was just the right amount of challenge but also simple enough for us to start out with.



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Turbo Pig, reporting about Cache Two: Mineral Springs. Lady Rider and I had our senior pictures taken in this park, so when we saw that a cache was located within the park we just had to do what we do best…investigate and uncover the secret! The park is a beautiful little escape from the hustle and bustle of Fuquay. This little oasis is complete with a quaint gazebo, tranquil creek, and benches to admire the miniature forest that inhabits this historical plot of land. (Note: these beautiful trees are a pleasure to admire, but serve as quite the downer when you are trying to geocache.) We used the actual GPS for this cache, and, as we expected, the signals were about as consistent as Bigfoot sightings in Alaska. Regardless of our shaky GPS signal, we were determined to find this cache. Turbo Pig was in charge! Step one of this cache was a simple math problem. I had to subtract two different years from a number given to us on the website to learn the actual coordinates for the cache. Lady Rider struggles with basic math processes, so I took one for the team and computed the numbers. With the correct coordinates entered into the GPS, we were off like squirrels after some prized nuts. Lady Rider and I scurried across the park (covering every walkable inch) with no such luck. In desperation, I almost wandered into the road twice, left the park twice, and, just to show you how desperate I was to find this cache, was willing to venture into a drain pipe under the highway if need be. With just moments before sundown, the melancholy chirps of the crickets matched the emptiness we felt as we had examined every nook and cranny that existed in that park. Things looked bleak. We had crossed over the creek close to 10 times, and I had personally descended down the roadside cliff, determined I would find the cache, but to no avail. Finally, I remembered from my preliminary reading that caches are often found where the terrain looks disturbed, such as a pile of leaves, or a hole in a tree. After I recalled this information, I began to look around for any sight of disturbed nature. Once I changed my approach, I found the cache within minutes. This accomplishment elicited the same feeling I imagine one would feel if they saw the face of God. It was a moment of pure elation, and I, Turbo Pig, had found the cache! The actual cache was a sandwich container (adorned with camouflage duct tape) that was wedged in an opening in a stump we had passed by numerous times throughout the search. I pulled the cache from its hiding place much like you would retrieve a trapped child from a well: with much hesitation followed by pure joy and elation. We stationed ourselves for viewing on a nearby bench and I began to open the cache when terror struck. I was blindsided by a ferocious hornet whose job, I’m convinced, was to protect the goods. Commence erratic flailing of the limbs. Now, here I am being blatantly attacked by a stinging insect and what is Lady Rider doing? She is, of course, videotaping and laughing at me….what she does best: getting humor out of my trauma. What are best friends for if they can’t laugh at you, right? (I would have appreciated some assistance but all I get is: “Don’t come near me, I don’t want to be stung.” Great friend.) Back to the cache. Once the hornet fled from my precarious performance, we were able to open the cache and plunder through the contents. After all of that work, we were not leaving until we took something from this cache. Luckily, we had a pen to leave, and Lady Rider found it only appropriate that we take a rubber hornet to always remind us of our unexpected friend. We traded our pen for this special trinket and took the remaining moments of light to capture our emotions on film before we were off to enjoy a typical Mate Date Dinner at Cooley’s.

media type="custom" key="24119280" align="center" When we arrived back at the Turbo Pig and Lady Rider headquarters we had to show my mother what we had done earlier. She watched the videos and immediately after the last one ended she insisted that we had too much fun and that she would be joining us on our next geocaching adventure. Based on our experience, she will be getting that opportunity very soon. We absolutely loved geocaching and will certainly be caching whenever we get the chance. I, Lady Rider, cannot lie: I check the app every time I am in a new location. Just this weekend, I was in Durham to see a play at the DPAC and while waiting for the play I checked the app and was only 100s of feet away from a micro cache. Unfortunately, I was unable to search for it because of the rain and time constraint. Bottom line, Turbo Pig and Lady Rider are always up for a challenge, and geocaching is right up our alley. What better way to exercise your brain, become one with nature, and bond with your mate than geocaching! Turbo Pig and Lady Rider………OUT!

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