Wherigo.com

 Savage Hiker played it on 2/12/2012

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Although I have left a more significant log on the Geocaching.com (GC1K2C5) page, it seems fitting that everyone to follow after us should know how well done this Wherigo is. I honestly do not feel I could have chosen a more fitting one to mark as my first Wherigo ever. It was Wicked Awesome! This guy really knows how to keep an outdoor person entertained. It took us 4 experienced geocachers well over the estimated 5 hours to complete. VFEM, LizardSally, Lee the Muggle and I had a fair amount of entertainment with the options for answers, giving some wrong ones just to see what Clan Riffster thought of our intelligence and we barely strayed from the intended path, if at all. Including our generous lunch break at some perfectly placed picnic tables, and photo ops every 6.2 feet, and that marathon stream crossing, I estimate we took about 7 hours to finally see that gate again as the sun was setting. You should be just as prepared as the Riffster has warned you to be.
Be advised that it is very recommended to get that crucial gate code in advance. It will save you some serious leg time.... unless of course you're into that sort of torture. In that event, you probably already stopped reading my prattling long ago.
If you do get access to the gate, be aware that the clearance on occasion will give a small car some heart in the throat moments when you'll wonder "How hard is it to push a ton of metal through sugar sand?'..... which had the chance to shoot through my mind a few times. That would seriously hinder your finish time. Although we did regrade some of those higher spots for you, you might run into one of those gravel piles that we pushed to some new locations.
The scenery and wildlife are abundant and beautiful. Be ready to take some time to enjoy it and carry some spare camera batteries if possible. I used the iPhone app for the Whereigo and used the phone to take my photo's as well, which drained my battery down long before we finished, and if not for the car to recharge and the spare back up battery charger LizardSally brought, I never would have been able to get my finish code. So, bringing your specific devices with back-up batteries or some sort of way to recharge is highly recommended. Getting back out of there is crucial to telling your tale.

Have as much out there as we did, and you'll probably be swearing to come back too. I can't wait to get some visiting family out there. Heh heh..... I'm EVIL like that!

Thanks for the GREAT Wherigo Clan Riffster!!

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 LizardSally played it on 2/12/2012

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Awesome fun, thanks so much for this! Won't bore you with the details since I already logged them all at geocaching.com but we played this with just an iPhone and it worked wonderfully, no problems whatsoever!

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 chuck4564 played it on 2/25/2011

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Hardware: iPhone 3GS & Garmin GPSMap 60CSx
iOS 4.2.1
PiGo V1.2.2 (I think)
Hike & Bike: 21.9 miles
Elapsed time: 5:50

Wherigo Experience: This is the 4th I have completed. While in transit to the starting point my iPhone gave some low on memory errors when I got into the PiGo app. I restarted the phone and didn’t have any further low memory issues. It could have been the google map or MapQuest I was using while in transit.

Because of limited battery life on the iPhone, I had the phone in standby, not running GPS, most of the time. I used the phone when I was near the active zones but while in transit I used my Garmin GPSr. I would project the waypoint using the distance and direction shown on the phone. When I got near the projected point I would startup the phone again. Typically the waypoints were 50ft to 100ft from the projected point. This process worked acceptably but it ended up being many projected waypoints for this particular cache. For the final the actual coordinates were supplied so waypoint projection was not required. I started the day with the iPhone battery at 100% and finished with 35%. So it looks like I had some battery life remaining at the end. I may have had the phone operating about 2 hours out of the nearly 6 hour excursion.

I crashed out of the PiGo app on three occasions. None of the crashes was more than a 20 second inconvenience. Crash #1 was after I had entered some alpha numeric data. I don’t recall where the other crashes occurred.

Bike & Hike Decision: My choice not to drive is partly because I decided to give this cache a try at the last minute so acquiring a gate code was not convenient. A second factor is that I like riding my bike out in the boonies. Most of the roads were suitable for biking using a Mtn bike. There were some washboard areas that were inconvenient and there were some areas that were too sandy. In general, all of the areas that one could drive were suitable for a bike and 1/3 to ½ of the hiking areas were suitable for biking. It ended up being 21.9 miles combined. I wouldn’t recommend walking the whole thing. If I were to do it again I would still choose the Bike/Hike option.

More typical geocache log stuff: It was a nice day. I got to the entry point a little after noon. I ate my lunch at the picnic tables near the parking area. It was a little breezy at the start but the wind settled after 2 pm. While I was on the move I didn’t have any issues with mosquitoes but at nearly every stopping point they would appear. It never irritated me enough to put on the DEET. I didn’t see much wildlife. Two deer, a rabbit, and various birds were observed. I didn’t see any snakes. This wherigo took me to places I wouldn’t have seen otherwise. I blundered on the route selection to Cedar Spring. The shortest distance isn’t the best choice. Otherwise, the CO had everything setup nicely to tour many springs in the area. The only people I saw today were near the parking area when I started this grand adventure. My preferred area was near the water hazards with the natural bridges.

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 seastar255 played it on 10/16/2010

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another clan riffster experience beyond words. today's group title was fellowship of the springs. thanks to the callings of team hobbit, this rag-tag group that numbered 10 set out for a full days worth of adventures and we were not disappointed.

with springs 1, 2, 3, and 4 in the books and deemed not riffster worthy, we were soon regretting our words of doubt. springs 5, 6, and 7 tested each and everyone's resolve, as now the questions turned to our sanity. but nobody was here alone and together, as a unified group, we made it.

springs 8, 9, and 10 were the perfect fit to end the tour. challenging but tons of fun.

now i figured we've earned our final and it would be a piece of cake but unless you like palmetto cake, i was dead wrong. of course, once you strike ammo can steel, it is so rewarding.

fellowship of the spring was brought to you today by: sam-wise; efrodo; daisy, the wonder dog; team short stuff; flgrl; jim 32809; floridahiker; tony's girl; and your truly, mr seastar255.

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 nativefly182 played it on 2/27/2010

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I choose this one as my 1000th find milestone.
I was accpompanied by the Jailbirds, the Flatouts & of course, Clan Riffster the owner.
This was really a great adventure.
You visit all the different terrains & see varied widlife within the forest.
It took us most of the day to complete the Wheigo, but it was well worth the time spent.
Thanks Clan Riffster for the fun.

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