North Snohomish, Skagit, Island, San Juan, and Whatcom Counties http://www.wsgaonline.org/forums/index.php Wed, 08 Sep 2010 08:07:14 -0700 120 http://www.wsgaonline.org/forums/index.php?showtopic=170

It's the 7th Annual CITO Events weekend!

The Bellingham Parks Department has been very good to our Geocaching community, so let’s thank them with a CITO work project!

What is CITO? Cache In Trash Out is an ongoing environmental initiative supported by the worldwide geocaching community. Since 2002, geocachers have been dedicated to cleaning up parks and other cache-friendly places around the world. Through these volunteer efforts, we help preserve the natural beauty of our outdoor resources!

Annually, we celebrate International Cache In Trash Out events where geocachers have an opportunity to participate in coordinated worldwide clean-up efforts. Geocachers host clean-up events in their local area on the same day or weekend as other geocachers around the world. Together, we make an enormous positive impact. Did we mention that we also have a bit of fun while we are at it? The 7th Annual Cache In Trash Out Events are scheduled for May 2nd & 3rd, 2009.


Time and place? The CITO is 10:00am - 12:00noon (2 hours) at Maritime Heritage Park in Bellingham. We will meet in the parking area at the end of C Street off Holly. WTA buses #3, 4 & 10 access this park.

Please arrive promptly, so the park representative can get us organized / trained and maximize the work time. Carpool if you can, as parking is somewhat limited, and we’ll be sharing it with regular park visitors. When you log 'Will Attend', please note how many will be participating, so we can provide a head count to the Bellingham Parks Department folks. Thanks!


Work project? Picking up garbage in Maritime Heritage Park and on the surrounding trails.

What to wear and bring? Dress to get dirty! Work gloves (if you have a pair), long pants, boots, and water are a must. Raingear and layers depending on weather. BPD will provide disposable gloves, pick-up sticks, bags, and buckets for sorting recycles.


Socializing? Of course! We'll have a picnic after the clean-up is done. There are a couple of picnic tables, the amphitheatre, a playground and the large lawn. Bring yourlunch, and maybe a chair or blanket.


Swag! This CITO will be included on the WSGA CITO t-shirt. It will feature a map of our state with all of the 2009 CITO events plotted on it. Groundspeak will not be producing a CITO shirt this year, so this will be the only 2009 CITO shirt available for the state of Washington. Details about the shirts will be coming soon from Laurie / Half-Canadian and Scooter the Wonder Dog, our WSGA President.


There will be geo-goodies for the hard-working participants! If you would like to donate an item(s) to the raffle, please contact Three Bottles.


The cache page can be located here (GC1NKEV)]]> Thu, 12 Mar 2009 16:17:50 -0700 http://www.wsgaonline.org/forums/index.php?showtopic=170 http://www.wsgaonline.org/forums/index.php?showtopic=167 fait accompli but causes me to say, "It's a guardrail; where the heck do you hide something on a guardrail?"

Without going into detail about my various frustrating expeditions, I'll come to my real question: What is the best way to hone my geosenses? I can get pocket queries, but I don't know which caches to look for that will lead me on a steady progress toward the lofty levels apparently attained by others. As it is, my expeditions are haphazard, or I go for whichever cache is closest to where I happen to be.

How can I construct a list, or a primer, of caches to find that will teach me the things I need to know? Any help would be greatly appreciated! I live in Bellingham, so caches in that area are easiest for me to access, but I'm not afraid of a little drive.]]> Mon, 09 Mar 2009 23:41:31 -0700 http://www.wsgaonline.org/forums/index.php?showtopic=167 http://www.wsgaonline.org/forums/index.php?showtopic=151
All CITO weekend events arranged by March 25 will be included in the upcoming WSGA CITO t-shirt. It will feature a map of our state with all of the 2009 CITO events plotted on it. Groundspeak will not be producing a CITO shirt this year, so this will be the only 2009 CITO shirt available for the state of Washington. Details about the shirts will be coming soon from Laurie our WSGA President, but don't miss the opportunity for your event to be included!

The WSGA's goal for CITO Weekend 2009 is to have at least two events held within each chapter. If more can be held within any chapters, that will be even better! This is the biggest and best way we have to build good relations with the land managers who oversee all the wonderful places that we get to play, and to give back to our environment.

Putting on a CITO event is very easy to do, but to make it even easier I will be posting additional topics on the CITO forum soon with tips on how to organize a successful CITO event. In the meantime, who in the 48-North Chapter is going to step up and agree to host an event? Let's hear from you so we can make a big impact in our state with CITO this year!]]> Thu, 26 Feb 2009 16:09:58 -0700 http://www.wsgaonline.org/forums/index.php?showtopic=151 http://www.wsgaonline.org/forums/index.php?showtopic=114
HAPPY CHATTING]]> Sat, 17 Jan 2009 21:34:23 -0700 http://www.wsgaonline.org/forums/index.php?showtopic=114 http://www.wsgaonline.org/forums/index.php?showtopic=50


The results are in ... more or less ...
In order to keep thing simple and easy during this busy time of year, we are going to let someone else do the cooking and cleanup for us! The 48 North holiday event has been published, so mark your calendars for Saturday, December 13:
Sheng Dan Kuai Le ]]> Mon, 10 Nov 2008 08:53:49 -0700 http://www.wsgaonline.org/forums/index.php?showtopic=50 http://www.wsgaonline.org/forums/index.php?showtopic=12 Lights Out In Lynden

We'll start off with a potluck dinner and awards for best costumes for kids (and grownups, too). After dinner, the coordinates for 13 family-friendly spooky Halloween geocaches will be distributed, and if you are brave enough you can join us as we go out night caching around Lynden.

Be sure to bring flashlights and wear warm clothes, and be prepared for lots of freaky fun!]]> Thu, 16 Oct 2008 11:06:30 -0700 http://www.wsgaonline.org/forums/index.php?showtopic=12 http://www.wsgaonline.org/forums/index.php?showtopic=11 Let's start off this new forum with a round of introductions for anyone who lives in 48 North territory, or wishes that they did!


I'm Laurie Freeman, and go by Half-Canadian (and Scooter the Wonder Dog) on geocaching.com

I'm in transition between living full time in Whatcom county and living part time in the Vancouver BC area, and am currently serving as the WSGA president.

I've been geocaching for five years now, and was introduced to the sport by a family member who had read about geocaching in a magazine article.

I really enjoy hosting geocaching events around the Whatcom/Skagit area -- any excuse for a great party! My favorite kind of geocache is the one that takes me to a historical point of interest that I wouldn't have otherwise know about.

Who's next with an introduction??]]> Thu, 16 Oct 2008 10:58:10 -0700 http://www.wsgaonline.org/forums/index.php?showtopic=11