When visiting Mayan ruins, we entered the world of Chaac, the God of Rain who brings the Sound of Thunder, even as acid rain threatens what remains. In an area where entire cities and kingdoms depended on rainfall, his importance was clear. He could require sacrifice. In today’s he calls on us to care for the air and water. His voice calls as a warning.
Bigfoot, Jerry, and Patty still symbolizes the search for the Hairy Man. And a geocache took us to the Klamath River where it came together. The River defines it all, and since we were last here the dams that held it back have been removed. The salmon again swim upstream.
Frank Sam’s Cabin is on Kootzaduka’a land, the tribe that encompasses Mono Lake. It is a story of endurance, both for the lake that faced depletion for Los Angeles taking its waters and for the People who
struggled to maintain their tribal identity even as their land was taken. Even today they seek federal recognition.
AI and geocaching allows Nano Banana to meet Wyatt Earp in Tombstone Territory. That may or may not be for the best, but it’s here. Geocaching has decisions to make. Wyatt just needs to defeat the Clantons at OK Corral. Again.
The Mojave Phone Booth is about more than a booth that is no longer there. It is about a Booth that is no longer there. There is a difference. The virtual geocache here keeps the experience real. It cannot simply be removed.
We came for a virtual geocache at an old jail, a true hoosegow in every sense of the world. But we started to walk around to look at the town and soon were invited to see the old union hall and a beautiful mural depicting the 1983 strike. Of course there was also a collection of African art. Somehow it all fit together.
Wounded Knee. Very few places have both profound sorrow and a spirit of resistance. The massacre here changed things forever, but after the 1971 occupation things would never be the same. Its words continue to evoke struggle. Trump’s refusal to revoke the Medals of Honor awarded here shows the power of its place, and just how far we have to go as a nation to begin to understand what it means.
Locationless caches and the language of location. The end of locationless geocaches was a sad but necessary part of the game’s evolution. They were brought into the game at a time when there were few physical geocaches. And they brought some fun elements. Ride the Underground Railroad still stands out to this day as an example of why many of us loved them. Who would have thought there was a station near where I lived?
Many of us have cached at our parks and historical sites. Some, like a virtual at the Manzanar relocation camp, may be disturbing, but that is what makes it all the more important to experience. Presidential orders are forcing many parks to remove exhibits. Reclaiming history has never been so important. We have a duty to preserve it, for ourselves, for the things we have learned, and a woman named Kiyo.