firefighterjake logged his 300th find! congratulations, jake. thanks for the great caches you have placed, too! now, if i can only remember which cache you put the roof ladder in!

Way to go Jake!!! Doing trips like Campabello is adding up quickly. I've been happy to be on a few trips with you. Keep it going.

awesome!!!!!!!!! congrats on 300!!!!!!!!!!

Way to go! Seems like you just started! Congratulations on this milestone and hears to many many more...

Congrats, Jake! Hope to see you on the trail again, soon. :D :D

Way to go Jason. One of these day we will meet. Congrats!!! :)

Great job on all those finds and also a nice job on your hides!:) I'm sure we'll run into each other again on the trail.

Adding my congratulations to the many others. Thanks for providing good reading. Keep on caching and keep leaving the ladders - I'm looking forward to finding one some day :-)

WOW! Congratulations! We're back here at the end of the line with 24!

Thanks everyone . . . I've said it before and I'm sure I'll say it again. It really isn't about the numbers, but about the memories and I have to say I've had more than a few experiences while geocaching -- and most of them were quite memorable.

There's the first cache I did where I didn't realize my GPSr had a "go to" feature so I ended up "line dancing" as I went back and forth and side to side in an effort to get the coord numbers on the GPSr to match up to the coord numbers listed on the description.

There's the day I went geocaching and met my first "live" geocacher Becket on a foggy Sear's Island . . . and ironically I was planning on doing her fantastic geocaches on Deer Isle but got way-laid doing others so I went and did them a few weeks later.

There's the time I rushed to get a FTF at the Hampden Marina and saw Sudonim race ahead of me (I was busy bush whacking through thorn bushes and burdocks as I normally do) to attempt to get the FTF . . . only to have us both discover that Maniac had beat us both.

There's the Fitz Cache . . . enough said on that one!:eek:

There's the recent relevation that in a strange twist of fate I've met Tuna and the Clan last year while four wheeling on the Sunrise Trail (they were low on gas so my buddy and I let them borrow our gas cans and we had no lunch so they shared their sandwiches) . . . and then I met them while geocaching and it wasn't until later we both realized that we had met before . . . almost a year to the day.

There's Boot Cove . . . a cache that was so incredible with the vistas that it has to be one of my all-time favorites, along with Parrot Siding and about 298 other must-see caches.

There's the time that I hid Multi in a Mile and a Half as a cache with "something for everyone to hate" and unfortunately I accidentally had the wrong coords at a couple of stages which meant the first few seekers really, really hated it.

There's the fun I've had in trying to find new places to hide caches and new ways to hide caches.

There's the friends I've made along the way and on-line . . . friends who willingly gave of their time to help me out with a presentation (although it could have been the offer of free pizza too! :D )

There's my first FTF at Hermon Pond and that feeling of being the first to find a cache.

There's all of the many, many DNFs I have logged . . . I think fondly (now) of Ol' 470, Perkins Cache and Outer Limits. I try to forget my DNF at Island Cache where I couldn't find it the first time only to return and find the cache practically out in the open with a bright red lid. :o

There's the 62 quarts of blood that I have "donated" to help feed all of the mosquitoes and blackflies in Maine to insure that countless others will be able to also enjoy our Maine wildlife.

There's all of the times when I've come back from a day of geocaching with mud-covered clothes and socks and sneakers that smell so bad that even repeated washing hasn't been able to completely remove the stink.

There's my Campobello Trip where I did a lot of great caches, but even more importantly got to spend some time with my kid brother and bond with him despite not really knowing him for a number of years (there's a 21 year difference so I didn't grow up with him.)

There's the time I got to see horseshoe crabs mating (hubba hubba) and the 3-4 other times when I got to interrupt some romantic encounters between human beings of the opposite sex who were also apparently engaged in some mating rituals. :D

There's the times when I've been mistaken for a rock wall mason (Outer Limits), member of the Dam Authority (Cobby's Cache) and even a firefighter (if you can believe that.)

Here's to hoping the rest of you have had and will continue to have as many memories and positive experiences geocaching as I have had.

firefighterjake logged his 300th find! congratulations, jake. thanks for the great caches you have placed, too! now, if i can only remember which cache you put the roof ladder in!

Right back at ya kid. :D Your caches on Deer Isle are still quite vivid in my mind . . . and I will be back someday to "finish" some of them.

As for the roof ladder, to paraphrase Agent "The truth is out there" Fox, "They're out there, Scully." Just dropped off one yesterday in fact. :D And I have to tell you each time I drop one off or make one I think to myself, "Becket is still trying to find one of these darned things. I wonder if this will be the one.";)

Way to go Jake!!! Doing trips like Campabello is adding up quickly. I've been happy to be on a few trips with you. Keep it going.

Most definitely . . . that was the first overnight geocaching trip that I've done with the express purpose of said trip being to geocache . . . well that and a bit of education for my kid brother.

I've also enjoyed searching for a couple of caches with you. If you ever want to get together and do a day of geocaches and don't mind towing around a fat, balding guy this summer just let me know . . . I'll even let you make fun of my Magellan and the maps showing that I'm standing halfway in the Penobscot River.

awesome!!!!!!!!! congrats on 300!!!!!!!!!!

Thanks . . . something tells me though that we'll be seeing your name here with 300 finds before long as you've got the geocaching bug and got it bad. :D

Way to go! Seems like you just started! Congratulations on this milestone and hears to many many more...

Well, I kind of, sort of did just start caching . . . I started last July. Registered on July 4th and found my first cache a week or so later. I vividly remember hoping that I might be able to break 100 caches in my first year . . . foolish grasshopper that I was . . . never realized I would enjoy this hobby so much . . . and have this many before the first year was out. Thanks for the kind words.

Congrats, Jake! Hope to see you on the trail again, soon. :D :D

Same here Bruce . . . but since I don't do the events as you know I guess it will have to be on the trail . . . although I had a Big G's sandwich this past weekend and I have to say I may have to reconsider my "policy" of not doing events. Wicked good sandwiches.

Way to go Jason. One of these day we will meet. Congrats!!! :)

I know what you mean . . . we "talk" here, read the logs, etc. and don't live that far away and yet we have never met except on line. Incidentally, in case you or anyone was wondering, I'm a real person and not a sock puppet. ;) :D

Great job on all those finds and also a nice job on your hides!:) I'm sure we'll run into each other again on the trail.

Thank you . . . and I have to say I have enjoyed finding your many caches just as much . . . and I have truly appreciated your tips just as much. Sudonim and I both thank you for the "we were looking in the right area" tip for Magic Fingers.

Adding my congratulations to the many others. Thanks for providing good reading. Keep on caching and keep leaving the ladders - I'm looking forward to finding one some day :-)

Thanks for the congratulations, words of encouragement on the column and on my signature item ladders. I found one of your geocoins just yesterday incidentally . . . I am sure it will only be a matter of time before you find a signature item as I slowly and steadily expand my geocaching trips further and further abroad as I explore this great state.

WOW! Congratulations! We're back here at the end of the line with 24!

24 in one month or so isn't bad at all . . . when I first started my goal was to get 100 in a year (even though it isn't about the numbers. ;) ) Little did I know how addicted I would become . . . in fact my only complaint about geocaching is that it cuts into time spent ATVing. :D Trust me, before long you will have lots of caches under your proverbial belt as well if you find geocaching half as addicting as I have found it to be.

Jake - congrats on 300! Thank you, too, for the caches you have placed and your sage advice when I have asked. Enjoy a wonderful summer.

Jake - congrats on 300! Thank you, too, for the caches you have placed and your sage advice when I have asked. Enjoy a wonderful summer.

Sage advice, huh? Makes me sound like some type of geocaching guru. ;) :D All I can do is picture me sitting on top of a bunch of rocks on Chick Hill waiting for novice geocachers to come meet me, offer me a granola bar as a token offering and then dispense my advice to them, such as to never eat Chinese food and then go on a long geocaching hike or to always remember that the shortest way between two points is not always a straight line while geocaching or that eating that candy bar that was dropped into that cache six months ago may not be a wise decision. :D

Thanks though . . . now when are you going to come down to my neck of the woods and do my caches -- think of the Bangor caches as just a warm-up to what I consider some of my better caches.;)

I've enjoyed your caches immensely. I've enjoyed meeting you. I've enjoyed collecting your ladders. Most of all I enjoyed eating the pizza you bought us. :D No but seriously, the caching community is richer for having you in it. I hope one of these days ( like Saturday for example) you will get to an event and meet some more of us. We don't bite, really. Hiram nibbles a little, but we just keep throwing treats his way and he's fine.:rolleyes: :p. 300 in a year. I guess I'd better get a move on if I want to stay ahead of you. See ya around Jason!!

Number Seven and myself were on the Quebec border adding to our own geo memories yesterday.That trip almost concludes the caches north of us so we'll be coming down to do some of yours soon.Congrats on the 300 and thanks for all the great stories to read. Hope to meet on the trail some day.Vic

Congratulations Jake,,,300,,,Holy smokes!!! We got 12 caches yesterday, A new one day record for us, brings us up to a whopping 63 total. We had a real nice day , left Kenduskeag, up to Greenville, over to Kokadjo, out to the golden road, down to Millinocket, then to Medway and back down the 95 to Kenduskeag. Whew!! 225 miles total, saw 12 moose, 1 deer, and various other small critters. This sport is awesome, gives Gail and I a chance to spend time together and see some awesome places. Where else can you spend 50 bucks in gas, 20 bucks for lunches and get a rubber chicken that poops an egg and get chewed alive by mosquitos?? I love it!!! Congrats again on hitting 300, hopefully many more "Happy Caches" for you to come. Regards,,,"Dave and Gail" and Shamis:D

!!!!! holy cow jake... you need to find a new job, i think you have too much time on your hands, either that or the wife isn't giving you enough chores....

Sage advice, huh? Makes me sound like some type of geocaching guru. ;) :D All I can do is picture me sitting on top of a bunch of rocks on Chick Hill waiting for novice geocachers to come meet me, offer me a granola bar as a token offering and then dispense my advice to them, such as to never eat Chinese food and then go on a long geocaching hike or to always remember that the shortest way between two points is not always a straight line while geocaching or that eating that candy bar that was dropped into that cache six months ago may not be a wise decision. :D


...and while you are there busily dispensing this sage advice, you could do my cache located at the top. :D

I've enjoyed your caches immensely. I've enjoyed meeting you. I've enjoyed collecting your ladders. Most of all I enjoyed eating the pizza you bought us. :D No but seriously, the caching community is richer for having you in it. I hope one of these days ( like Saturday for example) you will get to an event and meet some more of us. We don't bite, really. Hiram nibbles a little, but we just keep throwing treats his way and he's fine.:rolleyes: :p. 300 in a year. I guess I'd better get a move on if I want to stay ahead of you. See ya around Jason!!

The same words could be applied to you too Maniac. I've enjoyed many of your caches, been frustrated at trying to find more than one and still shudder when I think about attempting some of the unfound ones (i.e. Stacked on the Stillwater).

I was planning on surprising some of you this Saturday by coming to Rick's, but unfortunately I'm shooting a wedding and at the same time myself, my clone or most likely my wife will be in Bangor attempting to win a Datsun 240Z for me.

As for staying ahead of me . . . don't worry. I don't think anyone has to work too hard to stay ahead of me . . . I've just been doing the easy caches. ;) :D

As for the pizza . . . no kidding. I've never seen so much pizza be devoured so quickly . . . and I would do it again in a heartbeat since it was a lot of fun . . . I just wish we had more UBRs there that night.

...and while you are there busily dispensing this sage advice, you could do my cache located at the top. :D

It's on my list . . . which is why I mentioned it. Ironically, this is where I ended up after getting lost on my ATV last year and deciding that I was going to get a GPSr to keep from getting lost.

!!!!! holy cow jake... you need to find a new job, i think you have too much time on your hands, either that or the wife isn't giving you enough chores....

I do need a new job, but that's a whole other thread about broken promises, threats, bad bosses, lack of respect, etc. :( But we won't go there.

As for time . . . Most of these caches were done on day trips every three weeks (when my wife has worked her weekend shift). I've spent one day geocaching and one day working around the house. Add in a few sidetrips here and there and fact that I live in the geographic center of Bangor, Waterville, Newport and Belfast and you can see how I have been able to do a few here and there on evenings with the net result being that they add up quick even if done one or two at a time.

Congratulations Jake,,,300,,,Holy smokes!!! We got 12 caches yesterday, A new one day record for us, brings us up to a whopping 63 total. We had a real nice day , left Kenduskeag, up to Greenville, over to Kokadjo, out to the golden road, down to Millinocket, then to Medway and back down the 95 to Kenduskeag. Whew!! 225 miles total, saw 12 moose, 1 deer, and various other small critters. This sport is awesome, gives Gail and I a chance to spend time together and see some awesome places. Where else can you spend 50 bucks in gas, 20 bucks for lunches and get a rubber chicken that poops an egg and get chewed alive by mosquitos?? I love it!!! Congrats again on hitting 300, hopefully many more "Happy Caches" for you to come. Regards,,,"Dave and Gail" and Shamis:D

Thanks . . . and trust me . . . you guys have it bad and before long you'll have just as many caches if you keep it up. Just remember, it really is about the journey and the destination and not the numbers . . . when I start thinking solely about reaching X number I'll stop geocaching since it will then become work and not play.

Now when are you guys going to make the very short trip south here to Unity for pizza and to do some of the great caches in this area???:D

Number Seven and myself were on the Quebec border adding to our own geo memories yesterday.That trip almost concludes the caches north of us so we'll be coming down to do some of yours soon.Congrats on the 300 and thanks for all the great stories to read. Hope to meet on the trail some day.Vic

Thanks Vic . . . and right here and now I'll make my own prediction. In less than a year you too will have 300 plus caches and shortly thereafter you will pass right on by me and many other geocachers. I say this without any reservation since it appears that you are definitely a hardcore geocacher who has been bit hard by the geocaching bug.

Well Jake, I don't have anything original to add, just Congrats on 300 and best wishes for many more! I enjoy both your caches and articles...keep 'em coming!

Congrats Jake. Hope I get to meet you sometime. You have done much to help people see the "good" side of Geocaching.

Well Jake, I don't have anything original to add, just Congrats on 300 and best wishes for many more! I enjoy both your caches and articles...keep 'em coming!

Thanks . . . placing the caches is as enjoyable to me as finding the caches and I like nothing better to see people finding my caches and making log entries.

Congrats Jake. Hope I get to meet you sometime. You have done much to help people see the "good" side of Geocaching.

Thanks . . . I was originally being swayed to the "dark" side of the geocaching force, but then Sudonim came along and managed to convince me that I had to not give in to my fierce competitive nature. ;) :D

Congratulations!!! Cache On!!!!

Congratulations!!! Cache On!!!!

Thanks neighbor.