Caching on the 4th of July
Hello everyone.... Risteen (Cooking Cacher) and I spent this past week in Washington, DC as a late honeymoon (we married on May 8th). Being in DC for the July 4th national fireworks was truly special. The line of people from all over the world waiting to see the actual Declaration of Independence and Bill of Rights at our National Archives reminded us what a great country this is. There may be many people who hate us right now, but most people across the globe look to us with envy.
This week we saw the Wright Brothers first plane, Lindberg's Spirit of St. Louis, the plane in which Chuck Yeager first broke the sound barrier, John Glenn's capsule in which he circled the earth and returned, we touched a moon rock, and saw the actual Star Spangled banner which inspired the song. What a great country this is!
We also saw the X-15, America's first vehicle to go above our atmosphere into "outer space", which led to the Mercury and Gemini space flights. I mention this because Robert White and Robert Rushworth were the principle pilots of this craft, (there was one other minor player named Neil Armstrong) and Rushworth became only the second person in the U.S. to earn "astronaut" wings. Why is this important? Because Robert Rushworth grew up in, and grauated high school in, Madison, Maine.....my home town.
We also took the opportunity to drive down to Thomas Jefferson's home, Monticello, where almost 100 people took their oath this week to become U.S. citizens. While in DC I picked up a few virtual caches along the national mall and surrounding area. Geocaches are located all across this great country and bring you to interesting places. The geocaches in Washington, DC are spectacular. But, then again, so are the caches within 100 miles of wherever you live in Maine.
Get out and enjoy all this country has to offer. Enjoy Maine and all of the other U.S. states as well. Geocaching brings you to some of the hidden and lesser known locations that might as well be national treasures. :)
