beta testing in acadia....

[Smitty & Co.]

Jim "Zol", and Randy "Smitty & Co.",

It is OUTSTANDING to hear from you two! Yesterday was our first trial run
with a park employee who has not been involved in the program's creation.
I immediately noted a problem in some wording at two locations. Later
today after I make some corrections, I will send to you a .pdf file that
you can print off. It will be similar to what will be available off the
net this spring. In order to get school kids involved in caching, our idea
was to allow the participant to log onto the park website, enter a password
and get a printed certificate of completion. That part of the beta-test is
not available to the public yet, but it's awesome! We also don't have a
cancellation stamp made yet.

The important information I need from you will be:
1) How long did the course take you? I am estimating 4-6 hours, during
which you will get to see a very large portion of the park.
2) Do I need to work on any clues to make locating the areas easier or more
difficult?
3) Was the course fun and interesting?

Please be brutally honest with your answers. We want to make this a very
cool experience. If for some reason one of my clues really is poor (which
I don't believe will happen), you can contact me at the number below.

Please keep in mind that this is a pilot program aimed to strike a balance
between the desires of traditional geocachers and the regulations,
mandates, policies of the National Park Service. For that reason, there is
no traditional cache. What you will be experiencing is a puzzle or mystery
cache with multiple offset caches. At the end there will eventually be a
log book and cancellation stamp. I haven't carved the cancellation stamp
yet. If you know of someone who is especially talented as a stamp carver,
I'd love to make contact with them.

Thanks again!

Stuart West
Branch Chief -- Remote Areas
Acadia National Park
P.O. Box 177
Bar Harbor, ME 04609
(207) 288-8773
(207) 288-8792 (fax)

[Smitty & Co.]

For those that are interested, here is the latest.

Smitty, Zol, Firefighter Jake, Rich,

The program has been updated today, so the program is all yours to test
out. Feel free to share this with other cachers visiting the area. I ask
the same of them as I ask of you, though. Please respond to the following
questions and provide any other input to help me make this the best it can
be.

1) How long did the course take you? I am estimating 4-6 hours and could
be way off.
2) Do I need to work on any clues to make locating the areas easier or more
difficult?
3) Was the course fun and interesting?

I'll be excited to hear what you think. What you may or may not know is
that this is a pilot program for the National Park Service and other
federal land management agencies. This program is actually shaping the
future of caching on federal lands. That is one reason why your input is
so important.

(See attached file: Intro.pdf)(See attached file: StoryOfGlaciers.pdf)

Best Regards,

Stuart West
Branch Chief -- Remote Areas
Acadia National Park
P.O. Box 177
Bar Harbor, ME 04609
(207) 288-8773
(207) 288-8792 (fax)

[Zoltarus]

I will be checking out the cache this weekend.

If you are in the area I recommend visiting "Picnic on Somes Sound" it is a really nice out of the way little park with picnic tables right on the shore.

Fjord or Fjard it is still one of the most beautiful places in the country.