Continental Divide in MN

This past week, my family stayed in northwest Minnesota (referred to as MN from now on). While there, some of us discovered an interesting monument for the Continental Divide. We all knew that the Rocky Mountains were the location of the Continental Divide, where water flows away to the east or west. But we did not know until last week that water flowed north-south in North America. (It makes sense if you think about it, though.) All water flowing north from the Divide empties out through the Hudson. South-flowing water empties into the Gulf of Mexico. I learn something new all the time. This means really wholesome fish, with very low contamination levels from our lake. Good thing, too, because we cleaned about 40 fish to eat at the end of every day.

We visited GCRDCG, I-35 South Bound Rest Area (New Market) on the way home. The geocache page contains a list of amenities for this rest area. The list definitely encouraged me to make a stop here. Knowing there were vending machines, playgrounds, picnic tables, etc. was incentive on top of the geocache to stop there. The MN DOT website states:

"Mn DOT wants to encourage positive use of its rest areas and feels that geocaching, if played in accordance with this policy [listed above], will not conflict with other rest area uses."

I also picked up one of the coolest geocoins I have ever seen. You will see from the photograph that I left a tiki travel bug in New Market. The sign behind it relates the story of The Big Woods. This is not the same Big Woods the Laura Ingalls wrote about. This Big Woods is in south central MN.

Geo-Breakfast

We're famous if we're on YouTube, right? Thank you to Team GamSci for the great video here.

Heather, it's all here

Homeschool friend Heather traded our Japanese Girls Day dolls for this tent. I am including a not-so-good picture of it here because I want you to see 6'1" Mr. GAIN near the tent in order to appreciate our trade. He can stand up inside. Heather was very concerned that we check to make sure all the parts were included. Yes, Heather, every little thing is here -- all the accessories that we didn't put up, even a night light and remote control. For more information on Japanese Girls Day, click here or here. To learn about trading an item for the dolls, visit A Bus 4 A Bus.

Edible plants

My younger two children have been experimenting with yellow wood sorrel. My younger son had some leaves saved in a little empty matchbox, shook it around to make sounds, telling everyone to guess what edible thing was inside. (None of us guessed correctly.) My younger daughter has bouquets of the plants all across the patio. They both gather the "candles" or fruit. I did these things when I was growing up, too. Except for saving it in an empty matchbox and playing a guessing game with my family. After I figured out that they had been eating the sorrel, I decided to read what the "authorities" say in order to caution them about eating this plant. I thought I would share with you here.

From _Reader's Digest North American Wildlife_, copyright 1982, page 402:

"Several plants with pleasantly sour foliage are known as sorrel (from the German for "sour"), and in fact, the wood sorrels are called sour grasses or sour clovers in many places. Popular salad ingredients for centuries, they were also used by old-time herbalists to treat various stomach ailments and to cure scurvy (they are rich in vitamin C). It is now known, however, that eating too much oxalic acid, the chemical responsible for the sourness, tents to inhibit the body's absorption of calcium. The special flavor of wood sorrel should thus be enjoyed only occasionally."

I should add here that my kids find yellow sorrel very frequently. According the above book, sorrels in Iowa may also have flowers that are white with pink stripes and violet/pink flowers.

In the words of Robert Krampf (also here), Have a wonder-filled day!

Geo-breakfast

In June, Des Moines area geocachers were invited to a breakfast get-together, GC132K5, in Johnston, a suburb north of Des Moines. Hoping that a geo-breakfast could be a regularly scheduled monthly gathering, the next two months were already scheduled before we left. The community is large enough to support a monthly gathering - YAY! This month, July, we gathered in Waukee, a suburb west of Des Moines.

Why would you attend such an event? Well, you can meet other people who will understand and sympathize with all your stories related to geocaching >snicker< . You get to see cool geocoins and travel bugs. Some really neat ones appeared at the June breakfast. You can exchange phone numbers with other cachers in case you need help with a find. You can get hints for and previews of caches. You can get new ideas and see different gear. And my favorite: you can find out what all those funny geocaching names really stand for. Happy caching, everyone. May your bug repellent work and your finds come quickly.