MD-bound Dec 2014!

[LestISmiteThee]

Hi, MGS!

Since we're moving (PCSing) to Fort Meade in a couple weeks, I just wanted to introduce myself :]

I'm Gally, the female half of LestISmiteThee. Pretty much our entire Geocaching story is on our Geocaching profile.

So far, we've spent 2014 in South Korea and Mississippi, and we're looking forward to ending the year in Maryland with tons of new caches and events for us to experience and new cachers to meet!

I hope Winter is in full swing up there because it's still in the 70s down here and I want some snow

Thanks for reading!

[bneeriemer]

Welcome, you've picked a great time to join us in MD. 2015 is fixing to be a banner year.
In March/April MGS will be hosting CAM 2015 with a picnic in early May. Then just as you catch your breath, GeoWoodstock will be in MD too.

You mentioned snow/cold weather, if memory serves, there was hip deep snow in western MD for the 1st weekend of CAM 2014. So, you have something to look forward too.

Note: This coming Saturday in Arbutus, MGS is having the Winter holiday party. If you can, please come by and say hello. The more the merrier.

-Bill (Mr. Cajun55)

[deepdish23]

Welcome,
The front page of the MGS websites lists all the events coming up in Maryland. Living in the centrally located Fort Meade will allow you to find many a geocaching event in Maryland that will not be that far of a drive.
It looks like you might miss the next MGS event this Saturday, GC5B03A, but the MGS holds 6 events a year. The next one will be in the February time frame which will be the Meet The Officers Event.
Looking forward to see you guys at a future event.

[nighthawk700]

A lot of geocachers are in and around Ft. Meade. Watch out for FTF races!

[LestISmiteThee]

Thanks for the warm welcome, everyone!

We may not have time to attend any events in Dec, but I look forward to meeting you all out in the field (especially during FTF races, haha) and at events next year (especially Geowoodstock)!

Actually, is MGS the group hosting the next Geowoodstock, or is it a different group?

[cooley1103]

Officially, GeoWoodstock is under the MGS banner, but it is led by a sub-committee of members who are taking it from cradle to grave.

[humphr1d]

Welcome to Maryland! I look forward to meeting you all at an MGS event. There are plenty of caches in not only Maryland but the surrounding states that are memorable. Please feel free to reach out to local cachers, we can always share some of our favorites and maybe even team up for some caching.

Again, welcome!

[LestISmiteThee]

Thank you, humphr1d, I look forward to meeting you and many new cachers

[zekester]

Welcome to Maryland! There is avery active caching community all over the state, so there is no doubt you will find events/caches that spark your interest pretty quickly. Here are a few ideas to get you started:

- Look int some of the geotrails in the region. There is the Star Spangled Geotrail (SSB), the Captain John Smith Trail, Washington county (to your west) has a highly regarded trail, there are a few trails in Berkeley county West Virginia that should not be missed, and just across the border in Pennsylvania, the Spring Grove area and the town of Hanover both have geotrails worthy of your attention.

- There are a number of cachers in Maryland who hold monthly meet and greet events, a great way to meet some of the fine people who make up our caching community. DudleyGrunt hosts one on Sundays in Columbia, which is quite close to Fort Meade, and we (Zekester & Simon) host one on the 3rd Tuesday of every month in Eldersburg, which is not far. LPYankee fan is fondly know as an "any excuse for an event" kind of guy, and he frequently hosts events in the Hagerstown/Frederick area. Hagerstown is another bustling area for great caches and great people!

- You might want to check out the Maryland Star geoart in Damascus. Solving those puzzles will give you some historical background on the state, and they are all fun and different hides along nice trails.

- As others have mentioned, you definitely will want to attend any of the MGS events, they are always a fine time!

- Read the MGS Member Spotlights listed in these forums, that will help you get to know a lot of the MGS crowd, where they come from and what they value.

Please don't hesitate to contact any of us if you need any assistance as you integrate into the Maryland caching scene, we look forward to meeting you and hearing some interesting stories about caching in Mississippi and Korea!

[LestISmiteThee]

Thanks so much, zekester!

I've been reading the MGS Daily Digests to find out about everything going on in the area This forum is so helpful!

I've added the following to my to-do list:

Lexington Park Geotrail
Captain John Smith Geotrail
Star-Spangled Banner Geotrail
Washington County Geotrail
Plus many of the caches with the most favorite points :]

Does anyone know which of these Geotrails still have completion coins? And are there any other Geotrails I should check out (please give me the names so I can Google them).

Also, what's an ADC Challenge? I'm not familiar with the term ADC.

I'm surprised at how many caches are published within 50 miles of us each day! In Korea, there were maybe a handful a month, and in MS, maybe a handful a week. I think I get 10-20 emails a day around here, which is so great!

[nighthawk700]

Also, what's an ADC Challenge? I'm not familiar with the term ADC.

Back in the days before GPS receivers, Google Maps, Map Quest, and others were so useful, ADC Maps were one of the best ways to get from place to place. They were printed out as a book. Sort of a zoomed in Delorme Map book. I remember when I first moved to Northern VA one of my first purchases was the map book so I could figure out the best way to get to my new office, to specific restaurants, etc.

http://www.adcmaps.com/

[zekester]

Note that there a number of ADC challenge caches in Maryland. ADC makes map books for each county, so the challenge is similar to a Delorme, one, in which you have to find a hide on each page. Note that this can be a bit tricky, as ASDC re-jiggered their grid pattern/coordinate system a few years back, so it can be a little confusing as to which grid applies to which challenge (they published new books and the pages don't match the old ones). These map books can often be found in local libraries, and in local convenience or drugstores, or ask here, someone may have one they'd be willing to lend. Here is an example of and ADC challenge, hidden and maintained by deppdish23, our illustrious president:

http://coord.info/GC34YJM

Happy hunting!

[coupleocachers]

Welcome to the Group!!!! Glad to see a new member taking interest in our location. You won't regret it. If you participate in CAM this year make sure you check out the Maryland/Delware Delorme challenge to pick up pages especially out west and south and east.

If you are interested in other Geotrails over in West Virginia in Martinsburg there is the Gadgets of Berkley County Trail and The Berkley County Geo Trail. The Caches for the Gadgets are awesome and very rewarding. It can almost be completed in a day.

There is a local event on January 23rd at the Chicken Rico in Waldorf, MD its in Charles County on a Friday Evening.

Charles County is the County full of Zombiefilled caches we even out a zombie art that spells Zombie Land with mystery puzzles, ZH with a Smile full of whereigos.

And the good thing we Zombies don't bite.

[LestISmiteThee]

Thanks for the additional info, everyone, I'm looking forward to checking out those Geotrails!