North bound on Highway 17

They say on the seventh day God rested, I think he went Geocaching. So if he can do it on Sunday so can I. I got up earlier than usual today and met up with a friend so we could head up to Palatka. There were a few caches on the way so we got those. One of them ( Quickie GC23KMF ) was across the highway from an old abandoned warehouse that used to ship oranges. This warehouse was in the book Weird Florida by Charlie Carlson. It is a great book and I know at least a few of the locations mentioned in the book have geocaches nearby.


The reason Palatka was chosen was not only because there were caches there but as it turned out, the Azalea Festival was going on this weekend. Also Ravine Gardens State Park in there also. Either of these would be ample reason to visit. This was the first time I had attended the Festival and except for the gyro that was made with something that was NOT Tzatziki sauce ( darn those fake Greeks ) it was a great day.

Ravine Gardens State Park has only one cache in it and it is an Earth Cache (Ravine Gardens State Park EarthCache GC13KM9 ) This was the first time we had ever attempted an Earth Cache and I would love to tell you about a happy ending but I am not the Brothers Grimm so no smiley on this one. However it is NEVER a loss visiting the Gardens. Although you can drive around the park, occasionally stopping at an overlook to see what there is to see, If your up to the very long walk I recommend the hike.



Palatka is a very nice place. It has beautiful churches, eerie cemeteries, ( for those of us who just can not stay out of that sort of thing ) waterside parks and a historic downtown filled with quaint shops and interesting eateries. Check out any side street to see some magnificent murals that have to be seen to be appreciated.









I love cemeteries. The only thing better than a cemetery is one that I have not been on or perhaps did not know was even there. Now I know this sort of thing is not for everyone but add a cache to the mix and now we have a party. We did two cemetery caches today one was in Palatka ( CacheGravedigger GCRE0Z ) and one was on the way home. ( Resting Place GC1NT5D )

What a day! Too bad, just like this blog, it has to come to an end. Oh well you know what I say...

More discoveries await.