Recently I was up just south of Ocala doing some caching and the last cache of the day was, LAC21 Don't speed here (GC21KPC). Just up the road was something that caught my eye. This statue is called “Old Glory” and can be found at the entrance to the Padua Stables on U.S. 301, in Summerfield.
I immediately recognized what was in front of me. This statue and others just like it were created by the Marion Cultural Alliance in 2001. The series was called “Horse Fever” and included 52 life-sized fiberglass horses decorated by area artists. They were displayed around town for months before they were sold at an auction that raised $1.2 million for charity.
So when I got home I looked up the locations of the other statues and checked to see if there were any caches nearby and set my mind to have some fun on my next caching trip. Now some of the statues have caches very near them, and some have them on the way and close by. You can go on line and find a map that will show you the locations of the horses. Most are still right around Ocala, some are just a short drive away.
The four horses shown above can be found in the Ocala Downtown Square and they are Travels (top left), Scenic Wonder (top right), Life Force (bottom left), & Aggie (bottom right) The geocache, Downtown Ocala - GC25TC9, Is right across the street. If you plan your trip well you can use this area as a place to break for lunch and visit one of the local eateries that are in the area.
Now this trip was really quite fun and I would definately suggest it to any Geocacher who wanted to do some side trips while caching. It was almost like two treasure hunts in one. Finding the cache and then finding the Horse.
(left) Brick City Fever Futura Fury (right)
Of course while I was in Ocala I did do some other caches as well and in doing so came across a nicely hidden gem. Hole In The Wall - GCA8EA, is a virtual cache and like most caches of that type are worth going to.
Ocala is very big and there are lots and lots of caches there. I discovered a wide variety of styles and in two trips to the area I have just scratched the surface. So take some time and go up to Florida's horse country and see what you can find.
More discoveries await...
