We headed out for our first hike, coordinating our various vehicles. We arrived at the trailhead, but couldn't find parking, so we had to add another 1/2 mile to our journey. The hike was nice as the cache was found without much trouble by nostrada.
One of the new members of the Fellowship, workerofwood, solved the puzzle almost instantly. After much obsessive mapping and coordinating, we set out for our next challenge.
After a long journey, we started up on this more challenging hike. The wildebeasts didn't cause us much trouble, but their droppings required some careful footing. It was misty today and there wasn't much of a view. Once again nostrada found the cache.
We collected our rings (9 of them, maybe we're the kings?) and sat down to work on the puzzle. Working together and using our various magics we found almost all the answers. One the way down, the last answer revealed itself and we were ready for the final challenge.
After some quick bodily refueling, we traveled to a meeting spot to drive the last few miles together. We chose a more Southernly route to Mordor and the path was forgiving after a long day. Gollum led us down false paths and even confused our minds so we would not find it, but soon we saw the Eye of Sauron and approached Mt. Doom.
Fingers trembling, we dropped our rings into the fire, defeating Sauron. Hooray! I took and left nothing.
The most satisfying part of this cache was that for the first time in the series, we all completed together. In fact, we eneded up plus one member. workerofwood bore a son over the course of the journey!
By the time we reached our cars again, the sun had set, so we knew we had completed the day's task. We enjoyed this hunt immensely, thanks to the organization of Nostrada and the efforts and companionship of everyone.
Posted by jeff at January 17, 2004 04:56 PM