I simply cannot believe that it has been an entire year since the site began. In that year, I have seen wonders and beauty. And a couple of times I've seen something resembling fear, once of my own making, once because of others. And after 1100+ caches, 8600+ miles, 186 counties, 5 states, and another … Continue reading An Entire Year Gone By →

You know what Arkansas looks like?  Arkansas looks like Louisiana if you replace all the water with crops.  Someone was nice enough to put a cache at a rest stop going into Arkansas (or coming into Texas, depending on your point of view [the cache owner named it based on this {I also wonder why I … Continue reading Oh, Arkansas! →

When I pulled back behind the courthouse, I wondered if this was the place.  It looks like the back of many office buildings so I couldn't quite be sure.  Then I walked around and saw the columns and the facade.  This is the place.  Also, while the county seat is technically in Boston, the county … Continue reading 175. Boston, Bowie County →

Another town I was warned about.  Small and quiet on a Saturday morning, I did what needed to be done here and then set off to do what else needed to be done. As many of you know, "there's always a cemetery" has become a bit of a mantra for me.  That said, this is … Continue reading 174. Linden, Cass County →

I should have done this after Marshall, but this turned out to be a bit of an audible.  I had planned to cross over since I was so close, but I wasn't too enthused by the caches nearby.  So I looked and noticed a virtual a couple of miles over the border having to do … Continue reading Oh, Louisiana! →

Funny thing about far East Texas: the farther east you get, the more it starts looking like Louisiana: swampy, damp, scary pines, crappier roads...  And that's what it was like rolling into town early in the morning.  To be fair, it wasn't that damp.  Being morning, it was still relatively cool and dry-ish out. What I … Continue reading 173. Jefferson, Marion County →

So, this was one of the towns they warned me about. I had already heard that it had been (and sometimes still is) rife with white nationalist activity. And of course, few towns get their own documentaries. Fun fact: one of Marshall's nicknames is the "Athens of Texas." Which I find hilarious since I was … Continue reading 172. Marshall, Harrison County →

We've been here many, many times.  Heck, I've even been to this courthouse on several occasions for various reasons.  The girls' grandparents live in a small town on the outskirts of Longview.  Apparently, their town decided to incorporate before Longview annexed them and placed the yoke of their tax rates upon them.  I've never been … Continue reading 171. Longview, Gregg County →

We've been in and through the Rose Capital of the World a great many times in our travels.  With around a hundred thousand people, it's the region's biggest city, a semi-cultural mecca, and a little, semi-liberal island in the red northeastern sea of East Texas, a place whose top three exports are oil, cotton, and … Continue reading 170. Tyler, Smith County →

Now this is a courthouse.  This is a building where the work of the people is conducted.  Even if it isn't old and pedigreed with a storied past, this building imposes itself upon the town, drawing saint, sinner, and supplicant into its orbit.  I would almost think it overpowers the town.  It's small and I … Continue reading 169. Quitman, Wood County →