Elk Rapids, Dockside, Geocaching

What a gorgeous Sunday!  We began by driving around and around Elk Rapids - what a lovely little town - and it's right on Lake Michigan, so that makes it even better!  Their lakefront is beautiful, and they have a large marina with tons of big lake boats.  It's always enjoyable to see them.  We had planned to splurge and have lunch at Pearl's, but we drove by twice, and both times the parking lot was completely empty, so we negged that.  

We haven't been to Dockside all summer, and we usually get there at least once, and sometimes more than that.  Even when the family was here in July we didn't make it over here, so we were overdue.  You just can't beat a burger and onion rings on the deck at dockside.

On a day as beautiful as this one, and on a ride around some of our favorite places, of course we did some caching!  There were a lot to choose from:

09/28/2013	You found Westwood Cemetery		Visit Log
Wow! An Ammo Can! 10 caches today and this was the only one. One thing I can't figure out is why it's so hard for folks to re hide them. Even if that's how they found it they must know that it doesn't belong laying out in the open. Signed the log and left a neat Batman figurine for some small cacher. Then we replaced the cache where we found it but covered as we think the owner desired it to be. TFTC
09/28/2013	You found  He Has "Spirit"		Visit Log
This was a fantastic day for a drive and finding a few caches made it even better. A quick easy find on our way home. Thanks for adding to our fun today
09/28/2013	You couldn't find  Tank you very much		Visit Log
We weren't good enough today.
09/28/2013	You found  Parking Lot Cache		Visit Log
Don't very often see a cache with out a container. Bag is ripped and needs replacement.
09/28/2013	You couldn't find  The Crow's Nest		Visit Log
No joy with this one today. At the base of the pole was a pile of sticks, a couple of small sheets of plywood and three pieces of Styrofoam. No container and no logbook. Thought that maybe folks were signing the pieces but that does not appear to be the case. Not sure what they signed to claim a find but we didn't see it.
09/28/2013	You found  Colin's Cache- To Grandma's House We Go!		Visit Log
A Grandma and a Grandpa out for a drive on this beautiful fall day, saw this cache pop up and had to see what Colin hath wrought. Extremely neat hide, well crafted. The log was signed and the container was replaced as found. Thank you Colin for adding to our fun today.
09/28/2013	You found  Summit Village		Visit Log
We were out for a drive from Traverse up through Elk Rapids and around the chain of lakes. This cache gave us a bit of trouble because we were basing our search, in part, on the hint from a previous cache. Once we reviewed the cache page we were back on track and made the find. Signed the log and replaced as found. Thanks for the fun.
09/28/2013	You found  Eagle Walk		Visit Log
A couple of old retired school teachers out for a ride to enjoy this beautiful weather saw who had placed this cache and knew we had to find one of them. Most of the town was a mob scene today but it was quiet out here. Made the find, signed the log and left our flashlight. Thanks for placing and maintaining this cache on a peaceful trail. It's a favorite of ours.
09/28/2013	You found  SWS - Alden on the C&NM (C&O)		Visit Log
We aren't sure how many more beautiful days we will have this fall. We wanted to take advantage of this one and enjoy a ride, have lunch and find a few caches. We loved the history lesson and the brief stop in one of our favorite neighbor towns. Signed the log and left our card and flashlight. As the cache was replaced I'm almost certain I heard the faint sound of a steam whistle off in the distance. Thanks for placing and maintaining this cache.
09/28/2013	You found  PLEASE WATER THE FLOWERS AND MAKE MOMMA HAPPY		Visit Log
I have been attempting to load caches on our Nuvi for a couple of weeks. All we want it to do is show us where a cache is on the map when we are near, nothing special but until this weekend it's been beyond my computer skills. With the beautiful weather today, we decided to take advantage of our temporary freedom from medical appointments to go for a ride and check my GPS progress. As we approached Elk Rapids, I was happy to see the little ammo can on the screen. When the iPad told us who had placed this cache, we had to check it out. We enjoy these "spirit" caches because it's good to stop in a quiet place and pause and reflect on the lives of those who have gone before us. Thanks finsandfeathers for showing us this area.