Geocaching and Pictures Pt. 4

Good morning everyone.  This week I want to look at the most extreme geocaches in Saskatchewan.  The furthest North is GC5APV5 at a latitude of N59 56.399.  It was hidden in September, 2014 and the FTF is still up for grabs.  Any takers?  Furthest South is GC29HR6 at a latitude of N48 59.941.  Located in North Portal, it was hidden in May, 2010 and archived in April, 2016.  Furthest East (and almost furthest South) is GC7RFTT.  A Wherigo located at the Southeast corner of the province.  It has a longitude of W101 21.751 (and a latitude of N48 59.976, almost as far South as GC29HR6).  It was hidden in June, 2018 and found three times so far.  Local cacher Bergmannfamily claimed the FTF.  The furthest West was an event held on December 31, 2018 in Lloydminster.  It has a longitude of W110 00.300.  Lastly, the oldest geocache in Saskatchewan is "Sask-cache-One" GC14F.  Hidden in January, 2001, it has been found 431 times and is listed as the 3rd oldest geocache in Canada.

I'm writing this blog up ahead of time as it's a busy time for me personally.  The last time I did a blog like this, I was busy packing and moving.  Guess what I'm busy with this time?  If you guessed packing and moving, you are absolutely correct.  Going back to when I separated from my former spouse in 2015, I have managed to move each and every year for various reasons.  This marks my sixth move in six years.  Back to geocaching.  For those who know or follow me know I like roadside attractions.  I added something new to my list.  Water towers.  In my travels I have started to take pictures of the various water towers I would come across while passing through small towns.  Some have been painted over to look creative.  Some have the town name boldly on display so you know what town you're in.  Water towers come in different shapes and sizes.  I do hope to add to my collection of water tower pictures in future travels.  This is what I have so far and they're in no particular order.  Included is a little history of were the towers are located.

On my return trip from an event in Gimli, Manitoba last summer, I stopped in Winnipeg Beach for some geocaches, Muzees, and a Pokemon or two.  Located just over a half hour North of Winnipeg, the town was founded in 1900.  Winnipeg Beach was a popular destination for beach goers and for it's amusement park.  Winnipeg Beach was home to a wooden roller coaster, one of the largest in the country at the time.  Another popular attraction was The Auditorium that housed a 14,000 sq ft dance floor.  The amusement park closed permanently in 1964.  The water tower is the only recreation and railway related structure that still stands today.  Built in 1928, it is the best example and only one of five riveted-steel water towers remaining in Manitoba.

In the Summer of 2018, I ventured down to Grand Forks, North Dakota.  From there, I took a day trip to Bemidji, Minnesota.  What attracted me to Bemidji was the statue of Paul Bunyan and his faithful blue ox, Babe.  Bemidji is called the first city on the Mississippi, the self-proclaimed curling capital of the USA, and the alleged birthplace of Paul Bunyan.

When I went down for the North Dakota Camping and Caching event last summer, I passed through several smaller towns for geocaches and water towers.  Mohall, North Dakota is West of Grand Forks and was founded by a Duluth, Minnesota business man by the name of M.O. Hall.  The town was originally named Hall, but that conflicted with another town in North Dakota by the same name, so it was changed in 1902 to Mohall.

A view of the old and new.  Lakota, North Dakota was another stop along U.S. Hwy #2.  Most notable person to come from Lakota is Rick Helling, a major league pitcher who was a part of the 1997 and 2003 World Series Champions, the Florida Marlins.

Flaxton, North Dakota, located in the North West portion of the state, had a population of 66 back in 2010.  The town is named after the most predominate crop in the area, flax.

Michigan City, North Dakota.  What I will remember the most about this location was finding the geocache, returning to my car and planning my next stop.  Just then I heard the air siren go off, usually to indicate a tornado.  My initial reaction was "What the...?".  A quick look around and all I could see was blue sky.  Then I noticed the time.  It was noon.  The siren probably goes off every day at that time.  On a more tragic side, two Great Northern passenger trains collided with each other just outside of the city in 1945, injuring 309 and killing 34.

Langdon, North Dakota.  The tower isn't on a hill.  For some unknown reason, I didn't center my phone.  A post office has been in operation in Langdon since 1886.  The town is named after Robert Bruce Langdon, a politician and railroad official.  A tornado touched down in Langdon in 1909, destroying several barns, the Great Northern water tank, two grain elevators, and several feet of railroad track.

Finley, North Dakota, is Southwest of Grand Forks.  It was founded in 1897 and has a population of 445 according to the 2010 census.

A little closer to home is Selkirk, Manitoba.  Located about 15 minutes North of Winnipeg.  There use to be a geocache hidden here.  I never found it, even after a few attempts.  It was owned by the City of Selkirk, but the cache was only available from May to August.  More recently, the cache, along with several others that the City owned, wasn't activated for the summer months.  They are all archived now.  A steel mill is one of the major contributors to the economy.  A locally produced TV show, Burden of Truth, shoots many scenes in the city of Selkirk.  You can find the first three seasons on Netflix.  I had overheard that this water tower is scheduled for some TLC as the rust is hard to miss.  I saw in the news this week that the city of Selkirk announced the make-over of the water tower.  It should be painted this fall with a totally new look.

Heading back across the border, it's the familiar smiling face water tower of Grand Forks, North Dakota.  Many geocaches can be found in the state's third largest city.  Grand Forks is aptly named for it's location at the fork of the Red River and the Red Lake River.  The city is also prone to flooding as it is situated in the Red River Valley.  Grand Forks is home to the University of North Dakota.  Many notable athletes passed through the doors on UND, including famed NBA coach Phil Jackson, hockey players Ed Belfour, Zach Parise, Jonathan Toews, to name a few.

Williston, North Dakota.  Located in the Western reaches of the state, it is the sixth largest city, due mostly to the oil boom.  Founded in 1887 and named after Daniel Willis James, a merchant and capitalist.  Some prominent names from Williston are Virgil Hill, the 1984 Olympic silver medalist in boxing.  Mark Lee, a professional baseball pitcher, Phil Jackson (the same Phil Jackson that would go on to UND and eventually the NBA), and Angie Westphal, better known as Geocaching Jangie, a geocaching blogger.

My last stop is located just over half hour East of Winnipeg.  Beausejour, Manitoba.  I did a blog back in December of 2018 featuring this town and some of the geocaches that could be found there.  You can read that here > Beausejour blog  

That's a look at the water towers I have visited so far during my geocaching travels.  If these towers could talk they could tell us about the history and changes they have seen over the years in their towns.  Until next week (I'm hope to be unboxing my May Cache Advance Cache Crate.  It's expected in the mail any day now), be happy, be safe, keep your distance from others, enjoy life, have fun, and wash your hands.  Peace out.