2014-12-22 46 -119
| Mon 22 Dec 2014 in Tri Cities: 46.9899658, -119.8548975 geohashing.info google osm bing/os kml crox |
Location
Just south of George, in the Frenchman Hills
Participants
Expedition
George, Washington, is right in the middle of the state along the main highway between Spokane and Seattle. When I was younger, the bus trip between the two cites would stop there for a lunch or dinner stop, depending on the time of the run. Where would it stop? Well at the Martha Inn Cafe, of course.
I don't think it was really an Inn, at least in the common sense of the word. And for certain it isn't there anymore - it closed in 2006 and the dilapidated building (and fire hazard) was removed in 2010. Only the foundation (and likely a few geocaches) remain. After driving 143 miles (230 km) from Spokane Valley, I found that I had no internet service and only spotty cellular coverage, so I gave up on Geohashdroid and moved on towards the hashpoint.
The Toyota GPS told me to drive straight south, up and over a hill. Through a plowed field, apparently - no road was to be seen. Instead I reverted to what my research indicated was a close approach on Beverly Burke road. Indeed a side road led off towards the hash point, reaching the farmers field from the south. I parked the car, uttering the standard line "We walk from here".
Hiking south up to the top of the bluff brought me nearly directly west of the geohashpoint. I snapped a quick photo of downtown George from the hillside and hiked east. This field was harvested in recent months, leaving only partial stocks above the ground. A quick dance at the hashpoint led me to near zero conditions - and again, I couldn't connect through geohashdroid. With no other camera to snap a picture of the screen, I settled for cardinal photos. (Come to think of it, there *must* be an Android screen capture...)
This was only the third expedition to this graticule, and the second successful. The previous success (also mine) was diametrically opposite, south of the Tri Cities. Satisfied, I resumed my drive to Seattle, where I hope to find a decent geohash before Christmas.
Photos
Screenshot test
