2014-03-12 47 -122

Location

On the fence of a different Jack's backyard in Wedgwood

Participants

Plans

Copy & pasted from Talk:Seattle, Washington:

Someones back yard - looks reachable to me. Pity I am 382 kilometers east of the spot. --Thomcat (talk) 10:23, 12 March 2014 (EDT)

I'll be finishing up at work around 6 or 6:30, so if lighting looks sufficient I might try it after work. Less excited than yesterday about before work though, since it's not nearly as convenient from my location... -- OtherJack (talk) 13:47, 12 March 2014 (EDT)

Expedition

Leaving now from the u... be there 6:40ish ... -- OtherJack (talk) @47.6541,-122.3148 21:12, 12 March 2014 (EDT)

... I posted using geohashdroid just before taking off by bicycle on a second consecutive unseasonably sunny and warm afternoon, hoping for my second second consecutive geohash success and my second ever Ambassador achievement. Not to mention the second consecutive Seattle hashpoint within stone-throwing distance of North Seattle's incarnation of 80th Street (a street I used to live on, in fact.) All but one stoplight decided to be green for me, and I arrived on the hashblock at 6:37pm with dusk only just beginning (yay for Daylight Savings Time which had just taken effect a few days before.) Not shady at all.

I hadn't been to this part of Wedgwood that many times, yet I had an unconfirmed feeling I'd been on this very block before while going door-to-door for a ballot question a couple years ago (I'd certainly been very close by.) I hoped the inhabitants of the hash property (if they were home) didn't recognize me from annoying them back then!

But first it was time to determine which was the hash property. After locking up my bike at the corner of 77th, I strolled north on the sidewalk until the gps latitude matched the one I'd scrawled down. The hash appeared to be barely in the yard of a wide, low, pastel green house. As I walked up to their front door, a cat sprang into view in the window. Alas, no one answered the door.

Back on the sidewalk I thought I'd try matching the latitudes again, just to see if the next property up seemed to be within the margin of error. In fact, this time they didn't match until I passed the property fence! So I had to try the next house... it's nice when you get two chances at this, for once.

When I rang the bell at this next place (a tall thin brown house) I immediately heard a dog barking, and then the sound of people restraining it. (All right, I have a chance now!) A lady asked who it was - I said my name was Jack, and asked if I was interrupting. She then went to get another person, who asked again who I was, then opened the door, still holding back the dog. It was a 30-something guy with a very slight European accent. Thankfully, we did not recognize each other. We were both amused to learn we had the same first name ("Jack" is quite unusual among Americans our age, though common in younger and much older generations.)

When I briefly explained what I was doing and showed him the yellow gps, he actually thought it was kind of cool, and was happy to lead me around back! However, it took unusually long to complete the hashdance, and by the time I actually got a (terrible) proof photo at the fence and a shot of the yard itself, he seemed to be realizing how weird this was. The older lady who originally answered, and a little girl, were watching the whole time from the second floor balcony - I assume they were all related. So he escorted me back out in front, and we bid farewell. I suggested he google geohashing, though I have no idea if he did. I think I did manage to tell him it was invented by an online comic strip, after he asked how I found out about it.

Unexpected post-geohash adventures in Wedgwood

rest of writeup and photos to follow when I have time... going to sleep now -- OtherJack (talk) 04:33, 14 March 2014 (EDT)

Tracklog

Photos

Backyard of another Jack! @47.6862,-122.2907

Achievements


Wed 12 Mar 2014 in 47,-122: 47.6853475, -122.2890853 geohashing.info google osm bing/os kml crox