Noria: A Mountain Valley Virtual Cache: Southwest Virginia

sumajhuarmi @ Noria

There was a cache nearby

Freezing while feeding my addiction to geocaching

DNFing with sumajhuarmi

While looking over a geocaching.com map of an area where I plan to cache if I see the little ghost symbol for a virtual cache I automatically check it out. Since virtuals are no longer allowed most of the ones I've come across take you to interesting places where a physical cache container cannot be hidden but where something of significance is or has occurred. Noria (GCAE7E) is like that. While traveling from Lebanon, Virginia on our way back to High Point, NC we pulled off Highway 19 into a parking lot where Christmas Trees were for sale. When we got out of the car the salesman for the trees got out of his car where he was keeping warm. I had to tell him we wanted to look at the interesting machine just behind his trees instead of purchasing a tree. What an interesting name. A little research told me that a noria is a machine used for lifting water from one source into an aqueduct, usually for irrigation purposes. We completed the requirements for the cache, took a few pictures and sought shelter from the wind in our car.

In addition to the Noria cache and just a few miles up Highway 19 near Lebanon, Virginia we also found In the Bushes Along Highway 19 (GC15YF1). It was a fun, simple regular-size cache with easy access for travelers and a little muggle problems. One cache that was either muggled or better hidden than we were prepared for was A Clock in the Falls (GC1284X). Sumajhuarmi and I stopped to look for this one. While the threat of muggles was there, the cold weather seemed to give us the privacy we needed. I checked everywhere, both high and low and around but came up empty. Cache or no cache, the hunt up and down this beautiful valley was fun. As usual we thanked the cache owner in our log for the opportunity to visit this place.