Things We're Thankful For Series (Boxes from the 2nd WNY Gathering)

These are the boxes that the Sprite & the Highlander placed for the gathering, but not all of them belong to us (creators are in parentheses). All those boxes that were meant to disappear in a month are now gone…this is the PERMANENT list!

Thankful at Royalton Ravine Series (19 boxes)

Begin by heading to Royalton Ravine Park for this whole series. Once you get there, park and walk west into the park itself on the gravel road toward the pond.

1. Once you get near the pond, enter the woods near the memorial to young Renee. From the first tree on the right, take about 20 steps. Look under the roots of the large tree on your right for Migration (The Sprite & The Highlander).

2. Leave the woods the way you came in and head west straight back until you reach the bench and treeline at the back of the park, (almost directly west of where you parked). Two paths enter the woods...take the one to the right of the bench. Only a few paces in will get you to twin sister trees with a red mark. Head north to the mass of upturned tree roots. Look between the pair of trees just in front of it under the bark with the rock on top for our favorite little winged one, Petra (The Sprite & The Highlander).

3. Get back on the path (marked with red trees) and keep heading the same direction you were going until you reach a T in the path. Two fallen logs lay in front of you. Check where they meet for our Family Tree (The I.A.P.)

4 & 5. Continue to the right on the path (still marked with mostly red paint on trees) until you find the arboreal monument to SH & NN '98 a little off the path to the right. Check the roots under a large rock for some of our favorite Seasons (The Sprite & The Highlander). Before you leave, step to the left into the little dip in the ground where Seasons is hidden and look back south. Take 13 steps to the larger tree in front of you and check its roots, too for what Bear was thankful for this year...Halloween (Bear).

6. Continue in the direction you were heading originally on the path. At the "T", head left and curve down into the ravine using what we're liberally terming "steps"...take extra care if it's muddy! 25 paces past the tree with the blue arrow pointing down and up the trial, you'll see two logs on the ground. Look in the hole of the one closest to the ravine for what the Sprite is most thankful for, Love O' The Irish (The Sprite and the Highlander).

7. Continue down into the S-curve of exposed roots and wood ties that serve as the path, keeping the ravine on your right. until you get to the bridge. Go past the bridge about 20 paces to the fallen log on the right. Check its roots to find Mare Bear (Mare Bear with Auntie Sprite!), the creator of Halloween. This was her second personal stamp creating attempt, so we decided to make it a Thankful box (other nieces are further on!)

8. Cross the bridge and turn left. You'll cross over the fallen tree and pass a tangle of thick vines before you reach another fallen log whose roots stick out on the right side of you. Follow this log back to the tree standing upright near it. Look in the curve of the large root of this tree for Good Books (The Sprite & The Highlander).

Note: All boxes from this point will take you in a loop back to this general area, which will require you to essentially mudslide down the hill to your right or backtrack the way you came, so keep your bearings!

9. Our oldest niece Meghan loves reading, so it made sense to keep her close to Good Books. Unfortunately, this is where you need to have those boots and pants you don't care about. This area is low lying, so it has some puddles and some mud (but let's face it, you're a letterboxer and you LIVE for this stuff!). The path is a little obscured here because of the leaves and puddles, but try to follow the faint tire ruts on the ground to the west, keeping the water to your left. We've also marked a few trees with the letters "LB" so you'll know you're going the right way. At some point, you'll see these tire ruts heading uphill and you should follow. You'll know you're in the right place when you start to see pale blue marks on the trees to your left. Head uphill to the 3rd blue tree (larger than the first blue trees), which has a twin just behind it about the same size. Look between these two for Meg (The Sprite & The Highlander), who is NOT about silly trailnames!

10. Climb to the top of the hill to find a tree with a base wider than its trunk on the left. Put your back to it, then head 300 degrees for 16 paces to the fallen log. Check under it closer to the roots for our middle niece (and synchronized swimming champ), the Beeler (The Sprite and the Highlander).

11. Keep heading up the path and maneuver around the first of a few large puddles. Just past this puddle on the left is a tree with the letters "FORME" spray painted on the trunk. With this tree at your back, look west (270 degrees) for triplets of the same variety of tree. They almost form a little chair and right in the seat is where you'll find Friends (The Sprite & the Highlander).

12. Continue on the path, which should get a little rocky after a while. Once it does, the path splits very slightly to curve to the left. As you go around, step off the path about 3 paces from the middle of the curve to see the ravine below. For a cold bath, jump down into the ravine, but for Hot Baths (The Sprite & the Highlander), look under the mossy flat rock by 3 saplings bunched together.

13. Follow the path back to the main path (barely 4 steps away) until it splits off again, this time in a much more obvious way. Take the one that bears left (heading a bit more straight than the one to the right). You'll come across the foundation for an old house. Right inside the corner closest to you, look under the leaves and wood for Anime Babes (to make him think the wrong thing!) (The Sprite & the Highlander).

14. Just across the path toward the ravine from Anime Babes is a mossy rock wall. Check under a large flat rock near the top for the Sprite's hairdresser and new best friend, Ivy (The Sprite & the Highlander).

15. Take the path that crosses in front of the stone house. Bear left away and head down, then up a little incline. On your left off the path is a HUGE tree. Check the flat rock at its base for National Public Radio (The Sprite & the Highlander).

Unfortunately, there WERE 4 other boxes out here that have been stolen. Only two were recovered and should soon be back out on the trail, but in other locations. So from here, you'll need head straight to the white bucket on the ground (or if it's gone, just head toward the bottom of the little incline near you. At this point, you can shortcut to the beginning. You can head toward the LB on the tree on the slight incline near you and head across the woods. You'll follow the painted marks on the trees until you get to the hill overlooking the ravine again (bridge is below and to the left). However, taking this path means basically sitting on the steep incline and crab walking/sliding down (not a great plan with VERY little ones, but we adults and big kids kinda had fun!). Slide at your OWN RISK...we don't want anyone to misunderstand the potential danger, so check the hill out first...you will NOT be able to stand up and walk down it unless you walk down sideways and cut diagonally down the hillside, NOT straight down.

The other option is to back track the way you came by turning back toward the NPR tree, heading back to the stone house and going left back down the hill the way you came up. Either way, you want to make it back to the bridge, back up the ravine on the opposite side, turn right at the top and head straight out of the woods following the red trees.

Thankful For Donations Series (6 boxes) (last update on 8/21/05)

These boxes are at Rotary Park in Middleport, NY. It's behind the Holy Cross Lutheran Church on Route 31 (actual address for the church is 133 Telegraph Road, Middleport, NY

1. Cross the little bridge to the other side of the creek and check around the roots of the huge tree to your left for What a Boy Wants (The Sprite & the Highlander). This was created in honor of a dream the Highlander has had since he was a little kilt wearer! Make sure to be stealthy and rehide this one VERY well, as it’s easy to see from the other side.
2. Cross back over and follow the creek upstream (southeast) to where the grassy path makes a sharp left turn around the nearby houses. A huge rock with an arrow painted on it marks the way. Not far from this rock at the bend in the underbrush under the evergreen is a replacement Canadian gift for Norasta's Pssst! that began as a doodle in the restaurant after the gathering...the Deranged Daisy (Erica of Jiggs).
3. Follow the path up to the sign marking the Middleport Nature Trail (nope, we didn't realize it was there, either!). Walk into the woods on the path (little pale green diamonds on the trees mark the trail) and follow it up a slight incline to a multitrunked cherry tree on your left. It's marked by a stone that used to have the word "cherry" painted on it, but it's mostly worn off. In the distance, you can see Screen 2 of the Sunset Triple Drive In. Head toward the largest tree in that general direction and look under a few rocks for LBNY at the Movies (The Sprite & The Highlander).
4. NEW BOX!!! Return to the trail and follow the pale green diamonds on the trees to the first bench. Take a minute to rest on the side closest to the tree behind the bench (facing the creek), then take about 8 steps toward the creek to the tangle of undergrowth and leaves, marked by the tall stump of a sapling. Underneath you'll find an Ugly Bald Guy (Missmoon) that doesn't seem to be going anywhere for a while.
5. Follow the path further into the woods until you reach a spot where Gail overlooks the trail. Specifically, she's checking out the boomerang shaped piece of wood that makes another great resting spot. Don't sit here too long, or you'll get toasted by Dances With Fire (Norasta) just underneath (move the rock and extra bit of wood to get at this a little easier).
6. NEW BOX!!! Continue to path's end. Beyond the resting place stand a pair of large trees with entwined branches. Seek beneath the stones at the feet of the farthest for Strong Sad (The Sprite and the Highlander).