Current at 11/6/2011 (Online waypoint URL) You have already found this cache! Master Index    Nearest Caches Manitoba ABC Soup by Manitoba Marauders (3.5/1.5) N49° 56.974  W98° 19.764 (WGS84) UTM  14U   E 548110  N 5533239 Use waypoint: GC1E9KJ Size: Regular    Hidden on 7/19/2008 In Manitoba, Canada Difficulty:     Terrain:                     Cache is at the coordinates above, but you can not log a find until you complete the additional logging requirement below. Please feel free to find the cache and sign the log whenever it is convenient for you. Post a note if you can't meet the logging requirement. A 'Found it' log may be posted later when you have completed the cache. All 'Found It' logs not meeting the Additional Logging Requirements WILL be deleted. Special Thanks to TOTEM CLAN OF North Dakota for allowing us to borrow their idea for this cache! Additional Logging Requirement: You must find caches in Manitoba which have cache titles that begin with each of the letters of the alphabet . You must find one cache that begins with 'A' such as "ANTE NOS SCIENTIA" one that begins with 'B' such as "Boogey Man Trail is SNOW'd in" and so on. You must create a list of the 26 caches you've found in Manitoba, with titles starting with the each of the 26 letters from 'A' to 'Z'. A bookmark list is an excellent way to do this. To claim a 'Found it' log you must provide a link to your list or the list itself in your log. The list may include any of the following seven different cache types: Earthcache, Letterbox Hybrid, Multi-cache, Mystery, Traditional, Virtual and Wherigo. No other cache types may be included in the list. Difficulty on the find here is probably a ~ 1.5, the cache is rated 3.5 for the 26 other finds. Frequently Asked Questions: Q. What if a cache name starts with "A" or "The"? A. You'll find that it will then alphabetize as "A" and "T". Q. What if it begins with a number like '1'? A. Then it does not count because numbers and symbols are not letters. Q. Do they have to be new finds, found after the published date of this cache? A. Yes they have to be new finds found on or after the date this cache was published. They can be caches that become archived as long as they were active at the time they were found. Of course this will give an advantage to, and encourage cachers who have lots of caches left to find in Manitoba!! Q. What if the cache coordinates for a Multi-cache or a Mystery are listed in Manitoba but the final point is not in the province? A. If the listed coordinates are in the province then the cache is considered to be a Manitoba cache. However if the listed coordinates are in another province, the cache will not count regardless of where the final point is. Q. Can I claim a find on a cache that I own? A. No, you can not claim a find on a cache owned by you or a cache hidden under an account name that you own. Q. Does this cache count as a find for the letter "M"? A. No, sorry but you can not claim a find on this cache until you have completed the other 26 required finds. There are several ABC themed trading items that kids will enjoy in the cache, please keep trading items to the ABC theme. Good luck and Happy Caching. CONGRATULATIONS TO PABLOO ON BEING FTF AND COMPLETE THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THIS CACHE! OTHERS WHO HAVE COMPLETED ARE: SOL3 Madrugada ertyu junglehair Trove Chasers icecapper MLR 1Queenand4Jokers Xplorer and Ramblin' Rose dani carriere Antihiro Old Billygoat Da Bowz Peter and Gloria MHz OHMIC Tromelin Kabuthunk JBrandt36 kildonan61 Geo-Indy Hikhik Wagonmaker MuStash captain cheater GG&J jleecollins olemaz tracama Ztirnats vianun Chewys Search & Enjoy foxfiresyxx GeoPahkers PilotMounder earnie&bert&elmo&grover Clan Lonewolf Pa Bottle dtex myst 354 happymole ruylopez rungirl159 Sunny Owl with Hubby s.f.g. Jean Deniche Derivative okeeffek ? ?

Additional Hints (There are no hints for this cache)

12/14/2008 by Kabuthunk
I think this cache officially sets a record for me. I drove... in -25 degree weather (but with the 50 kph winds, it was -45 with the windchill), one hour in either direction to reach this cache, spending about $20 worth of gas in total... which I can't even officially claim as a find quite yet .

Despite my prior attempts to make it out to Portage la Prairie on a day geocaching trip, all of those attempts were thwarted by various things coming up, or people coming over, or some combination thereof. Today however was the single only free day I've had in at least a month and a half... and thus, it became a day of geocaching.

In -45 celcius weather, no less. Oh sure, the ONE day I have to go on a geocaching road-trip, and it manages to be the coldest day of December, far colder than the average temperature (mean historical average of -17.6). But does that stop me? HELLS no! It just means that more layers of warmth are needed. In the end, only a bit of my face got cold, and my hands when I took the gloves off to sign the logbook.

But I'm getting ahead of myself. After the long drive from Winnipeg, I accidentally took the right curve just before town instead of staying left. I ended up going through downtown, trying to take a residential-type road to get back onto the major road to the South... found those were snowed in (tons of drifting today by the way... see attached pic), turned around, and eventually went clear through town to where the roads almost met up again, allowing me to find my way onto the correct highway. A few short minutes later, and my car was parked about 15 meters from ground zero . At long last... now the searching begins! Clicking on the hazard lights (not that even a single car went by while I was looking... although a few went by when I was putting on my "winter boots"... see second attached pic). At first I ended up searching the wrong place, but quickly corrected myself and located the cache! Despite the snow, the cache was still easily accessible. A quick opening and signing, and I replaced the cache. About halfway back to the car, I remembered that I had forgotten to put a chainmail ball in, so I went back and did just that . Like hell I'm going to drive for two hours round-trip and forget the chainmail ball.

At which point, I contemplated going for the Quarry Rocks cache to obtain my "Q". It was about 400 meters away... but it was through drifts and over the very open, very exposed-to-wind Assiniboine river, to search for a cache that may well be unfindably covered in snow and ice. I sat and contemplated it for about 5-10 solid minutes in the car. What eventually had me turn back however wasn't the cold or the walk or the wind... but the fact that a tow-truck was kinda circling around the area. I'm guessing one of the cars that passed while I was putting on my "boots" maybe called in about a car with the hazard lights on, and he was coming to tow it. The absolute dead-last thing I need is for some shmuck to come and tow my car while I'm across the river, leaving me stranded. I had a cellphone, yes... but if it even kept working for long in that temperature, I wouldn't have the foggiest clue who to call to find out where my car went. So in the end, I decided I'd have to get the "Q" another time, or from somewhere else .

As for the list, I'll post that in my note-log immediately after this one (dated Nov. 26), since there's not enough room in this log to post them. I'm having to slice a lot out to make it short enough to fit as is .

Nonetheless... thanks for the amazing cache. Nice to have a goal to work towards, as opposed to just 'find more caches' . I can't say for certain whether I'll be able to claim it in 2008, what with there only being about 3 weeks left in it (and a busy 3 weeks I might add), but hopefully not long after .

Took: Nothing
Left: Logbook entry and chainmail ball

EDIT: Dec. 20 - SUCCESS!!!!

11/26/2008 by Kabuthunk
Intriguing, I've seen the ABC Soup mentioned in various cache logs, but never knew what it was connected to. Now that I see what it is, I'm very curious, and will be attempting to tackle this challange.

I hope you'll forgive me for counting caches I've found after July 19th, but prior to today. I've probably found all "Z" caches anywhere nearby by this point as is .

The list thus far, to be added-to until completion:

Anderson Cooper's Mom (GC17NXA)
Bean there, Done that... (GC1F3EF)
Captain Obvious (GC1DPJY)
Dogleg Right Gone to the Bird-Dogs (GC1DP86)
El CAPitaine (GC1EWQC)
Fly widget to the moon (GC1FG3T)
Game Then Set (GCRYH1)
High voltage rock n' roll (GC1H3DM)
Ice Cube’s First (GC16DJ8)
Josh's First Cache (GC1FNN8)
Kisha's Cache 2.5 (GC1703Z)
Love Shack (GC1G0F7)
Mr. Smith's Cache (GC17JQV)
Niko's First Cache (GC1E25P)
Oh grate! Another cache (GC1GTXD)
Puppy Love (GC15AWB)
Quasi-Sudoku - Canadiana (GC1JK49)
Remember #69 (GC1DNE6)
Splash (GC1ANR6)
The Other Octopus (GC16KET)
Under the Sood (GC17AJT)
Vincent Massey Park (GC1GMN1)
Work Out (GC1GDHE)
X My Harte (GC1EMAT)
You Turn Me On (GC1FRG0)
Zeus's Games (GC1F0VF)

I'm kinda disappointed in myself for breaking down and getting "X My Harte" for the "X" portion. I really wanted to get OHMIC's "Xanthocephalus xanthocephalus" for the sake of being different, but unfortunately the weather wasn't playing nice with me on my geocaching road-trip . Oh well... these things happen. At least I'm in the home stretch at this point.

EDIT: Dec. 20 - SUCCESS