Wahkegan

Wahkegan

Interviewed February 2007

Wahkegan is also known as Ken Daws. Ken is a man of few words, especially when it comes to talking about himself. We're quite pleased that he agreed to this interview! If you check his profile on geocaching.com you'll see he has just listed the essentials . But look closely. Ken has quite a bit of geocaching experience.

Ken's number of finds marks him as a geocacher who is often"on the trail". While he only lists three hides all three are well constructed, quality hides. Additionally he has been a very successful FTF (fist to find) with 8 to his credit.

Ken also supports Delaware Geocaching through his attendance at Delaware Geocaching Events, CITO Events and volunteering as an instructor to assist Mike Ott with the GPS classes Mike has presented through the Parks and Recreation Service.

This interview will help you to get to know a bit more about him.

How did you become involved with geocaching - and how long have you been doing it?
I had just purchased a GPS in March of 2005, and didn’t really know what I was going to do with it. I was talking to Mike Ott at a meeting of the FWCCSP (Friends of the White Clay Creek State Park) and he told me to look up geocaching.com on the internet. I looked the site over, picked out a few caches close to home, and began taking the dog for a walk in these new parks we had never been to. It didn’t take long to determine that this would be a very enjoyable hobby.

How did you choose your caching name? Is there something special about it?
My caching name “wahkegan” is a carryover from high school. One of the guys we hung around with was always giving odd nicknames to everyone (e.g. Frug, Hoot, Whitman, and the list goes on). He just kept adding names to mine, and wahkegan was the first name of about twelve that he strung together. He could always say them in the same order, and it just seems to have stuck.

How many caches have you found so far?
At this writing, I have found over 350 caches

Your profile shows that you have found some of every kind of cache that there is. Which type of cache do you prefer seeking - traditional, multi, puzzle or virtual?
I prefer the traditional “cache in the woods”, single stage or multi, that takes me to new areas and involve a nice walk. I have found some really great puzzle caches, but I don’t like solving puzzles, so they are not among my favorites (especially those sudoko ones!)

Which find was the most challenging?
This is a difficult question to answer, as I have had trouble with some really easy hides. Sometimes the GPS just doesn't take you where it should, and when I return a few days later, I walk right to the cache. The two caches that stand out in my mind are “fourteen minus six” (everybody knows that one) and “In a field cache” (GCM3E), which from the logs has driven a number of cachers crazy.

Which was the easiest?
Finding “skirt-lifters” seems to be quite easy, typical “Mike Ott” hides in the woods usually present no problem. I would have to say the easiest ammo can find I ever made was “New Garden Township family cache” (GCQ6KH).

Do you have a favorite or favorites from among the caches you have found?
My favorite caches are those that combine some history along with the find. Mike Ott has made quite a number of these kinds of hides in the White Clay Creek State park. I really enjoy a cache that has lots of interesting stuff to look at and examine on the way to and from the hide. Sometimes it takes me an hour or more for one cache because I take the time to look around and explore.

What's the most unusual thing you've found in a cache?
After notifying Runfrog of a muggled stop four on his “Smithville Devil” cache (GCHX9F), I went back to complete it after he fixed it up. I was really surprised to open the cache container and find an envelope “for wahkegan only” and in it was a Starbucks gift certificate. My own personal prize!

Have you had any memorable experiences while seeking a cache?
Well, I’ve never found a body or a lost treasure, that would be memorable. On a caching trip with rflester and MikeOtt to New Jersey, we were accosted by the Pennsville police because someone from a nearby bank called and said we were casing the place (see the logs and pics at GCYV5A “Swingin’ in Jersey (close to 295)”.

What advice would you give to a beginning geocacher?
Look for caches close to home in areas you know. Look for a variety of types, and don’t be afraid to ask other local cachers to lend you a hand. Always set a waypoint for you car!!!

Your geocaching.com profile indicates you have placed 3 caches but they are all what we'd call "quality" hides. Tell us a bit about them.
I have picked three local Newark parks for my hides so far. None have parking lots, so they all involve a little bit of a walk. “Under Cover-dale” is a nice little park that backs up to the WCCSP (White Clay Creek State Park). If you park at the suggested coordinates, it is a nice hike down through the woods and along the old millrace. “Karpinski” just gives me the impression that here is a park placed so the local homes have big giant backyards. You will notice there is no fence along the park boundary. “Dorothy P. Miller Park” is really land the City purchased to preserve the flood plain near the creek. You won’t find swings or walking trails here.

Have any of them proven to be more "popular" than what you expected?
No, they are all getting the kind of traffic that I expected, since I have chosen locations that are harder to get to, although “Karpinski” does have increased visits since more caches have been placed at the Newark reservoir.

Have any of them proven to be more difficult to find than you expected?
Some of the logs suggest that some cachers had a harder time than I expected (like Horn229 who bushwhacked all the way to “under cover-dale” when there is road that takes you most of the way). I have tried to make all my hides EZ to find, but off the beaten path.

Have any of them been muggled? If so, how did you handle this?
Both “Under Cover-dale” and “Dorothy P. Miller Park” have gone missing. I was able to get out and replace both of them in less than a week because cachers logged a DNF.

What advice would you give to someone designing a cache placement?
Use good judgment, and a reliable container. Remember not all cachers have the same ability. If special skills are required, put it in the cache description.

What's your best caching story - the one you tell others to let them know the kind of fun and adventures one can have while geocaching?
I don’t think I have ever found myself telling any one story over and over. When I talk up geocaching to others, I just seem to tell them about the last few caches I have found, and how enjoyable it is to find all these different parks that are “right around the corner”, but unknown to me until they pop up in a cache listing.

Beside geocaching, what other things do you like to do?
I enjoy exploring the White Clay Creek State Park. I am an active volunteer there, and also the treasurer and member of the Executive committee of the Friends of White Clay Creek State park.

Which Delaware cache site would you'd like to see reviewed on the Delaware Geocachers web site and why?
I really enjoyed doing Crazy Aarons’ “One of these things” (GCNMV3). It is a subscriber-only cache, but showed lots of imagination and was just enjoyable to do.

What question did you expect us to ask but we didn't? And, what's the answer?
I have had a number of cachers who asked me why I stopped posting the “Ito found it” pictures. I first started geocaching with my dog Ito (named after the Judge), and we had a great time exploring all those parks together. However, Ito got sick last September 2006, and is no longer with me.

Our thanks to Ken Daws (Wahkegan) for sharing these answers with us.

We opened this interview noting that Wahkegan is one of those geocachers who is often "seen but not heard". Here's a challenge....jump over to the Photo Gallery Section of the Delaware Geocachers Web Site and, now that you know what he looks like, see how many pictures you can find where Ken is somewhere in the pictures. Note - you may need to look in the background. To give you some practice, here's a couple of pictures to check.