tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-62279662011-04-21T16:11:57.206-04:00<br><img src="http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v718/johnnylb/Pinecone.jpg" alt="Image hosted by Photobucket.com"><br><br>This page details, in journal form, our trip with 11 fellow letterboxers to Dartmoor National Park - the birthplace of letterboxing and the 150th Anniversary of that first letterbox placed at Cranmere Pool!Mark and Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11467187163158222881noreply@blogger.comBlogger391100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6227966.post-1096230838937706612004-12-01T15:13:00.000-05:002004-12-06T10:32:11.986-05:00

Friday, September 17, 2004 - Our Adventure Begins" The Baker's Dozen: Baker's Dozen with Andy Wilkes [second from right] Chapuline/Geri Rubaduc/Roberta Butterfly/Nancy Lobsta Lady/Bonnie Sewsobizzy/Judy Talking Turtle/Alexis & Lasvicious Lion/Hugh Carrington Rusty Puff/Kim CSCM/Christopher Lazy Letterboxer/Deanne & Letterboxing Ham/Dave Mark & Sue Pepe 8:26 am I'm waiting for Sue to

Mark and Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11467187163158222881noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6227966.post-1096343234960366422004-11-30T21:18:00.000-05:002004-12-06T08:35:06.610-05:00

Sunday, September 19, 2004 "Our First Full Day on the Moors" 7am It looked very cloudy out but I awaited the day to begin with anticipation . . . our first full day on the moors. Andy Wilkes, the UK letterboxer who has been emailing Judy for months prior to our trip, is camping at Langstone Manor and will join us for the day. The plan is to hunt several of the tors that are known for

Mark and Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11467187163158222881noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6227966.post-1096542000650168122004-11-28T06:57:00.000-05:002004-12-06T08:36:57.193-05:00

Sue's Thumb in Action! We set out today to find as many letterboxes as possible. It was very rainy and windy - typical England weather. The group decided to run into Princetown and stop in at the main Dartmoor National Park Visitor's Centre as well as several of the buildings and pubs that have letterboxes while the rain was so heavy. Weather reports called for clearing after lunch - which did

Mark and Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11467187163158222881noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6227966.post-1096385710194063612004-11-25T11:22:00.000-05:002004-11-30T09:14:00.226-05:00

Dave & Deanne Mark & Sue Geri

Mark and Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11467187163158222881noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6227966.post-1096685811246480752004-11-20T22:56:00.000-05:002005-06-13T20:58:02.200-04:00

Baker's Dozen, basking in the glow of 150 years of Cranmere Pool historyToday our goal was twofold. First was to get the Cranmere Pool letterbox and second was the 9 boxes we need to reach our F100! Hugh promised to find 5 more than we need so that Geri and Bonnie can catch up on the few that they missed over the past several days.The Cranmere Pool Letterbox on it's 150thWe would attempt Cranmere

Mark and Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11467187163158222881noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6227966.post-1096826293058448952004-11-19T13:57:00.000-05:002004-12-06T08:40:34.476-05:00

The Railway Inn - where our dreams came to fruition At 6:30 pm, after showers and some spiffing up, we headed out for the Railway Inn. Little did the group know what lie ahead. We stop on our way to the Railway Inn to show Louise & Chris a quick letterbox Many months before our departure, I had arranged with Sylvia and Tony Moore, who edit and publish The Dartmoor Catalogue of Clues, to meet

Mark and Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11467187163158222881noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6227966.post-1097934601233635572004-10-16T08:57:00.001-04:002004-12-06T08:45:10.326-05:00

After packing our 3 vehicles with our gear, The Baker's Dozen left our cottages at lengthen Manor Holiday Park. Those &*%$@! Hedgerows! Our first stop of the day was the gift shop of the Dartmoor Prison. Chris had asked Hugh if he would be interested in a quick look at the Prison, since Hugh is a corrections officer in NY. While they went off, the rest of us entered the gift shop and asked for

Mark and Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11467187163158222881noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6227966.post-1102303316544620442004-10-15T22:16:00.000-04:002004-12-07T00:16:06.966-05:00

Big Ben We started the day off early and visited the Tower of London, The British Museum - including the fantastic Mummy exhibition and the Rosetta Stone, Westminster Abbey, Big Ben and the Parliament building, The London Eye, Buckingham Palace and several of the city's many parks with a multitude of flowers still in bloom. An English garden

Mark and Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11467187163158222881noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6227966.post-1102304657762696292004-10-14T22:26:00.000-04:002004-12-07T00:15:32.786-05:00

The London Eye We visited Kensington Palace, the former home of Prince Charles, Princess Diana and their sons. After the hour long tour, we headed through Hyde Park to visit the world renown statue of Peter Pan and the newly dedicated Princess Diana Memorial Fountain and Walkway. Our next stop was the London Eye - the huge, multi-story Ferris wheel built in 2000 to celebrate the new millennium

Mark and Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11467187163158222881noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6227966.post-1102306020474564532004-10-13T22:54:00.000-04:002004-12-29T14:31:26.210-05:00

As I reflect back it seems like this trip was a wonderful dream through which we all passed. Time out on the beautiful moors, where around every corner we turned brought forth another piece of this country's patchwork quilt of farms, fields, hills and tors. The friendliness of its people, who soon became good friends - like Spannerman and his family and Andy Wilkes - people who gave up 2 days of

Mark and Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11467187163158222881noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6227966.post-1102307606381913612004-10-12T23:08:00.000-04:002005-02-19T13:16:21.856-05:00

The dynamics of this group will probably never be achieved again. Where one would excel in a given area, another would contribute in a completely different vein. We started out as strangers and friends, but ended up as family. As of this writing, 11 of the 13 will return on the upcoming trip in 2006.The Baker's Dozen proved that you could vacation with 13 totally different individuals and still

Mark and Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11467187163158222881noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6227966.post-1095173864447299372004-09-14T10:39:00.000-04:002004-09-14T13:40:28.013-04:00

3 days to go and counting!! The Baker's Dozen are getting quite excited - you can tell by the emails and their posts. Sue & I have been packing and getting ready for the trip. Our departure on Friday is just around the corner. After a year of planning and plotting - we are almost there! This page will revert to photos and commentary of our trip once we get back. Look for our trip report on

Mark and Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11467187163158222881noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6227966.post-1093836619328879332004-08-29T23:28:00.000-04:002004-08-29T23:30:19.330-04:00

Less than 3 weeks to go! I picked up our tickets and all of our paperwork on Friday. This is really going to happen! Made it even more official to see it in writing. HH's from letterboxers across the country are starting to come to the house almost every day. We will be traveling with a sackful - thanks to the participation of many of letterboxing's finest.

Mark and Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11467187163158222881noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6227966.post-1092420061307913832004-08-13T13:49:00.000-04:002004-08-13T14:01:01.306-04:00

We leave 5 weeks from today! The troups are getting antsy! Food shopping lists, what do we bring from home, who makes the morning coffee? Seriously, this is one special group. From Kim, who has designed our team stamp for Dartmoor letterboxes to Judy, who has kept us on task by devising menus and shopping lists for breakfast, to Butterfly, who promises to be the first one up and get the morning

Mark and Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11467187163158222881noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6227966.post-1089982375697823442004-07-16T08:51:00.000-04:002004-07-16T08:52:55.696-04:00

Don't forget our July 17 GEM at Deanne & Dave's in Orange, MA. This is the last scheduled meeting prior to our trip. We leave in 2 months!

Mark and Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11467187163158222881noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6227966.post-1088049314864027152004-06-23T23:52:00.000-04:002004-06-23T23:55:14.863-04:00

We welcome Judy from VA as she joins our group of Dartmoor-bound travelers! Don't forget our next GEM at Deane and Dave's in MA. Start time is noon at their cottage on Saturday the 17th of July. Email Deanne with what kind of dish you will be bringing. Also - bring your questions, as this may be the last meeting with the group until we hit JFK in September!

Mark and Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11467187163158222881noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6227966.post-1085060317983246242004-05-20T09:36:00.000-04:002004-05-22T00:47:49.086-04:00

Invoices are out in the mail from King Travelways for the balance of your airfare, the London hotel and the 2 vans/1 car rental. Please pay these invoices promptly. Thanks. We are down to 4 months away . . . and counting!

Mark and Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11467187163158222881noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6227966.post-1084207212399053232004-05-10T12:38:00.000-04:002004-05-22T00:45:06.976-04:00

Our travel agent, Jean King, contacted me during lunch today. New invoices will go out shortly that cover the balance of the airfare, the London accommodations and the 2 vans and car rental. This invoice will be due by June 1. Email me with any questions. Thanks - another step closer to the moors!

Mark and Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11467187163158222881noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6227966.post-1083768502300359122004-05-05T10:44:00.000-04:002004-05-05T10:54:46.780-04:00

Saturday's GEM was terrific. Time to bond and box! Alan/Letterboxer2002 did a wonderful job with his slide presentation and commentary. We all learned so much. It was great to meet Cheryl [Team Mad Dawg] from Ohio, who took the trip out to attend our GEM and the gathering in Thompson the following day. Thanks to Deanne and Dave who will purchase a true sighting compass, not the cheap thing I

Mark and Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11467187163158222881noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6227966.post-1083247719947577692004-04-29T10:03:00.000-04:002004-05-22T00:48:41.510-04:00

For our travelers making the trip to Dartmoor: Sue and I will be in the main parking lot at Rocky Neck State Park at 10:00 to 10:15 am on Saturday, May 1 to go letterboxing. Those of you interested can meet us there. Otherwise, meet in the same parking lot at 3pm so that we can carpool and drive to Butterfly's nearby cottage. Look for the lady with the butterfly hat and a flag on the picnic

Mark and Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11467187163158222881noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6227966.post-1083081228267562882004-04-27T11:50:00.000-04:002004-04-27T11:58:02.140-04:00

Don't forget our Dartmoor GEM this Saturday, May 1. See the post below for instructions. At last count, there will be 16 of us in Butterfly's cottage. It will be cozy! Don't forget your finger food contribution to our meal. Let me know if any of you who have responded you are coming, cannot make it. There are 2 others interested in attending if the space opens up!

Mark and Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11467187163158222881noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6227966.post-1082568892611066782004-04-21T13:29:00.000-04:002004-04-21T13:40:00.716-04:00

Our first GEM [Greet, Eat & Meet] has been set for May 1. We are to meet Butterfly at the main parking lot of Rocky Neck State Park at 2:45pm, then carpool to her nearby cottage. She said that she will be camped out at a picnic table with a flag and her tan van will also have a flag! Alan [Letterboxer2002] will tell us about his trip in February 2003, as well as answer questions, etc. I will have

Mark and Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11467187163158222881noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6227966.post-1081261160257650372004-04-06T10:14:00.000-04:002004-04-06T10:23:53.996-04:00

At the Prince of Naples gathering, I spoke to Alan/Letterboxer2002. He agreed to meet with us on May 1 to discuss his trip to Dartmoor last year when our group has our first Meet/Greet/Eat. We will be meeting at Rocky Neck State Park for some letterboxing [what else?] and then will meet at Butterfly's cottage where we can have a bite to eat, talk and question Alan, lay out our maps and make some

Mark and Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11467187163158222881noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6227966.post-1080138684350486922004-03-24T09:26:00.000-05:002004-03-24T09:36:28.373-05:00

Our group is planning several informal get-togethers this spring and summer [mini-gatherings?] to serve as icebreakers and as a vehicle to get acquainted before our trip in September. We have had 2 great offers of cottages; one in northern MA in a wooded setting and the second on the shore of CT! Our plan is to spend that time planning our trip, getting to know each other and maybe pick up a few

Mark and Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11467187163158222881noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6227966.post-1079498970273533872004-03-16T23:49:00.000-05:002004-03-16T23:53:31.920-05:00

Sue and I received a great package from Tony and Sylvia Moore today from England. They are the couple that are in charge of the Catalogue of Dartmoor Letterboxes, which is published twice a year, March and October. Inside the package was - you guessed it, our own Catalogue to take to Dartmoor this September. You cannot believe the number of letterboxes in the area of our accommodations! Fate was

Mark and Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11467187163158222881noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6227966.post-1079130436434651632004-03-12T17:27:00.000-05:002004-03-12T17:30:27.983-05:00

In the mail today, we received our second letterbox, a HH, to take to Dartmoor this fall. CW Sun Seeker of Utah sent the Travel Bug, which will "hitch a ride to travel far, collecting stamps all along the way before returning home." Thanks, Sun Seeker, we will take good care of this extra "baggage."

Mark and Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11467187163158222881noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6227966.post-1078973309712826092004-03-10T21:48:00.000-05:002004-03-10T21:51:38.543-05:00

We have grown again! Deanne, the Lazy Letterboxer & her husband, Dave, will be joining us on our trip to Dartmoor in September. We all welcome them. There are now 14 of us and the trip is really closed this time! Our airfare, rental vehicles in England, and accommodations in Dartmoor and London have all been finalized. For those of you who could not make it this time, we hope to do this again in

Mark and Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11467187163158222881noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6227966.post-1078805927547054102004-03-08T23:18:00.000-05:002004-03-08T23:22:49.106-05:00

There will be a guest speaker, Deb Blanchard, at the Letterboxing at Laudholm gathering in Wells, ME on Sunday, March 21 at 11am. Deb has been to Dartmoor on several occasions and will present a slide show along with her logbook and other Dartmoor memorabilia. We encourage our trip participants to make this presentation if at all possible. All of those questions of yours can be answered by Deb.

Mark and Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11467187163158222881noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6227966.post-1078320092664740352004-03-03T08:17:00.000-05:002004-03-03T08:29:54.436-05:00

I received my first letterbox to take to England. At the POE gathering on Sunday, Sadie & Russ gave me their Window on New England HH. Russ is quite a carver who just quietly goes about his craft but his carvings are truly wonderful. . . and those clues, like X-Y Twister are extremely challenging! If you are interested in sending over a permanent letterbox or HH, email me and we can make

Mark and Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11467187163158222881noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6227966.post-1078284734060439552004-03-02T22:32:00.000-05:002004-03-02T22:36:49.310-05:00

We have grown! Our trip had 11 travelers before yesterday, but we picked up 1 along the way. Cheryl from Team Mad Dawg will be getting married and her husband, Tom will be joining us on the trip. There are also plans underway, if we can pull them off, for 2 additional letterboxers to join us. Still awaiting our Dartmoor hostess for her answers. As they say, the more letterboxers; the merrier!

Mark and Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11467187163158222881noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6227966.post-1077631729190683532004-02-24T09:06:00.000-05:002004-05-22T00:43:45.476-04:00

Sylvia & Tony Moore emailed me today. Tony heads up the 100 Club for British letterboxers. They have received our check and will be sending out the new Catalogue of Dartmoor Letterboxes once the spring edition is published - sometime in mid March. One more step in the process done!

Mark and Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11467187163158222881noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6227966.post-1077547408797398472004-02-23T09:41:00.000-05:002004-02-23T22:31:20.903-05:00

Deb Blanchard, an educator from the Raymond Elementary School in Raymond, Maine will be a guest speaker at the Maine Gathering on Sunday, March 21st. Deb brings a wealth of experience from her teaching in the classroom and supervision of the Lakes Region Letterboxing Trail. Deb will be sharing a slide show of pictures from her trip to Dartmoor National Park. She will also bring her stamps and

Mark and Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11467187163158222881noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6227966.post-1075674225884871442004-02-01T17:23:00.000-05:002004-02-02T09:46:28.653-05:00

I just bought a book on eBay titled, 101 Dartmoor Letterboxes and I am bidding on an Ordnance Map #28 upon which all Dartmoor letterboxed are based.

Mark and Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11467187163158222881noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6227966.post-1075108827472678832004-01-26T04:20:00.000-05:002004-01-26T04:22:34.996-05:00

I recently have purchased a sighting compass for use on the moors as we track our coordinates and find tons of British letterboxes in September! Still awaiting final figures from our travel agent as we scout out our best car rental deal.

Mark and Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11467187163158222881noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6227966.post-1074705774778014752004-01-21T12:22:00.000-05:002004-01-21T19:24:48.593-05:00

The deposit for our 2 cottages in Dartmoor was mailed out today, which means that we are one step closer to our trip. Once I got home, I discovered a great packet of brochures and maps that came in today's mail detailing Dartmoor Park and the area attractions.

Mark and Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11467187163158222881noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6227966.post-1074481940932285902004-01-18T22:12:00.000-05:002004-01-18T22:14:48.903-05:00

We have a total of 11 letterboxers on the trip. Our airfare has been purchased, our accommodations for both venues as well as our rental vehicles have all been secured. The only thing left is the wait!

Mark and Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11467187163158222881noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6227966.post-1074179367239851182004-01-15T10:07:00.000-05:002004-01-26T12:10:57.513-05:00

Things are moving quickly. We have accommodations in Dartmoor for 4 nights and London for 3. Our travel agent is working on group airfare for our departure of September 17th from JFK. If you have signed up for this trip, look for an email from me by Monday, January 19 with specifics as to where and how much deposit money needs to be mailed out.

Mark and Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11467187163158222881noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6227966.post-1073269461433578292004-01-04T21:24:00.000-05:002004-01-05T08:41:57.686-05:00

NEW! I just heard from TailChaser [Tracy Roberts], who runs the British Dartmoor Letterboxing Club on MSN groups: She is willing to guide us through this process as we develop our travel plans. Tracy has offered to purchase, and we will have to reimburse her for, the Letterboxing Catalogue of Clues. TailChaser suggests we look into an inn called Plume of Feathers in Princetown, which is right in

Mark and Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11467187163158222881noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6227966.post-1071887508028547392003-12-19T21:31:00.000-05:002004-01-05T12:52:40.413-05:00

Stay tuned for details as they become available regarding our trip to Dartmoor National Park in England. As of this moment, we are thinking mid to end of September 2004 for 7 to 10 days. As we get further into our plans, the group can decide on accomodations such as a bed & breakfast or self-catering, where we would do the cooking. Our plan is to either stay in one of the towns that are located

Mark and Suehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11467187163158222881noreply@blogger.com