Paddle, Hike, Cache, Repeat.
If you can paddle nine miles in the same canoe with your spouse and still be smiling at the end? Well, you’ve already found the rarest treasure there is.
Nine miles down the Etowah River, my arms were aching as I raised my paddle high in triumph. Greg was laughing behind me because he understood not only had we survived the river, but we’d survived each other in the same canoe.
“If you’ve got more than one bar of cell service, you haven’t gone far enough.”
If you’ve got more than one bar of cell service, you haven’t gone far enough. That’s the unspoken rule in our family. It doesn’t matter if we are canoeing, kayaking, rock climbing, hiking, white water rafting, or in our Jeep. One bar means we’re exactly where we’re supposed to be—outside, unplugged, and fully in the moment. That’s what got us started on the marathon canoe trip.
Our love for water doesn’t stop at canoes. Over the years, we’ve launched countless kayaks for the kids. There was no goal other than meandering down lazy rivers. These days on the water remind me that life’s best moments happen when we’re together, noticing the small things along the way.
And then there’s our other “one-bar” pastime: geocaching. Imagine a real-world treasure hunt using GPS coordinates. Visit GeoCaching.com to get in on the fun. When the kids were little, we’d jump in the Jeep, chase down hidden containers, and discover new trails along the way. We even created our own geocache—a tiny film canister with a logbook and a quirky eraser to swap. Some caches were under park benches, others camouflaged in the woods. Every find felt like being part of a secret club.
So here’s my challenge to you:
Join our One-Bar Adventure. I’ll share GPS coordinates for a favorite public geocache close by; each post will mention #OneBarAdventure. Your mission, should you choose to accept it... Find it and take a photo. Post your photo with the hashtag #OneBarAdventure so we can all share in the find. I’ll even feature your photos in a gallery right here on the blog.
The best signal you can have isn’t from a cell tower. It’s from the wind in the trees, the water passing under a kayak, and the laughter coming from behind you in the canoe.
Where the butterflies play,
Hippie Chick 🦋
#HippieHeart #OneBarAdventure #PaddleUnplugged
