Pleasant Orchard

I started this hunt for treasure walking from my home, so I came from the North. The dirt road was hot, dry and dusty and I was listening to Amelia Peabody on my iPod (which doubles as my GPS, because they are both on my iPhone). The book series takes place in Egypt, and I pictured myself an archaeologist in a hot, dry and dusty murder mystery as I walked. It was easy to imagine myself in Egypt because I have visited Egypt twice in the past.


Oddly enough, summers in Egypt are no hotter than summers in Utah, and they are relatively more humid. Egypt is at sea level and is next to the Mediterranean, so compared to land-locked Utah which is 4,500 feet above sea level (and completely deprived of oxygen, I might add), Egypt has more humidity in the air than we do. I often wonder if the deprivation of oxygen and altitude sickness affects the brain cells over time. It would explain the many superstitious, paranoid and vacantly happy residents that live here. It would also explain my lack of concentration on many occasions.


All of these things went through my mind as I was gasping for breath and traversing the brimstone road above a magnificent view of the valley.


Zero seemed rather impatient with his bipedal companion, and kept urging me onward.


At long last, I came upon a magnificent pair of trees, the one on the left being directly where the coordinates seemed to carry me.


A water spill cooled the air and the oxygen from the trees fed my rapidly diminishing brain cells.


I found the box nestled snugly in the "crotch of a tree" as the clue indicated.


Several rubbery treasures awaited me.


I left the cache, signed my name "8 - 1 - 09 Miriam Latour" and re-hid the package in the tree.


The magnificent tree was not an orchard, but it was indeed very pleasant. I could have rested in it's shade for hours with an interesting book, but time being constrained as it all too often is, I went on my way.

My assessment of this hunt: 4/5 stars for water and trees