A Geocache Off the Tourist Path
Angkor Wat can be very overwhelming at times. The shear size and the amount of people will surprise you at first. We were temple hopping and knew that there were a hand full of Geocaches around the temples. We saw that there was a very highly favored Geocache off the beaten path of well known temples, so this was perfect for a Cambodian cache. So we pull out our Garmin.
** Possible Spoiler **
Ta Nei – Temple of Butterflies GCT5NR
We head out from Ta Keo to Ta Nei The Temple of Butterflies. The compass on our Garmin GPS said the Geocache was just a little over half a mile away along this sandy trail. So easy walk we thought. As we wander down this trail from the Ta Keo Temple, we realize that we are suddenly all ALONE.
We believed that we were heading in the right direction, but the trek gave us a bit of anxiety in case we were heading in some direction that would cause us to scream (like stumbling across a panther or something!). LOL. Although the excitement of wondering what was around the next bend in the trail was exhilarating. We felt as though we were about to discover something grand.
Geocaching off the beaten Tourist Path
After quite some time of walking down this trail, we come to a broken down temple. The structure had literally caved in the middle and was nothing but ruins. The GPS coordinates for the Geocache were taking us into the center of the temple. There was not a soul in sight; just Liz and I, and our Garmin. So we brave the rubble and head into Ta Nei Temple in search of our Cambodian geocache. The coordinates were now showing us that it was in the center in a another structure within the temple complex.
“I Think this is it!”
As we head into the center, hopping between stones and climbing around larger ones, we notice how great this experience is. We are experiencing a “find” in a once hidden treasure that the jungle has swallowed. As we enter the center structure, we find this very cleverly hidden Geocache behind a rock in the wall. We sign this clever Geocache log and read all the other geo travelers notes from across the world. As we read and imagine others journey before us to this very exact spot in Angkor, we realize that searching around the world for our secret hidden treasures will always brings us some great memories!
Also see our story: Geocaching Around the World
*** Note that when Geocaches are placed in natural settings, take care not to disturb the surroundings and to maintain the integrity of the structures.