ESTABLISHED: August 19, 2003
CLUE DIFFICULTY: Easy
TERRAIN: Easy, but rocky
STATUS: Both boxes were in place as of September 2004

Henry David, the Find-Me Frog, lives in a quiet, secluded spot along the Quabbin Reservoir in Belchertown, Mass.  He doesn’t travel much, except to take his laundry home to his mother in Concord once a month.  Although he treasures his solitude, he doesn’t mind company every now and then.  If you’d like to pay him a visit, here’s what to do.

DIRECTIONS: From the intersection of Routes 9 and 202 in Belchertown, take Route 9 east.  In less than .5 mile you will come to Old Enfield Road, which is directly across from Route 21.  Turn left onto Old Enfield Road and drive all the way to the end.  It dead ends at Quabbin Reservoir Gate No. 5.  Park on the left side of the road; there’s room for about 4 cars.

From Gate No. 5, walk down the old paved road through the woods to the water’s edge. What a nice view! Now you have to decide which way to go—left or right.  I may be way out in left field here, but I think that, left to your own devices, you’ll know which way to go.  After all, you wouldn’t want to be left out of the fun!

Having decided which way to go, walk along this rocky beach for 5-10 minutes.  The water’s edge will curve to the left (west).  When it does, look for the largest boulder you’ve seen so far.  It’s very close to the water’s edge.  Stand behind this large boulder, facing the water, and take your bearings.  To your left is a small cove.  Looking at the cove, you should see two bald tree trunks that are leaning into the water.  Looking to your right, you should see, far off, the Quabbin observation tower.

Are you in the right spot?  Hope so!  Now make an about face and spot another large boulder that’s very close to the tree line.  A pine tree and an oak tree are growing right behind it.  At the base, their trunks are so closely intertwined they almost look like a single tree.  The Find-Me Frog makes his home under the roots of these two trees, behind several stones. After you stamp in, be sure to double bag the logbook before you hide the box back under the roots and stones.  This location can be a bit damp.

Henry David used to pass the time playing with marbles until one day he misplaced them.  But they are not far off and I’m sure you can find them.

The Misplaced Marbles Letterbox

ESTABLISHED: August 19, 2003
CLUE DIFFICULTY: Easy
TERRAIN: Easy

Say good-bye to the Find-Me Frog and look into the woods.  You’ll see an old stone wall not far away.  Step onto the boulder and use the pine and oak tree trunks to hoist yourself up.  Then walk to the stone wall and look for a break in it where a stone has fallen forward.  Cross over the break in the wall.  Two to three steps to your right (north), under the stone wall, the Find-Me Frog lost his marbles.  A few well-placed stones hide them from view. 

After you stamp in, please put the box back where you found it and be sure to cover it with the stones.

The entire walk, from car to letterboxes and back again, takes about 30 minutes.  

If you have another hour to spare, you might want to continue east on Route 9 and search for the Quabbin Reservoir Goodnough Dike Letterbox. 
 

Letterboxing, like any outdoor sport, carries the risk of unforeseen hazards. Letterboxing North America supports a policy of not knowingly placing letterboxes in areas that will create undue risk to the letterbox hunter.  However, as conditions may  vary, it is the responsibility of the letterbox searcher to become thoroughly familiar with the conditions in the area to be searched, to adequately prepare for those conditions, and to conduct oneself safely and responsibly with respect to those conditions and with respect to his or her personal abilities and limitations.  "Letterboxing North America" and the individual letterbox sponsors assume no liability for events which may occur related directly or indirectly to one's searching for a letterbox. 

Do not let children hunt for letterboxes unsupervised. 

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