I just went up to the Stone Needle letterbox to check it out and to
place a gift certificate in it towards a meal at a local restaurant.
The box was in good condition after its first week out there. We got
heavy rain and snow since I left it last Saturday. While walking to
it I checked my pacing on the second to last course. To my horror I
found that I was off by 10 paces. The distance should be 50 paces
instead of 60. I use a "2 step" pace. I count them while walking
with a casual gate. I'll be updating my clue page later today.

Well, anyway, the box weathered quite well over the last week. The
spot I put it in seems like it was made for it. There's snow up
there and the local ski areas are making their own already.

After a few thaws and refreezes you may have to chop the ice away to
get into it, but the box itself should be secure. Don't forget that
the gift certificate is only good for a year. When the snow gets
deep, you're going to have to do a lot more hiking, x-country skiing
or snowshoeing to get close to it. They don't plow all the roads in
this area in the winter.

I'm anxious to hear about the first attempt. The gift certificate
already has the letterbox stamp on it.

good luck,

John