The Mount Hope Letterbox Series
Rte 89 Mansfield Center

Planted By : Leader of the Pack and Pink Trotters
9/29/02
Rated: medium 1 hour plus mostly level some wet sections possible,
river section inaccessible at high water stages.

The Boxes Little Moth , Monarch, and By the Light of the Moon & The
Goblin

Street directions : From rte 195 in Mansfield Center take rte 89 at
the light.
Pass the library and the school and cross over the dike. About a
mile or so further is Mt. Hope Park on the right pull in and park
your car. Remember to carry out your litter and leave no trace of
your visit. This is the newest of Mansfield's parks opened September
of 2002. An addition to their impressive open space and farmland
preservation programs in town. We thank them for their efforts and
the pleasure they provide us with.

It was a crisp fall evening and hoof beats could be heard coming
down the Warrenville Rd. The horse and rider pulled off into the
meadow and picked up the small trail near the road that would lead
them home. As he crossed the bridge the scent of wood smoke filled
his nostrils and reminded him of the warmth of family, home and
hearth he was so close to. He crossed the second bridge and stopped
and looked out over the farm meadow. He turned at 40 degrees and
followed the fence line around the bend and toward the house. He
pulled up, next to the Sugar Maple and dismounted. With his right
shoulder to the maple he took the nine paces to the hitching post at
340 degrees. ( down in the leaves now) looping his reins once
through the iron ring he was thinking of dinner and the warm fire
when the door opened. " Hello I thought I heard the horse out here,
dinner is ready " with the dooryard flooded with the light of the
candle lantern a Little Moth flitted in the light and passed right by
the horses face. " what was that? - oh just a little moth in the
night" The restless horse impatiently shuffled his feet wanting to
eat and be turned out for the night. When the moth passed his face he
backed up and with the reins so loosely wrapped they slipped through
and he was free. " NoGoblin you come back ! " But the black
little horse knew the meadow grass was damp and sweet and trotted
into the dark of night." So much for a warm dinner may I take the
lantern to search for Goblin? Thanks" . As the light in the
dooryard dimmed the Little Moth flitted to the fence posts at 40
degrees and rested at the base in darkness. ( be sure to stamp
privately and replace the lid tight re-hide for the next person to
find)

The young man went back to the opening to the meadow one of his
brothers white marks was here as well. He stepped into the meadow on
the mowed path trying to keep the autumn dew from soaking his feet.
At the T in the path he went right down through the meadow calling to
Goblin. He cut a straight path down towards the pond as he heard the
distant hoof beats and the swish of the tall grasses. Goblin eluded
him longer. His swaying lantern cast a swath of light and he saw
mothers bench at the edge of the pond. Close inspection of the sod
here showed fresh hoof prints from Goblin . He was close by . He sat
on the bench and called in a soft plaintive voice and Goblin nickered
a response that was almost a laugh and trotted off further. At this
point our young man walked off toward the sound of Goblin but he only
went a few steps and his bootlace was loose. At 60 degrees go 11
paces look to the right the lantern was set here while the boot was
laced and tied once more. While on one knee to tie his lace , David
the young man saw a Monarch butterfly unfold his wing and air them in
the light of his lantern.
( down and under in a rock blocked cave is our Monarch- stamp and
seal tightly before hiding again)
Then in a burst of energy Goblin raced past bucking and
cavorting in the cool night air. Back at the bench , David
proceeded in his candle light path at 260 degrees he went on about 16-
18 paces to a path on the left. He crossed the muddy patch and saw
Goblins footprints again. Luckily there were planks to keep his feet
out of the mire. He passed the bench under the White Pine that cast
and haunting shadow in the glow of a candle. The trail here was
made by his brother but as of yet he had not marked it. The narrow
brushy way showed signs of Goblins passing. He crossed another
plank bridge and came to the meadow opening by the new gate. He set
his sites at 140 degrees where he could hear Goblin and headed off
across the pasture. The wall of evergreens father had planted made a
dark barrier in the growing moonlight. Just before reaching it Goblin
reared in the moonlight, this was such a fun game to play for a horse
and his boy! He turned and ducked into a path just to the left of
the evergreen windbreak. David heard stone hitting the water as
Goblin played on the dam of the pond. His candle was half burned as
he crossed the dam in the night . Luckily the sky was clearing and
more moonlight flooded the scene. He passed by two turns to the
right thinking Goblin must be headed to the river instead. He
passed the thick stand of Christmas trees grown skyward and to big
for use on his left it was darkest here. He passed the large pine on
his right and another on the left. Just before the orange marker of
his neighbors property Goblin turned right onto the path to the
river. David could hear the long gulping slurps as Goblin quenched
his thirst at the rivers edge. Then the game was on again. David
followed the river bank at 240 degrees though only a fishermans rough
grown trail was there to follow. He came to the place where a large
tree fell across the river and could go no further he turned right up
onto a more easily traveled path. This section would never be
traveled in high water. David followed Goblin along the path
downstream to pass a broken bench. At the next intersection Goblin
turned off right away from the water When he came to the mowed path
again he went off trail at 20 degrees up a small rise to a four trunk
tree. Here David stopped to catch his breath and the Goblin could be
heard eating grasses nearby. In the light of the Lantern a Lunar
moth unfurled his wing to put on his nightly show. The king of night
fliers slipped through the crotch of the tree and came to rest there.
Goblin returned to the trail and headed back over the dam .
He went along just a bit then veered off onto a white marked trail
again ( left). Goblins game was tiring both himself and David as he
trudged the trail of hoof prints. On the trail in the woods it was
quite dark . The moon couldn't penetrate the dark foliage. Up and
down the small rises in the land, David followed Goblin. The open
field was not far on his right and there were trees and rocks on the
left. In the darkness , David could make out a pair of twin trees
on the left with a boulder the size of a covered wagon next to it.
He stumbled through the growth and rested with his right shoulder
against the tree. Goblin nickered a soft greeting to David and pawed
the ground as if impatient. David's hope began to rise that Goblin
had finally given up the game. Peering through the darkness,
David caught the flicker of Goblins eye in the night. He talked
soothing to him and slowly walked in the direction ( 160 degrees)
of his sounds. 14 paces up the rise to a rock pile and David found
Goblin with his reins tangled in a rock pile and stuck unable to
move. Caught at last David stopped to rest here a moment ( you can
gather your stamp while you rest) and then led Goblin off to the
barn. Hay for him and dinner for David.