The Mythology: If the Ents are the shepherds of the
forest, then the Weedlins are the shepherds of meadows &
wildflowers. They're part of the landscape of nature itself. Like
weeds they're plucky, mischievous & protective of their lands.
The ancient Greeks called them the Lemoniads. The Native Americans
left them offerings. Colonial Farmers gave them their modern name
but revered them for renewing the fields & protecting the land
from erosion. Now a days they're hard to come by but I've
discovered at least one living in Tatum Park. I hid a cache nearby
which, if the Weedlin hasn't eaten it yet again, shouldn't be too
hard to find.
The Legend: In the Summer of 1779 the land of Tatum Park
was a small farm owned by a family that was struggling to just keep
the farm running. To make matters worse, British soldiers were
occupying their land. Young Emily had a magnificent garden of
native flowers, but the wildflowers that grew in the meadows were
her favorite. Emily watched with irritation as the troops made camp
in a field that was being allowed to grow natural that season. They
crushed down her beloved wildflowers & greedily ate the berries
she had been cultivating all Spring.
One of the soldiers took notice & saved a large bouquet of
flowers, which he presented to her one morning. Despite their
differences, the two fell in love. Though she never tried to change
his mind, her love of the land was infectious & soon after
being deployed into battle the young soldier defected to the
Colonial Army. He promised to marry her when he returned. He wrote
to Emily frequently over the next year but one day the letters
stopped coming. The years piled up, the war ended & she lost
hope & began to despair. She was inconsolable. As Emily's
health began to fail so did the farm. Crops withered, fruits dried
on the vine & not a flower could be seen on the property.
On the occasion of the first frost in 1783 Emily took a walk in
the North East meadow, sat down to rest under a willow tree &
never woke up. She was buried in that same meadow. On Christmas Eve
of that season her lover finally returned. He had been captured by
the British & sent over seas as a prisoner of war. The
revolution ended before he could stand trial & eventually he
was able to make his way back to the colonies. Her soldier was
saddened when he heard the news of her death but war had hardened
him & he could shed no tears. Emily's mother led him to the
gravesite. As he knelt by Emily's final resting place, her Mother
placed a bundle of dried flowers alongside the headstone. The
soldier recognized the flowers as the very bouquet he gave her when
they first met. His heart finally broke & he began to weep.
On the first day of Spring life returned to the farm when a lone
Morning Glory bloom unfolded to greet the dawn. It had sprouted
alongside Emily's grave where her love's tears fell to earth.
The Hide: Bring the kids! Take the Dogwood Hollow trail
& a short unnamed trail to within 15 feet of the cache. You'll
be hunting for a non-traditional cache container hidden in a
traditional way. The Weedlin kept stealing my original
containers so I moved the cache a little further outside the
meadow. If you find one of these original cache containers
(possibly near the Weedlin) please feel free to grab it and rehide
it. The containers are ready to go with a pencil, log & swag.
Just mention in your log that you snagged one of the Weedlin’s
caches. In this way the beneficial, if mischievous Weedlins can
expand their habitats!
The Park: Monmouth County's Tatum Park contains 366 acres
of woods & fields including a playground & six miles of
trails. You can park at either the Red Hill Road or Holland Rd
activity centers. While in the area be sure to visit Emily's old
homestead & the possible remains of her flowerbed:
Deep Cut Gardens.
This cache is certified
Central
Jersey!
