Sign Up  /  Login

The Parables Series LbNA #25737 (ARCHIVED)

Owner:Adoptable
Plant date:Sep 16, 2006
Location:
City:Yuba City
County:Sutter
State:California
Boxes:6
Found by: yankessjeter2
Last found:Apr 19, 2009
Status:FFFFaF
Last edited:Sep 16, 2006
This series of letterboxes are based on some of the parables from the Bible. In many of Jesus' parables, people are seeking for something or they are out in nature. These stories just seemed to go hand-in-hand with letterboxing. There are SIX boxes total, all within easy walking distance from each other near the Feather River at the Shenghi Bend Levee River Access. We have also decided to add a little bonus to two of the boxes- find these boxes and there will be something you can take with you besides a stamp in your logbook.

Please note- these boxes will be pulled for the winter, as this area floods as the river swells during the rainy season. I will pull them maybe in November and replant them after the river goes down, (February?), I will post when they're pulled and let you know when I put them back.

****************************** -UPDATE!-*******************
As of 11-21-06, I have NOT pulled them yet. I just checked on all the boxes, replaced two (#2 & #5), found out that #6 is missing, and plan on replacing that in the morning so all you hunters can have fun this Thanksgiving week!
***********************************************************


Begin your hunt at the end of Shanghai Bend River Access. You can get here by taking Garden Hwy to the south end of Yuba City. Take Shanghai Bend Road east towards the Feather river. The road dead ends into the parking area on the right. Now you have two choices for parking. The first two boxes are hidden near the south end of the parking area, about 600 yards from Shanghai Bend. The other four boxes are hidden just north of where you are at now, (the north end of the parking lot). Park at either end, just realize how long the walk is between the two paths that take you up and over the levee. To get to the south end of the parking area, follow the metal railing at the base of the river all the way back. The middle of this levee road is a very bumpy dirt road (doesn't look like it would lead to everything), just keep following the railing until it dead ends into an old orchard. Then begin your quest.

Hidden Treasure Box - Box #1

"The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field. When a man found it, he hid it again, and then in his joy went and sold all he had and bought that field." - Matthew 13:44

This is the first bonus box. Look for something other than the logbook and the stamp in this box that you can take with you. You'll be richer than a millionaire!

Here we go-
The trail to take up and over the levee
Is marked with three rocks that are heavy.
At the peak of your climb, listen for the rush,
Follow your ears, take the trail into the brush.
12 steps to the right, at where the path splits,
Is the start of a new path to where the box sits.
Only a short distance, to a lonely oak-
Ask him if he's got money or if he is broke.
He'll claim to be a great millionaire,
Waving his woody arms up in the air!


The Wise Man's House Box - Box #2

"Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against the house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock. But everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell with a great crash." - Matthew 7:24-27

From Box #1-
Take the time to enjoy the falls, feel the rush,
Noticing the beach on the left is a must.
The house built on sand is forever lost,
However, this is the direction of the next box.
Follow your steps, back the way you came,
Where the trail splits, head north a-gain.
Right at the next fork, then make like an otter-
And take the first trial that leads to the water!
Look to the north as you pass two metal poles
For three leafless trees is your goal.
At the base of tree three, two or one,
(Don't stop now, you're almost done!)
Is a rock the wise man might use,
(And the location of box number two).


Lost Sheep Box - Box #3

"What do you think? If a man owns a hundred sheep, and one of them wanders away, will he not leave the ninety-nine on the hills and go to look for the one that wandered off? And if he finds it, I tell you the truth, he is happier about that one sheep than about the ninety-nine that did not wander off. In the same way your Father in heaven is not willing that any of these little ones should be lost." - Matthew 18:10-14

(To make your way to the north levee entrance, you can retrace your steps back the way you came and follow the path on the top of the levee north. Or, my favorite, go back to the "main" trail you have been walking on and continue north for a ways (remember how long the parking area is?). After staying on the right of the next fork in the tail, your path will cross many other paths heading towards the river bank. Just keep going strait. Your trail will crest a hill and give you a beautiful view of the Feather river and the Sutter Buttes, then it turn west, and heads back to the levee. Take the switchback up the levee and head north along the levee to start the third leg of your quest-)

Back to the levee, it's time for a walk,
For this sheep has wondered off.
Walk north atop the levee's smooth trail,
Until a "forbidding" sign mark's where to bail.
Carefully down off the levee we go,
Heading north again, for your sheep ya' know.
Find a blackberry bush on one side,
On the other an old tree will be your guide.
In the summer, the brush gives a sweet treat,
And the tree offers shade and also your sheep.


The Sower of the Seeds Box - Box #4

"...A farmer went out to sow his seed. As he was scattering the seed, some fell along the path, and the birds came and ate it up. Some fell on rocky places, where it did not have much soil. It sprang up quickly, because the soil was swallow. But when the sun came up, the plants were scorched and they withered because they had no root. Other seed fell among thorns, which grew up and choked the plants. Still other seed fell on good soil, where it produced a crop- a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown. He who has ears, let him hear."
The disciples came to him and asked, "Why do you speak to people in parables?"
He replied, "The knowledge of the secrets of the kingdom of heaven has been given to you, but not to them. Whoever has will be given more, and he will have an abundance. Whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken from him. This is why I speak in parables...
"Listen then to what the parable of the sower means: When anyone hears the message about the kingdom and does not understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what was sown in his heart. This is the seed sown along the path. The one who received the seed that fell on rocky places is the man who hears the word and at once receives it with joy. But since he has no root, he last only a short time. When trouble or persecution comes because of the word, he quickly falls away. The one who received the seed that fell among the thorns is the man who hears the word, but the worries of this life and the deceitfulness of wealth choke it, making it unfruitful. But the one who received the seed that fell on good soil is the man who hears the word and understands it. He produces a crop, yielding a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown." - Matthew 13:3b-13a, 18-23

From Box #3-
Continue north to where the seeds are spread,
The sower has scattered them all dead ahead.
Seeds are scattered on every path and rock in sight,
To avoid the seeds in the thorns, stay to the right.
Walk about 300 steps from the tree with the hole.
The high swing of cold death is your goal.
Turn your back to death and look in the brush,
The sower of these seeds must have been in a rush.


Fruit from a Tree Box - Box #5

"No good tree bears bad fruit, nor does a bad tree bear good fruit. Each tree is recognized by its own fruit. People do not pick figs from thorn bushes, or grapes from briers. The good man brings good things out of the good stored up in his heart, and the evil man brings evil things out of the overflow of his heart his mouth speaks." - Luke 6:43-45

From box #4-
To find fruit on a branch continue north along the trail
As it curves to the west to where the tree fell.
Is it over or under the log this dirt path leads?
Look right for rocks & berries- this is all you need!

NOTE - There is a bonus clue in this letterbox that you will need for the last box (Lost Coin Box). Please take a peak at this clue before starting out for the last box, then return the book back inside the "Fruit from a Tree" (See clue below)


Lost Coin Box -Box #6

"Or suppose a woman has ten silver coins and loses one. Does she not light a lamp, sweep the house and search carefully until she finds it? And when she finds it, she calls her friends and neighbors together and says, 'Rejoice with me; I have found my lost coin.' In the same way, I tell you, there is rejoicing in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents." - Luke 15:8-10

This box also has a little something you can take with you. If you find that one or both of these boxes "extras" are empty, email me and I will send them to you and refill the boxes.

Clue from the Fruit from a Tree-
Find the "Break the Code" book in the Fruit from a Tree box. Turn to page 19 and read the highlighted section. Something mentioned in the passage is also around you. This is your secret "clue".

From Box #5-
Turn your back to this clue and walk away,
See what Leahn J Halprin has to say.
(Leahn is a monumental man,
he will tell you all he can).
Stop short of the bog-
And look among the fallen logs.
You are now at your journey's end,
Make your way back to Shanghai Bend.