2020 Chippewa Valley Treasure Hunt

Explanation:
Fourteen years shy
Of a century gone by
Laid low by the water and sand

---this line refers to Hillcrest Country Club, which originally included a golf course and country club on the land that Fairway Park now occupies. It was established in 1926 and closed its doors to the public in 2012 (14 years shy of being open for a century) and was eventually demolished or "laid low". The water and sand refers to the water and sand traps that stil remain in Fairway Park left over from the golf course. The stone itself was also
"laid low" by an old water trap and sand trap.---

From ashes, it arose
Out of man's work - superimposed
Over the wood in this feral new land

---the land itself, nature, arose from the ashes of the golf course after lying dormant for so long (being mowed, sprayed, and managed). The plants, trees, and wildlife slowly began to return to the area that is now Fairway park, and now the remnants of the golf course (the work of man) are still visible. They are superimposed over the "wood" (a reference to both the forest and the old name of driving irons) in this feral new land (land that was once domesticated, now going wild).---

A beckoning racket of song
between thicket and throng...
You'll begin with a hazardous plight

---bird species are innumerable in this park, and beckon you to move deeper into the park from the main lot (racket referring to the Pickleball courts that sit at the beginning of the trail near the pavilion). The trail then travels between the housing development above on one side (where throngs of people now live) and the thicket on the other side (a dense regrowth of quaking aspen). The "hazardous plight" refers to the Pickleball courts. A synonym of "plight" is "pickle". "Hazardous" is yet another nod to the water and sand hazards of a golf course that still exist in the park.---

Tread the path East
in search of green - deceased
Overlooking the snake to the right

---Take the single trail East through the park, while searching for an old golfing "green" (the final zone on a golf hole, where the flag and hole are located) that is now overgrown with plants. On the right is Otter Creek, which snakes all over this area (this is especially evident on a map). Not only does the trail offer some overlooks of it, but "overlook" can also be interpreted as "ignore" or "do not go over to the creek side."---

North between pale pine and sand
Remuneration, close at hand
Allow flora's kingdom into your eyes

---Once at the golfing green, a large, prominent white pine can be seen on the left. Just before the pine is an old sand trap. You need to position yourself in between these two marks and walk North. Remuneration refers to the fact that the treasure is very closeby. While beginning to focus your mind on the ground and the local flora (or plant kingdom). The stone is also on the ground. The plants that were featured in the border art for the poem can all be found here.---

With goose and turtle as hosts,
seek an oak at the end of four posts....
At its northern foot, lays the prize.

---Ah, the dreaded goose and turtle clue. This particular clue was not a metaphor. The water hazard that was near the stone's resting place has geese and turtles in it (that loved to snoop at what I was hiding any time I scouted the area). It was more of a hint that the stone was near the pond than anything else ;) As you walk toward the pond, North from the starting point, if you focus your eyes on the ground, you will see four wooden posts hidden in the overgrowth. At the end of the fourth post is a large oak tree. Behind the oak, at it's northern foot, lies a small home made of birch bark, where the stone rested. An orange golf ball was left there, as well, as a nod to the area :) ---