Calorie Alley—Geocache of the Week

By Janelle
Traditional
GC5DAMP
by TeamPhoenix421
Difficulty:
1
Terrain:
1
Location:
Indiana, United States
N 41° 28.290 W 087° 16.252

Calorie Alley—Geocache of the WeekIf you drive along Route 30 in northwest Indiana between the cities of Hobart and Merrillville, you will pass between two famous confectionery suppliers. One of America’s largest candy companies (makers of gummy animals and various chocolates) sits on the eastbound side, while a small local popcorn company (featuring over 200 flavors) sits on the westbound side. This small stretch of road was dubbed “Calorie Alley” for obvious reasons.
But here’s a kernel of truth: “Calorie Alley” is also the name of a sweet geocache for you and your special sugar to discover.

The delightful geocache was constructed by cache owners and the popcorn shop owner.The delightful geocache was constructed by cache owners TeamPhoenix421 (aka Tim and Monica) in collaboration with the popcorn shop’s owner to cover a PVC pipe protruding from the ground. The themed exterior was built over the course of a couple of weeks out of plywood, expanding foam sealant, and artfully applied paint.
The exterior was built over the course of a couple of weeks out of eyeball-measured plywood, expanding foam sealant, and artfully applied paint.SPOILER ALERT (straight from the cache owners, so it’s okay!)The “Popcorn” sign to the west is actually a trick door — simply pull it open to find a smaller popcorn container. It may be a little corn-y, but this is actually the geocache container! The inner container is crafted from a plastic popcorn box purchased from a dollar store with custom foam “popcorn” added. Just pull back the hinged top and POP! there’s the logbook!
SPOILER ALERT“Calorie Alley” has earned over 100 Favorite points and a 50 percent approval rating since it was published in 2015. When reading through the logs, words like, “awesome,” “creative,” and “fun” keep popping up. This giant popcorn has turned into an attraction for muggles too, given the number of selfies taken on this spot.
“Calorie Alley” has earned over 100 Favorite points and a 50 percent approval rating.This may be the perfect geocache to get your creativity flowing to submit a film for this year’s Geocaching International Film Festival (GIFF).
Geocachers are not required to enter any businesses to find or log this cache and it can be found outside at any time day or night (and placed in cooperation with the business owner). The cache owners hope you have a fraction of the fun finding this cache as they did when building it.
Calorie Alley—Geocache of the WeekAnd now for a little popcorn trivia according to Wikipedia
During the Great Depression, popcorn was fairly inexpensive at 5–10 cents a bag and became popular. Thus, while other businesses failed, the popcorn business thrived and became a source of income for many struggling farmers, including the Redenbacher family, namesake of the famous popcorn brand. During World War II, sugar rations diminished candy production, and Americans compensated by eating three times as much popcorn as they had before. The snack was popular at theaters, much to the initial displeasure of many of the theater owners, who thought it distracted from the films. Their minds eventually changed, however, and in 1938 a Midwestern theater owner named Glen W. Dickson installed popcorn machines in the lobbies of his theaters. The venture was a financial success, and the trend soon spread.
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