The combination of 12 letters and numbers were deciphered by many of our participant this year!! But, what in the world the rest of it is, challenged most everyone. The guesses included pretzels, fish, crazy lines, multiple 4-leaf clovers, buck antlers, rabbits, a horse and a soccer ball. Even our most seasoned explorers, engineers and orienteering veterans were stumped with the “Really Big Confusing Shape” as our daughter JoElla described it to our visitors.

Our thoughts this year went to our daughter as she is completing her high school career. The numbers were included to honor her up-coming graduation in 2010 and were situated so the 20 was separated from the 10, allowing a small tribute to this, our 10th annual maze! The GO JO FR was to emphasize our support of her forward momentum as she graduates from Franklin Regional. And of course, our signature G F had to be included, so it was plotted out in the center of the shape. Okay, the big shape – We did have a handful of experts use the pencil, paper and clipboard to sketch it out almost perfectly. But the problem was they didn’t know what it was that they drew! So if you’ve studied the aerial and examined the penciled design here and you still don’t know – you have lots of company!

JoElla has devoted many hours to learning to play the bagpipes. Since she was 8 years old and experienced the sound, she was enthralled. We knew bagpipes had to be part of the theme but felt a bagpipe design would be too obvious. So, we chose the Celtic Knot to symbolize the world of tradition, history, friendships and endless opportunity JoElla has and is discovering through her pursuit of mastering this unique instrument.

Best Wishes in your future endeavors, Jo!