Have you heard about geocaching on the Okaloosa County Public Library Cooperative Heritage Trail?

Geocachers use GPS-enabled devices to locate containers called geocaches, which contain questions with answers found nearby.

All you have to do is answer the questions and log them on your geocaching passport. Then, bring your passport to any OCPLC member library. If you correctly answered six of the eight questions you will receive a custom OCPLC Heritage prize coin commemorating Viva Florida 500.

You can download a passport once you join the OCPLC Heritage Trail. Free registration is required at www.geocaching.com. Just choose a Geocaching ID and once you are registered, the fun begins.

All of you Crestview and North Okaloosa geocachers, get out on the trail and find your cache! Coins are available until supplies are depleted.

Jean Lewis is the Crestview Public Library's director.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: CHECK IT OUT: Geocaching in progress for Viva Florida anniversary

HOLT —  The Broxson family didn't let the icy cold weather conditions keep them inside on Wednesday. With county schools and a majority of offices closed due to inclement weather conditions, the family used the day off to their advantage.

 Both David and Patrick used the day to split firewood for their side business, Wood Brothers.

 David Broxson said business has been good.

"We are doing what we can to keep up," he said.

The brothers said they constantly received phone calls from interested residents during the past few days.

 David said he and his brother started the side business in December of last year, selling 26 truckloads of firewood. So far this year, the brothers have sold nearly 60 loads.

Both brothers decided to brave the elements and continue to split wood at Patrick's Holt residence.

"With our fulltime jobs, this is the only real time we can do this," Patrick said.

 While the brothers worked, their children were outside with them playing in the ice.

 In addition to sliding and collecting ice in a bucket only to playfully throw it at each other, 10-year-old Abby, 13-year-old Ashlyn and 8-year-old Landon Broxson found several outside activities to do on their school day off.

"Its fun with no school," said 13-year-old Ashlyn Broxson, who attends Baker School.

Contact News Bulletin Staff Writer Matthew Brown at 850-682-6524 or matthewb@crestviewbulletin.com. Follow him on Twitter @cnbMatthew.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Holt residents spend sleet day outside

The News Bulletin received the following open notices Thursday:

•Okaloosa County Sheriff's Offices open at 1 p.m.

•All Gulf Power customer offices open at noon. All collection activities are suspended through Feb. 3.  Power was restored Thursday to the rest of the utility's 47,873 customers who lost power due to the storm that started Tuesday. 

•Evening classes starting at 4:30 p.m.or later at all Northwest Florida State College campuses have resumed and normal office hours will resume at 8 a.m. Friday at all campuses.

The offices listed below have announced they will be closed Jan. 30 due to weather conditions.

OKALOOSA COUNTY

•Okaloosa County schools

•Okaloosa Board of County Commissioners office.

•The Okaloosa County Supervisor of Elections Offices in Crestview and Fort Walton Beach. Offices will reopen at 8 a.m. Jan. 31. Details: Paul Lux, plux@co.okaloosa.fl.us. •Okaloosa County Tax Collector's offices.

NORTHWEST FLORIDA

•Catholic Charities offices in Pensacola, Fort Walton Beach and Panama City.

•Day classes at Northwest Florida State College campuses. Any decisions to cancel evening classes will be announced by 2 p.m. Thursday. All college locations will be closed Jan. 30 during normal business hours. College operations, classes, and events will resume Friday. Updates available through the college website and its Facebook and Twitter sites.

UTILITIES

Additionally, to reduce the peak demand for power, Choctawhatchee Electrical Cooperative requests that customers conserve energy  5:30-8:30 a.m. Thursday morning as follows: •    Limit the use of hot water by postponing showers, baths, dishes and laundry. •    Turn off unnecessary lights and appliances. •    Lower the thermostat to 68 degrees. “Controlling peak demand can help reduce power costs,” Steve Wolfrom, CHELCO’s vice president of member services, stated."The severe cold has the potential of greatly increasing the cost of wholesale power … members can help limit peak demand for power,  which in turn limits the increase in costs,” Wolfrom said. “Controlling demand also helps long-term. Our power supplier must have adequate generating resources in place to meet our greatest demand for electricity. Reducing peak demand is a way of controlling the need to build more generating capacity.”

As of noon on Wednesday, the utility was working on on three outages affecting 21 members. Between Tuesday and Wednesday,  2,440 members were without power at one time or another. Most outages were caused by ice and downed tree limbs. 

If you know of additional closures in your area, email dates and closure times to the Crestview News Bulletin.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Thursday building closures announced; openings added

CRESTVIEW — North county residents woke up to a winter wonderland of ice-encased foliage and streets coated in a crisp, white mantle.

At 7:30 a.m., the time-and-temperature sign outside the First National Bank of Crestview announced a brisk 22 degrees to sparse traffic on iced-over State Road 85. By 1 p.m. temperatures had climbed only 3 degrees.

Crestview resident Janice Marcus and her brother Robb, who's visiting from California, prepared in advance for the icy weather and planned to stay off the roads.

"I told Robb we're just staying home until Friday," Janice Marcus said. "I called my Bible study leader Monday night and said, 'I won't be there Wednesday,' and she said, 'Why not?'

"I lived in Oklahoma and I know better than to go out on icy roads. Two hours later I got a text, 'Bible study has been cancelled.'"

In Laurel Hill, where morning temperatures were three degrees colder than Crestview, resident April Tucker said she and her husband Todd were huddled around a space heater in their mobile home.

"We're all bundled up. Todd brought home some carbs," Tucker said, laughing. "We're eating a lot of cookies. It seems like good winter comfort food."

Both families ventured outside to let their dogs run around.

"The dogs are trying to eat the ice," Tucker said. "At first they thought they wanted to go out to use the bathroom but they stuck their nose out and decided to stay inside."

Janice Marcus said it was entertaining to see how her collies reacted to the ice that coated her Crestview backyard.

"I'm watching the puppy dogs play," she said. "They like the 'crunch-crunch' sound. My dogs are having a ball. I'm freezing to death but they're just racing each other. They're having a blast."

While Eglin Air Force Base, most businesses, and state, county and local offices were closed, not everyone appreciated having an unexpected day off.

Tucker, who owns a home-cleaning service, said she had to cancel scheduled appointments for the day, and when she's not working, there's no money coming into the household.

"I rescheduled one that got cancelled for next week," she said. "I'm missing work today. Hopefully next week will be better."

Email News Bulletin Staff Writer Brian Hughes, follow him on Twitter or call 850-682-6524.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Many residents hunker down and enjoy a snow day

CRESTVIEW — National Weather Service predictions call for a half-inch of ice accumulation as residents throughout the north county prepare for the un-Florida-like weather.

The Crestview Winn-Dixie was busier than usual with customers stocking up on groceries.

"It's been like this all day," customer service supervisor Vanessa McDaniel said. "It's not on the level of a hurricane but pretty busy."

Assistant store manager Alex Pfeiffer said customers were particularly shopping for "the normal stuff you'd buy for a hurricane. They've been buying a lot of dairy and bread."

Business was brisk at the self check-out registers, with a line of patient shoppers waiting as their neighbors rang up their groceries.

On the dairy aisle, stock clerk James Foley replenished gaps in the milk inventory even as Elsie Hallman and her grandchildren, who had the day off from school, picked up two gallons.

"We're not panicking," Hallman said. "We're just being prepared. We have movies to watch so we're ready."

Lisa Mullins and her daughter Bethany, 12, grabbed a container of deli chicken wings, a case of Mountain Dew and a package of microwavable popcorn through the scanner.

The supplies were for their "snow day party," Mullins said.

Others prepared to hunker down inside as well. Outside the store, Dina Scott and her son Branden selected films from the Red Box vending machine to watch Tuesday evening.

"It's for our snow day," Dina Scott said, laughing.

Email News Bulletin Staff Writer Brian Hughes, follow him on Twitter or call 850-682-6524.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: North Okaloosa residents prepare for potential snow day

There's just one Twitter hashtag you need to know to learn everything about the Northwest Florida's winter storm.

Click here for live updates from the Northwest Florida Daily News and Crestview News Bulletin.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: LIVE Northwest Florida snowstorm updates here