Quest for Ziggy

Ziggy Stardust, 6 miles, 4 caches. First cache: GC173RX

There cannot be a better choice of series to set out and complete than a Wrighty series. Long on the agenda, we chose our most local unfound, the Ziggy Stardust walk, to tackle on a chilly Easter Monday afternoon.

Bitter wind challenged us on the way to 'The man who sold the world' (#1,) but nothing could take away from the stunning scenery of the area, with GZ being in a good spot, in typical Wrighty style.

Unfortunately it was a DNF on the second cache (we were bitten by a dog on the way - maybe this sidetracked our search?!) and, so, as we continued, the question regarding whether we'd be able to deduce Ziggy's location missing a value began to (unfortunately) lure upon us.

The third cache, 'China Girl', was the highlight of the walk for me. The views were brilliant along this stretch, though we had to be very cautious walking along the lane, which was covered in ice! In fact, just to prove that I'm not exaggerating, have a look at what we spotted in a spiny to our right shortly before GZ:

Yes, that is a large piece of self-standing ice!!! :O 

When we did arrive at GZ we weren't disappointed. I couldn't have thought of a better place to put a cache, above a meandering valley! Despite the cold and the DNF, we were still enjoying the walk, and I was determined that we'd be able to find Ziggy! 

Did nearly slip on the ice along the same lane to #4 - it's outrageous the council don't place salt along these roads; we did see several cars drive by, thankfully they didn't seem to have a problem. So, the time had come to calculate the coordinates for Ziggy's location. Nope, we weren't going to get him. The strangest locations were produced as I substituted possible numbers into the coordinates! 

Nevertheless, we continued. I really didn't want to finish without collecting Ziggy, so by this point I was raiding the CacheWalker shoutbox and texting Wrighty himself for help. Unfortunately, no one on CacheWalker could remember exactly where GZ was, and Wrighty was working so never got to see the texts on time. 

We did enjoy the remainder of the walk, with more stunning views to supplement for the DNFs on two of the four caches. This did make up for that, and, at the end of the day, for me, it's the walk that counts, and not the caches: and this was a simply fantastic route. Furthermore, on the plus-side, it's a reason to return, perhaps with the whole family, to pick up the two we missed. 

A highly recommended series - hopefully you can top it off with finding Ziggy but, if not, you won't get back to your car feeling disappointed!

Griff Grof

Grafton Loop

Grafton Loop, 5 miles, 27 caches. First cache: GC48326

Saw this series pop up last night: I was firstly intrigued by the number of caches, (there usually aren't that many on any series in this area!) but secondly by the CO, unowho67, and the location... I'm sure, as cachers, we all have a place, where we found caches moons ago, which brings a smile back to our faces upon reminiscence. For me, Himbleton is such a place; my first proper cache series was Himbleton Hide, by unowho67 themselves. So it was a no-brainer deciding which series to do this weekend: no, it wasn't the best series I've done, but I couldn't wait to trek up the footpaths we strolled along three years ago - it was sure to bring back pleasant caching memories!

We arrived at the church car-park at 14:00 - I was shocked to see so many cars parked, several of which were housing familiar faces enjoying their lunches. They told us that it was a surprisingly good series compared to Himbleton, and so my expectations were raised!

A brilliant hide to start with, just a couple of metres from where we parked, and then we were off!
Of course, with a generous quantity of caches, not all of them could be like this - most of the norm followed, i.e lock 'n' lock boxes and film canisters. Nevertheless, the walk remained enjoyable - we soon passed through a field home to some lambs - the first we've seen this year; none in the Cotswolds (that we know of!) at this point in the year...

Unlike Himbleton, there were a few (very gentle) inclines, but these offered rewarding views for the little effort we had to put in: it made the walk all the more pleasant! 

For us, the highlight of the walk had to be the part of the series which took us through Grafton Wood - the sun was out by this point, and we could only imagine how stunning the wood would be with the bluebells, and further in to the warmer months. We met a fellow cacher at this point, Spunky Spider, who was completing the remainder of the series in reverse (he had grabbed some of the caches as FTFs last night!). 

Overall, this series was a welcome surprise: whilst reminding me why I enjoyed Himbleton so much - sound containers which were quick and easy to find - it exceeded my expectations in being a more pleasant walk, with some views along the way, and a real gem-of-a-wood... we must return to see it in full bloom! 

A must-do if looking to cache in the area. We were back at the car door within just over 2 hours. 

Griff Grof

Three years of Geocaching

Hello,

Three years ago today, I found my first Geocache. I can't believe how quickly that time has gone - I've now found over 1,000 caches! And, Geocaching itself has changed a lot in those three years..!

It's

Griff Grof

New Years day on Fan y big and Cribyn

Hello,

A couple of days have gone by, but this is my account on my New Years Day trip to the Brecon Beacons with caching friend tarmacjohn and my dad. A fine way to start a year, and we picked up two super caches on the way, on two high peaks - Fan y big, and then Cribyn. We battled the bitter winds, and the steep terrain for these, and due to time had to leave Corn Du and Pen y fan for another day.

We set off in the dark from Worcestershire, and were welcomed into the Welsh mountains by a bitter cold wind- and we were only just in the car park!

It was a two mile walk to the first cache at the first peak, BBC7 The Diving Board, and to get there we were walking along a relatively flat track, but it was by no means easy terrain! It was rocky wet, and we even had to cross a river at one point!

It was a steep climb up Fan y Big, and at the top there was even snow - the wind chill must have dropped the temperature to -10!  At the diving board we each had a photo taken, whilst working out the caches final location. It was then off to GZ, where we found the cache in its resting place. A super find and one of my all time caching highlights!

Next it was off to Cribyn, the next peak, after deciding that it would be our last due to the freezing temperatures - we'd be back to climb the other two soon! There was an Earthcache near the summit of Cribyn too!

An even steeper climb up to this one, but the views were well worth it at the top! The Earthcache was easy enough, and actually answered a question about the landscape that I was pondering upon as I came up.

Overall a very, very good day and a great way to start 2013 - apologies for the short and snappy post, but I'm tight on time, and I didn't want to postpone writing this any longer - I may come back and edit it soon though!

Happy new year!

Griff Grof

Another years caching over... 2012 in review

What a year 2012 has been for caching! Unlike 2011, it hasn't really had any major downs - apart from not finding much caches in the second half - but instead has seen a rise in the quality of caches, and I've surprisingly managed to break ALL my previously set records. You're in the right place as I'll be reviewing my years caching in detail, looking back to the past, and the future as another years caching begins tomorrow. It's surprising how quickly time does fly, and this year was no exception!

The year kicked off with some ABFTN caches, which were very clever. We then embarked on several trails in Wiltshire, before Wrighty invited me to an event with him on January 15th - never before would I have imagined the local caching celebrity, Wrighty, to invite me caching - it was an honour! We went caching in the area beforehand, and generally had a great day.

I went with him again in February where we completed the QBS series, before summiting White Horse Hill and going onto the Cold War Cache, which I can announce is my cache of the year! This was where my new rule of quality over quantity began taking play - one simple cache could represent hundreds!

This month was also the start of a long and fun journey, as I attended the CacheWalker Butcher Bash event, having helped out with some of the activities. I launched a new forum as admin for CacheWalker on February, and introduced all sorts of new ideas such as Weekly Polls. The forum was the start of a journey for me with CacheWalker, as I ended up co-organising the next two CacheWalker events after that, which was an honour to play such a part in a caching groups of what was originally my local caching celebrities!

March and April saw me break whole new records. In March I finally logged my 1000th find, Topofthehill, after a super day - it was my main goal of the year, and it was already achieved on a very worthy cache. April saw me break an even bigger record, which wasn't even a goal, originally! I found 156 caches throughout the month, which I felt was a huge achievement. Plus, by this time, my series 'Snowshill Scramble' was receiving very positive reviews, and I enjoyed checking over it on my first maintenance run. I also checked over my resoundingly popular (somehow) Westcote Wander and got each and every cache back into tip-top condition.

The summer truly was a festival for Geocaching, as the Geolympix branded it as. After a quieter month in June having missed out on the CacheWalker climb up Snowdon, July brought more records and highlights for the year. I attended the Geolympix Mega event, on the very day that I managed to bag 11 icons in 11 hours. Then two days later, I broke my record for most in one day, with the Geolympix Mega Ring, bagging 65 caches in a day! The summer continued with some caching Spanish-style, and then in September it ended with a rather wet CacheWalker picnic event!

In October, I remembered I had set myself another goal to find 100 more Geocaches by my fave cache hider Wrighty. So, we set off to do one of his most talked about series' "Many Steps" which was wonderful, and one of my highlights. Caching then took a slow down until Twixmas, as things got busy elsewhere in life (in other words... 'taxi's' were booked! Haha!)

And, of course, the years caching concluded in true CacheWalker style yesterday at the Twixmas Bash.  A perfect end to a good years caching.

So how did I do? Well I didn't find 100 more Wrighty caches, so that's one for next year! But I did beat my best in 1 year, one of my original goals, hitting 510 caches for the year. I also managed to reach my last original goal - to find my 1000th cache. So overall a successful year of caching for me, the best yet.

What does 2013 hold? Will I spur on to 2000 finds? Will I find 200 more caches by Wrighty? No goals set yet, just going to go with the flow and enjoy whatever the caching world has in store for me next year.

Happy new Year to all!

Griff Grof

CacheWalker Twixmas Bash 2012

Power to the CacheWalker | 8 caches | 5 miles | Guiting Power 

Hello!

Yesterday was a superb day! It was the CacheWalker Twixmas Bash 2012, which we'd been organising since mid-September!

We met up outside the venue in the village of Guiting Power, The Farmers Arms, at 09:00 for a 09:15 set off for the pre-event group walk. I was already spotting some familiar faces, and checking people off as I saw them, so that the pub knew who was here for food. I went to give the landlady the list, and when I came back out everyone had already set off! We quickly caught up with them, and were well underway on the group walk!

The group walk was planned and set by Wrighty (How lucky can we be?!) and it took us along tracks that I love but hadn't been on for years - it was like walking along memory lane! The caches were all great, and I even got joint-FTF on one of the caches - my second, and undoubtedly last for 2012!

The walk and caches were all great, the walk took us along some beautiful woodland, over river valleys, right on top of hills with far reaching views, and also some pretty Cotswold villages like Kineton. 

Talked to a lot of people on the walk, there must have been at least 40 of us, and everyone was friendly as useful, and having just as good a time on the group walk as I was. 

The walk really was a special one, and made the event even better than it would have been otherwise. I thoroughly enjoyed it, and the CacheWalker company, with the series finishing with a large ammo can, in true Wrighty style.  Highly recommended 

Once we arrived back in Guiting Power, it was back to The Farmers Arms for the main event. It was a HUGE success with everything going to plan in the end... nearly 60 people were booked in to eat! 

Food was enjoyed, as was Wrighty's quiz, and before too long it was time to announce the winners of the CWSBC 2012 and the CacheWalker Forum Awards. I was honoured to be crowned the winner of CWSBC at 949 miles, and also the CacheWalker Forum Member of the Year! Congratulations to all the other winners, and to walkingwood for winning the quiz. Secret Santa was fun, too, with everyone getting a fun gift at the end. 

The company at the event was superb too, and it was great to catch up with bikermel76, who made it to the event! Everyone was lovely, and I enjoyed talking to several people and putting faces to names too. The younger cachers also had a great time playing skittles! 

Overal the event was AMAZING! One of my 2012 caching highlights... talking about my caching in 2012, you better check back here later for "2012 in review" - a must read, plus the announcement of my cache of the year. 

Griff Grof

Many Steps Through Old Times

Many Steps Through Old Times, 5 caches, 8 miles, Winchcombe, Gloucestershire 

Hello!

It's been a while! Got a bit bored of caching, so took a break, and now knowing that I won't be able to go again until just before Christmas, I decided to spend this crisp, cold sunny day on one of the best walks I've ever done. Quality ALWAYS surpasses quantity, and this super Wrighty series is a fine example.

The series gets it's name for reason - on the walk you pass a castle, the ruins of a watermill, the old Cotswold way, and best of all the remains of a roman villa! Not only that, but along the way there were stunning views! The whole loop is spread out over a variation of terrain; from fields, to tracks, to woodland, to lanes - it has it all! I highly recommend the series, and below I am going to take you through it in more detail!

The walk begins in the ancient Cotswold market town of Winchcombe. We set off with the sun beaming, along the old Cotswold Way - paths were quite boggy/muddy, but we managed to walk along them alright. Cache #1 took us up a slight slope, giving us lovely views over the valley and across to the hills beyond. Amazing, and just like all Wrighty caches, this one was a well-stocked, dry one!

There was a gap of just under a mile to #2. The path took us further up hill, revealing absolutely amazing views! We took advantage of this by taking plenty of photos, before walking even further up, along, and then back down at a left turn. It was amazing walking down into the views around is - these were REAL 180 degree views! 

As we arrived at the second cache, we were greeted by the sound of trickling water. It was a right turn into some woodland where we discovered an old water hatch, and the remains of old cottages! We loved how Wrighty took advantage of these to hide the cache - very clever - and it was here that the deducted this as one of the best days caching ever! Loved the water hatch, seeming to be doing okay. Took more photos, then it was back out and onto the path to #3! 

It was along a byway, then up a lane to the next cache! Once we reached the top of the gently sloping hill we were yet again rewarded with cracking views - we could see where we were earlier from here! I promptly found the cache, and was reminded that where we were going next was the most special cache of all - the one everyone talks about "at the ruins of an abandoned Roman villa". It was onwards, and downwards to this cache, awaiting to see what these ruins would be like. 

After slipping and sliding down the muddy path through the woods, we arrived at GZ. There, we spotted a little roof cover over a part of the floor. The floor was covered, with a black sheet of plastic, with stones on top (to stop the wind blowing it away). We carefully removed the cover, and were amazed to discover the mosaic! Amazing, brilliant - one of those "We'd never have come here if it wasn't for caching" moments! 

The cache was found quickly after gently replacing the cover on it. We took a look around the rest of the ruins after, too, very interesting!! By now we'd both decided that we must come back and do this walk with other family members, it being so wonderful and interesting at the same time! 

It was then off to the fifth and final cache, to our disappointment - one of those ones you never want to end! The paths as we left the villa ruins were still just as slippery as they were as the walked down into the woods. Must be all that wet weather, I have to say we were very lucky with the weather today! 

As we approached #5, I recognised the tree the GPS was pointing to. In fact, for those of you who don't know, this was the inaugural CacheWalker group walk - it was on this walk that Wrighty himself, Mrs Wrighty, JimJinks, bikermel76 and Schnarff came up with the concept of CacheWalker! I had seen photos of them all sitting at the base of the oak, which does remarkably form a bench as it meets the ground, and so I sat down on it and had my photo taken to recreate the photo from the day it all started. 

It was finding the cache that was the next problem, though! So many places to look, but after having a break to have our lunch, we unearthed the nice, big, well-stoked final cache, entering us into the "Hall of Fame"! Sad to have finished all the caches, but still had to walk back to Winchcombe! 

As we began to do so, more and more walkers seemed to appear from the blue, as we were approaching a castle - yes, a castle - Sudely Castle! With the views on our left, and the striking castle on our right, it was the perfect end to a perfect walk! 

As I said before, the entire series is a little gem! It is truly wonderful, each cache is at an interesting/fascinating location, there are jaw-dropping views, variation in terrain - EVERYTHING! To sum the series up in two words? Simply Superb! A worthy walk for my first since September! 

Griff Grof