Venturing Below Above

The 'Below Above' series of 5/5 underground caches, Nr Box, Wiltshire. 

I've been watching the Below Above caches for months and months, therefore I jumped at the opportunity to join some fellow Cotswold cachers (tarmacjohn, pigdogboyandgirls, Gackt and XJ) on a group trip to tackle several new ones today: The series has grown admirably over the past 12 months! Furthermore, I saw this trip as the perfect opportunity to bag my first 5/5! Months in the planning, it was an extra privilege to have the CO (Jesters Magpie) with us as our guide, pointing out sites of interest along the way, as well as outlining the history of the mines we were going through.

I've got to admit, I was a little nervous in the lead-up to today. I had to be, with no idea what to expect: of course, I could go by what others had told me, and by the cache gallery, to give me an image of the sort of challenges involved. But this, particularly the latter, made me more nervous - it's certainly not very encouraging to see people squeezing through tiny holes and crawling through square-metre tunnels! It was decided on the Cotswold Caching forum that we'd kick-off the day by navigating to Fallen Monarch and Ugly Ducking - the two easiest in the series. This made me feel better, knowing that we would begin with these as a taster, before deciding whether or not to continue on with everyone else to the newer, more challenging, ones.

The sun over us, we commenced our crawl underground. At first I was thinking 'Why am I doing this?!' but, soon accustomed to the circumstances, a brilliant feeling of excitement rushed through me as I joined the main, spacious passage - I would be finding my first 5/5 cache, and in great company, very soon! Water was dripping from the rocks above, adding to the puddles dotting the meandering path. It is definitely a weird feeling being underground, but there's something strangely good about it - with these first two caches, there was certainly plenty to see! For instance, there was graffiti on many of the walls, telling us stories about what the place was like when it was working!

Graffiti: A train, a child must've drawn this when at work in the mine!

The experience was fantastically enhanced by sightings like this; we also saw old workman's tools, and even and old crane! We reached the first cache, which boasts 125 favourite points and a 'Geocaching.com Cache of the Week' award, amongst a couple of others. And I can see why, that feeling when you find the cache - after all the navigation (I was leading the group as it's my first!), the amazing sights and the physical challenge... nothing can beat that feeling. I now couldn't wait to find the second cache!

More sightings: Crane

Although this cache is said to be the easiest, Jester led us to it along an unofficial shortcut - and, gosh, this was (for me) far more of a physical challenge, in comparison to what I had experienced so far! I went through the tight squeeze (not that bad, after all) and then through an even tighter one... Nevertheless, in hindsight, I enjoyed every moment of it! We were then rewarded by arriving at GZ, the advantage of taking the shortcut, and finding the cache, after overcoming the slight twist added to the recipe! Next, it was through the exit and back in to fresh air, after admiring some more of our surroundings.

We couldn't go home now - we had a brill time, so we decided to would continue to the next two caches, located in a different quarry altogether - 165 Eaton Place, The Drawing Room and 165 Eaton Place, Mr Hudson's Pantry. Now, these took Below Above to a whole new level - the entrance... how daunting! I just went with the flow, knowing I'd regret it otherwise - I overcame a steep, slippery shaft and tight squeeze to reach a larger passage below. The route to the first cache led us over some falls (nothing too major) but, again, there were some fascinating sights, including a huge air-shaft - Jester left us with an intriguing announcement here... ;) 

The second, well, I'm not sure I should describe this in too much detail: let's just say that the names of these caches instantly made sense, and there was a tight squeeze to get through down to GZ - cache soon found, I'll say it again - it's amazing how accomplished you feel... especially after the surprise challenge to get to this cache - you'll have to go and find it to fully understand what I'm on about! Then, all that was left was to ascend up the steep shaft - thankfully we had some sturdy rope - and squeeze back outside. These two caches were highlights for me, their greater physical challenge made them all the more exciting! 

Group Photo

We concluded that we simply couldn't part ways with the group, with just one more 5/5 to go - we decided that we would have a go! This final cache, The Holly and The Ivy, is Christmas themed, so it seemed a fitting time of year to find it. Contrary to the others, this quarry was considerably smaller - in fact, as soon as we had scrambled down the shaft it was strait to the cache... complete with some Christmassy trinkets inside! We explored this quarry a little after we had signed the log, and noted some graffiti regarding the Transval War, which took us on a short journey through history - 'The war has begun' to 'The war is over!' - brilliant. A scramble back up the shaft and we were back on the surface, bidding farewell to the underground world for today. 

So... five 5/5's in one day - wow, I am very pleased about that! Had a good time throughout the day, from exploring and learning about the mines, to overcoming the tight squeezes and finding the caches at the end, all in brilliant company. I'm not sure I'd call myself a caving enthusiast after this, but it was certainly a great, fun experience and I'm eager to return to the area to find more Below Above's very soon.

This series is a must do - go on, push yourself - you won't regret it! 

Griff Grof

A wander around Wilmcote

SS's Walk, 4.1 miles, 18 caches + 2 en-route, first cache: GC4FJ7E. 

This was another series that I missed being published, due to not being a premium-member for a while - discovered, once again, completely by chance whilst browsing the map. Wilmcote rang a bell... its a village Wacky races is very familiar with; I reckon he'd have loved to have come back to it with us today, shame he's living in a warmer climate now! Wilmcote, being the home of Shakespeare's mother, Mary Arden, was very picturesque as remembered, with some charming cottages lining the principle road passing through the village.

Pretty buildings like this one are found throughout Wilmcote

Couldn't wait to get going, as this series has enjoyed rave reviews; wasn't expecting too much from the walk at first, Warwickshire always seems to be very flat. The caches were nice and easy to start with (little did we know that was soon to change,) and the best thing - cow-less fields - I think, judging by peoples logs, that we're the first to not encounter any at all! Now we wished we had brought along Fizz, the puppy! It began to drizzle after the first few caches, and we caught a beautiful rainbow during this...

Rainbow 

And then there was #6 - with tons of favourite points, we knew this was going to be a special one. Spent an age searching, in the end we decided to resort to TAF (Text-a-friend... I've just made that up, let's see if it catches on,) but just as I tapped 'Send' I spotted something suspicious, and there it was - a good hide, and always nice to break a chain of DNFs on a cache. 

And so on we continued, getting well and truly muggled at #7 (let's hope he didn't take the cache!) Found #8, I admit, after a TAF - but this would be the only TAF of the day. The series also sees some good sized caches amongst the sneaky hides, including a 'Large', a very elusive size these days!

The series improved further at #11: the sun was out and there were pleasant views all round to enjoy - the cache is aptly named 'Take a Rest', and so we did! Descending back down in to flatland,  #12 was pure genius - have never seen one like this before, it made us chuckle and it got a whole lot better as we tried to retrieve the cache! I can now see why it already has 80 favourite points!

Nice views from GZ at #11

And the ingenuity didn't end there... #13, with 81 favourite points, was also very unique, and therefore memorable. The remaining caches weren't too sneaky, more of the norm, nice and quick to find. The series finished off with a stroll along the canal, by now it was starting to drizzle again. Then it was a case of picking up (not literally!) two existing caches en-route to the car; had a browse in their logbooks to see if I could spot Wacky races' name, but with no avail as each has been replaced fairly recently.

And so, it was the end to a nice series. Most caches took a while to find, you really need to think out of the box here! However, every find was worth the search: the sneaky caches were showstoppers whilst the larger caches were well stocked. Take this and add it to a pleasant walk with a good view along the way and I can safely suggest this is one to do, if you already haven't. An enjoyable morning's caching.

Griff Grof

Hill Clumps Tour

Hill Clumps Tour, 18 caches (plus 1 other en-route,) 5 miles, #1: GC4M31B 

When my premium membership ran out several months ago, I wasn't caching as much as I wanted to, and so I decided to wait before renewing it. As a result, I missed a lot of local cache notifications, and so it wasn't until I was browsing the Geocaching map searching for a quick cache to do near Shipston-On-Stour that I noticed this series. I've found most of the gnome-ads' caches and they're renowned to be good - so this series moved to top of the To Do list, and, after finding the two existing caches in Honington on Friday, it was back to this picturesque village to set off to complete the series today. 

Honey-coloured stone cottages dot the unspoilt village of Honington.

Honington is a beautiful village, idyllic and unspoilt. At the same time, however, you get that feeling that you're being watched. Nevertheless this wasn't a problem, and, when we couldn't find the footpath (which was actually what what appeared to be a private drive) the locals we asked [for directions] were friendly, and so it just goes to show not to judge a pretty place by its cover! 

Fizz, the puppy, was joining us again today; we soon found the first cache but decided to go around the field via the road, rather than through it, to the next cache, as we were concerned by the warning of cattle - especially after the tragic story in the papers recently: better safe than sorry. The first leg of the walk reminded me of the parkland in Stanway, (the footpath where you'll find #12 and #13 of my Snowshill Scramble series.) There were nice views emerging behind us, and we could already tell this series was going to be a good one - the sun was even trying to break through... unfortunately, with little success. Not far from the kissing gate into this field, there was a sheep skull on show, Fizz was obviously scared of it as she started barking like crazy! :-D 

Sheep's skull 

Before too long, we were already half way round - not many notable views yet, but some very nice caches, well hidden but at the same time quick to find - just how I like it! I was a little worried as we arrived at #8, the Multi, as I had read that there was a puzzle to solve. And when we found stage one and took the puzzle out we were stumped... but we needed the solution in order to find the final cache. After ten minutes trying to deduce it, we moved on. Luckily, we bumped in to some familiar faces moments later, who were doing the series in reverse, as stunning views emerged around us. It was Mr and Mrs Tarmacjohn! Fizz was over the moon to meet their dog, Maggie. We told them about the puzzle, and handed what we had done, and they had a go at completing it. They were successful, and so backtracked with us as we continued, to find the cache. The walk was becoming truly superb at this point, with stunning, often panoramic, scenic views around us. We found and signed the cache together, even though it was a little hard to open, and parted ways. 

The last few caches enjoyed a backdrop of even more beautiful views; you really have to be there to enjoy them fully, you simply can't capture them on camera in the same way, as always. 

Cracking views all round

We descended back in to Honington, a couple of caches later, after breathing in more brilliant panoramic views; this really is a lovely area, which we'd probably never have walked in if it weren't for Geocaching. 

We found all the caches, including the Bonus, and had a thoroughly enjoyable late morning/early afternoon walk. This gnome-ads series did not disappoint, and we'd recommend this superb walk to all. 

Griff Grof

Nottingham Hill

NottHill, 3 miles, 9 caches (+3 en-route.) First cache: GC4DJXM 

This was literally one of those "wow-a-newish-series-in-an-area-I-know-is-nice" moments when I came across this one on the map. One of my fondest caching memories was an evening spent on Cleeve Hill finding some nice caches, all whilst taking in the breathtaking views. I HAD to do this series: it looked to be a good one! So on a chilly, (but sunny) morning, off we set with Fizz the puppy - this was going to be her first series.

From #1, I knew this was going to be a cracker! The views over the valley and beyond (we could see the Malvern's at one point!) were stunning, and it brought a feeling of joy to me. The first cache was a sneaky hide, but it didn't take long to find, and the second was a nice size box filled with swag - just what I like, and in such an amazing location too!

Fizz had a brilliant time as we continued, as we found more neat caches, as we walked through some woodland - already demonstrating the variation in terrain on this walk (from lane, to hill-track and now to woodland path.)

Here's a snap from about half way round the series... it really illustrates how beautiful the area is, and the sorts of views we enjoyed all the way round, coupled with nicely kept caches - all the ingredients for a great series:

We didn't see much wildlife on the route, contrary to other peoples logs, which, in some cases, was a good thing - I wouldn't have wanted to bump in to any cattle with the dog with us! Nevertheless, this didn't take away from the enjoyment of the series, and we did get to meet some ponies:

We had a bit of a scare at the final cache: As I was searching, a wasp-looking creature flew past me. It's stinger alone must've been three inches long - we've never seen anything like it - and one of us studied wildlife at degree level! I have a mild phobia with these sorts of insects, so I was left white as paper - but I still wanted to find the cache, which I did, to end a good series. 

For me, it was one of the best series I've done in a while (well, I haven't done many lately, have I?!). From the beautiful views all the way round, to the good caches; this short walk was one we thoroughly enjoyed, and one we'd highly recommend to others. 

Until the next one... feeling a bit like a trip to the Lake District - but that'll probably have to wait until summer... wouldn't want to be mountain walking as the weather gets colder.

Griff Grof

Reintroduction to Geocaching

It's been a couple of months now since my last find!

So, it seemed fitting to attend the 'CacheWalker Introduction to Geocaching' event with tarmacjohn, who kindly offered me a lift, to reintroduce myself to caching!

We, along with Wrighty and Walk Tall, turned the event (aimed to introduce newbies to caching) in to a proper CacheWalker as we set out to find some of the local caches, forming a nice circular walk. We found several caches, as well as picking up the new ones by Gackt, some sound hides. However, our route was disrupted by a footpath which was closed off due to an angry hornet nest said to be in a tree further down the path. As a consequence, we continued to the road instead, and found another cache there - so I'm not complaining!

The event was located at the Cotswold Water Park, and what a nice place it is: the lakes were very picturesque under the sun, once again making an appearance at a CacheWalker event.

Overall, it was a thoroughly enjoyable day, spent in excellent company, finding some good caches in nice spots, all before returning to the event for plenty more geochat and trackable spotting.
Well done Gackt for a great event! Here's to the next one... Twixmas, anyone??

Again, no photos here! I PROMISE to have my camera at the ready for the next post!

Griff Grof

Caching al estilo español

Siempre me encanta buscar Geocaches en España, porque - no, don't worry, I won't write this post in Spanish - I may well disengage you all if I did!

So, let's start this again: I love going caching in Spain; since I started caching, we've found at least one  every time we've gone. Back then, in 2010, there were hardly any around! Just goes to show how much the times have changed... there must now be hundreds and hundreds within a two-mile radius of where we stay - and only three years have been and gone!

We always enjoy cycling up the various local paths, and so we welcomed the fact that a new linear series of caches had been published, covering a five mile stretch. Of course, we wouldn't be stupid enough to do all the caches on our doorstep in one go - so we only did a few (probably passing several    of the others) in order to save the rest until next time. If you're a real cacheaholic, then you must be thinking I'm crazy passing caches and not looking for them - what if they're archived come next year? Good point, I'll just have to hope that they're not! In all seriousness, though, perhaps the main reason for not doing them all in one go was the heat - the area was going through a particularly warm patch, and so we concluded that it wouldn't be wise to push ourselves too far.

Caches feel so much more rugged in Spain, if you know what I mean. It's as if they haven't caught up with the containers we tend to use here, for there are hardly any film canisters in sight, and most caches seem to be of a larger size. Of the four we found along this stretch of the route, there was one sneaky hide (which we chuckled at!) and the rest were generous regulars! Plus, you won't see a lizard if you turn over a rock here in the UK either - in Spain, we did see a couple in this scenario, makes caching feel a bit more exotic!

~

Our next caching trip, an early morning stroll along the beach, wasn't quite as successful and enjoyable. Gosh, there are some REALLY HARD caches in Spain!!! Of the eleven we attempted, we found one. Yes, ONE. Possibly the most unsuccessful day caching ever, for anyone, let alone for someone with nearly 1500 finds. In my defence, the caches were in a very high-muggle area. There were people all over the beach, even this early in the morning and there were people sat outside the restaurants and hotels which back on to the beach... as you can guess, it was, therefore, very stressful trying to find caches in between all this, the only possibility for their placement were palm trees, but their trunks were smooth-as-paper each time, no hidey-holes to be found. I've no idea where all these caches were or if they had been muggled, perhaps they were all archived after I loaded the PQ: but then why did we find one of them? It's all a mystery, and not the caching I enjoy, so next year I'll make sure to hit the trail each time, rather than the beach, when it comes to caching!

Hasta el año que viene,
Griff Grof

A MEGA day caching

Ah, and so it's that time of year again - the day of the annual UK roving Mega Event. And this year it's visiting the West Midlands; I felt this event was close to me. Not only did we have a fund-raising raffle for the the Mega at our CacheWalker event, but I had got very familiar with the names of the committee and supporters, through the (now gone) West Midlands Regional Forum. My expectations were high, and I was looking forward to putting these faces to names. Walk Tall invited me to attend with him; he even hinted that we may be able to squeeze some caching in during the day (well, no one wants to be sat in a venue cramped with people all day, do they?!)

We did literally pop in to the venue to register, chat to friends from home and look around the stalls -  then we were off caching - hurrah! Walk Tall wanted to take part in the CITO, and rightly so (I enjoy them!) We moved with the crowd, collecting whatever rubbish we could find as we reached the village of Gaydon. Gloves off, it was time to have a go at the new Wherigo - it was quite confusing, as the cartridge wasn't really working on our GPS, but thankfully there were others who weren't in the same situation who could help get us back on track: with this, the cache was now found not much later.

There was an icon challenge - 11 in 11 - going on throughout the day, but we had no interest in this having achieved it at the Geolympix last year. But we were starting to collect quite a few icons! Three so far, and a fourth as we bagged a Multi, and a fifth as we found the standard traditional once we teamed up with some other cachers to complete part of a Marrow Bone - sorry, that's MARROW BONE - series.

The part we did was quite enjoyable, nothing outstanding, but good caching. The hills to our left, (where they held a Kite event on Monday) looked nice, I expect there are great views from up there! Don't get me wrong, though, just like the Ottmore series, the scenery was lovely and alive, this was especially noticeable under the sun. What I love about Mega events is the fact that there are so many cachers about - we must have passed nearly a hundred throughout the day by this point!

With a pleasant walk over in good company, and all caches bagged, it was time to grab our sixth icon - an Unknown. And finally, we completed another quick walk which had two more 'In Honour of...' caches (these were published on the day, one for each past UK Mega; we found a couple whilst on the series earlier.) We bumped in to even more familiar faces here, and put some more to names. Then it was back to the Heritage Motor Centre to watch the closing ceremony; I cannot wait until Ayrshire next year, it'll be fab! (that's if I can make it: Scotland is a long drive away!)

I'm sorry for no photos again, didn't take any!

Griff Grof