I have been looking at the map and noticed several orphans around Rayleigh and Hullbridge, so today I set out to turn them into smileys. I had mixed success. This sad little box was found, out in the open, but no log or other bits. I re-hid it with some more camo, but I fear GZ may have been irrevocably compromised, since there was lots of rubbish strewn around the area.
A Sorry Little Box
The next target was a DNF – I’m pretty sure I found the right place but no cache. The only evidence was this bit of camo ribbon wrapped around a branch.
Vanished
Oh well, Hullbridge was a bit more productive, and I saw a lovely sunset as well, so worth staying out for!
Today’s little outing was to Wheatley Wood, a patch of land just to the west of Rayleigh. It’s a bit of a noman’s land, but there are public footpaths which crisscross the area.
Under The Pylon
One section is dominated by a huge pylon – but that was rather convenient for finding the cache, since it was at the bottom!
Autumn Colours
There were some lovely Autumnal colours on show today, as well as a few windfall apples on the ground. I must admit they didn’t look too appetising – so I left them where they were!
Last night I had been working on locating potential caches for a revival, as I needed another 100-odd days to tip me over the qualification for a Challenge cache. Projec-GC to the rescue. It showed me there was one in Rayleigh, the Eastwood Fields – Final Cache.
It originally had two companions, pot A and B, each containing Eastings or Northings for this final cache. Pot A has now been archived, and since then, I suspect nobody had even attempted the final with half the info missing. Could I do it?
Pot B was a bit tricky to find, but I managed to locate it after a few false starts. I took note of its precious information and did some calculations.
Pot B In Hiding
Given the geography of the site, and the proximity rule for Pots A and B, I realised there weren’t that many options to search, even without the Northing value. So I went on a targeted hunt. And Voilà! There it was in the third place I looked!
Is That It?
I was a bit nervous to open it to see if anyone else had stumbled across it in the meantime.
Yes! A Nice Cache
But I needn’t have worried – there it was, in all its glory, with the last log over 13 months ago. Job done!
And A 13-Month Revival
It was very satisfying finding this one, and knowing it was still possible, you just had to work a little harder for it than in the past. I hope my example will encourage others to seek it out as well.
Today’s trip was another quick one, with no real photographic opportunities, but a successful hunt, three trads in west Rayleigh. The reason for heading that way? I had recently made a check of local caches which might fit any holes in my Jasmer finds-by-placed-date grid – I realised I’d only got two to go and Strod & Trods Escargot fitted the bill for one of them. I soon had the little mollusc in hand and also picked up another couple of nearby hides while I was in the area.
I still have quite a few months to go to fill my finds-by-placed-month grid. But I’m working on that!
