A Small Series 5 - Board Walk Fiend - GC2N7JM

And so into the latter part of this series. I've driven down the East Lancs Road for over 25 years and never knew that this footpath or boardwalk existed - but I guess that's true of so many of us who just go about our daily business without noticing the things on our own doorstep.

It took a few minutes to work out what the numbers in the hint meant, and we found could interpret them in two main ways. As it turns out, my first guess was right, but I didn't inspect the area carefully enough and so went off in another direction. When this yielded no result, we returned to my first suggestion and on closer inspection I realised where the cache was - another clever hide.

I let Sarah remove the cache container and do the admin (so kind of me) whilst I swanned off taking pictures and looking for birdies. I saw a Chaffinch. a Great Tit and a Blue Tit in the reedy swamp area which the boardwalk overlooks. A nice little place.

A Small Series 4 - Aslan Effigy - GC2N7JD

After two previous caching successes today, Sarah and I were starting to get on a roll. The path was becoming wider and a lot more interesting with bigger and more diverse trees and more birdlife - there was even a little pond to one side.

We reached GZ fairly quickly and had soon located the cache container in a nice little spot. I got it out of its hidey hole, Sarah signed the log and then we were off again.

A Small Series 3 - Spore - GC2N7HZ

After an initial DNF at the previous cache location (we did find it later), Sarah and I were determined to be successful at this one. Everything was pretty straightforward here with the hint making it fairly obvious where to look.

I started searching first, but when it required a little crawling under the trees I decided that Sarah was better equipped for the job. Through the conifer branches I could see a likely place, and so I directed Sarah to it and there indeed was the cache.

The container was quite unusual and wanted to roll down the slope every time Sarah put it down and we're not quite sure how it relates to the cache title. Eventually she adopted a very unusual position of steadying it with one knee as she signed the log. Of course I had to take some photographs of that!

The series continues ...

A Small Series 2 - Splinter - GC2N7HP

This should have been the second cache of the day but it turned out to be the last on our renewed exploits in geocaching today. Sarah and I don't like DNF's, they really spoil our trips and so after spending 15 minutes looking for this one the first time, we inevitably came back for a second look before going home.

Our first foray in this area had led to me getting scratched on the forehead by a very sharp hawthorne branch as well as becoming entangled in creeping brambles which I HATE!. This in turn led to foul tempers and so we moved on quickly to the next location.

A little before our return we met fellow cacher Tech17 (Andy) at another cache location - it seems that he'd been about 15 minutes behind us in doing this series today. He'd already found this one and so gave us some serious hints as to where it was - which was actually in a place we'd been looking earlier. If we'd read the description a little more carefully, I think we would have probably found it unaided - the title really says it all. It's an excellent hiding place - so sneaky I've made it one of my favourites.

Anyway, job done we chatted with Andy about geocaching, ham radio, Chirp and other things before returning home for a little brunch. Great series.

A Small Series 1 - Love your Streets - GC2N7HB

We've not been out geocaching together for about two months mainly because of the poor weather and family commitments, but today Sarah and I decided to resume our caching activities. The main reason for this was that this new series had appeared close to home and so we could bag a few caches without it taking up the whole day - and if we got wet we could get home quickly.

We parked in the road by the side of the Woodside restaurant and set off walking down the East Lancs Road. Our first dilemma was whether to go up a muddy footpath into what seemed to be a wooded trail running alongside the Lancs, or just to stay on the cyclepath next to the road. We decided on the latter as the description stated that the cache could reached from either side of the fence. This proved to be a wise decision later as many parts of the 'trail' path were flooded.

Soon we reached GZ and the title of the cache became clear. After a quick look round Sarah came up with the goods in a somewhat unique container. She did the admin whilst I took a few photos for my blog and then we were off again looking for the next one. A good start!

Marsland Green - GC2MYNB

I found this one on a solo mission whilst on the way back from doing some birding at Pennington Flash. I'd read the description and clue beforehand, and so I didn't need to use my GPSr to find the location.

I've lived in Tyldesley for over 26 years, but I've never been down here before. The houses that back on to the canal are fantastic, some have patios on the canal bank and some have their own boats. I'd love to a house somewhere like this.

On the birding front, I've never seen so many house sparrows in one place before - in one garden next to the canal there must have been 25+ in just two trees, And in another nearby house there was a dovecote with some beautiful pure white doves in and around the garden.

Signed the tiny log - oops, I've dropped it in the canal (no I haven't, only joking!). A great little place.

Irwell Sculpture Trail no. 7 – The Lookout - GC1BGH4

I came to Clifton Country Park to do a spot of birdwatching and especially to see the red-headed Smew which is fairly rare around these parts.

The lake was largely frozen except for the part in front of the viewing platform and that's where all the birds had gathered, including the Smew. So, after half an hour of taking photos and chatting with fellow birders, I set off to find the cache.

I could soon see the 'Lookout' sculpture from the path and so headed towards it for a look round GZ. It took me longer than it should have done because I was undecided about which mass of fallen leaves to start looking under first.

Luckily I know the names of some trees and so I eventually picked the right one to investigate and soon I had the cache container in my hand.

What a great little place this is with free parking and a nice visitor's centre. I'll definitely be coming back to have a look round the Wet Earth Colliery industrial archaeology site here.

MC Lake Cache - GC2DWKF



Yachts on Hollingworth Lake

 We found this cache whilst out doing a spot of twitching for the rare Pied-billed Grebe which was on Hollingworth Lake this week. After spending an hour so looking at the bird and taking photographs at the nature reserve pond, Sarah and I moved on to look for this cache a little further round the lake.



View across the lake

 It was a straightforward find and I've often thought about leaving a camera in one of my caches, I just haven't got a spare one.



Autumn colours

 Unfortunately the one here is either full of photos or the batteries need changing, as it kept switching off every time I took a shot. If you want to see the Pied-billed Grebe have a look on my birding blog.


A little geocaching gnome



Burnden Park - GC1F3WR

This was to be the last cache of the day for Sarah and me, but the one that took the longest to find. We knew what we were looking for, we knew approximately where it would be, we just had to find the little bu**er! After ten minutes we still hadn't got it and so Sarah decided to pop into Asda and get some catfood whilst I continued to look like a prat hunting for the cache on the car park.

Fortunately, although it was busy, very few muggles paid me any attention - perhaps they see this ritual every Sunday! So I just kept on looking, going over the same area until eventually I did find it - hooray! I hate ending a day's caching on a DNF - it's as if you haven't found anything at all that day, even if you have.

A sneaky little hide!

P.S. Bolton 4 Spurs 2 today :)

Oscar's Prowl - GCG1VB

Sarah and I continued to this one after finding the previous cache, 'This one's for Fred' a little further upstream. It was a very pleasant walk in the autumn sunshine until we realised we were going to have get down a steepish, leaf-covered bank to river level. We saw the item mentioned in the hint but decided to walk past it until a suitable place for getting down appeared.

Eventually we did find a place and then had to walk back to GZ along the leafy river bank. Once there Sarah found the cache container fairly quicky and she did the admin whilst I took a few photos. Then it was back up the short but steep and slippy bank to the footpath at the top. Although I didn't actually fall, being of portly shape and size, it took me a couple of tries before I found a successful route back up.

On the way back to the car Sarah wondered how the cache owner knew that Oscar honed his hunting skills down here - it seems so far from any houses. Anyway, a good little place - we enjoyed it in spite of being in a cemetery!

This One's for Fred - GC11Y9D

Fred Dibnah's House in Bolton

This cache is all about a famous son of Bolton, Fred Dibnah, who sadly died in 2004. As I knew where Fred used to live, Sarah and I decided to go straight to his house from the previous cache. After looking around all the familiar places in his garden that we've seen on TV, we realised that the cache wasn't actually here but down the steep sided valley at the back of the house and across the narrow river.
 

Fred's Workyard

We remembered that Fred used a bow to fire an arrow carrying a line into the trees and down into this valley, but we can't for the life of us remember what for - was it something to do with erecting his pit head and coal mine? We'll have to checkout the DVD.

Cemetery Gates

Anyway, after taking a few pictures of the house we got back in the car and drove round to the cemetery on the other side of the river where Fred is buried in view of his beloved house and workshop.  We parked just outside the gates and walked across the cemetery towards GZ.  I wasn't sure at first that this was the way we were supposed to go - however, by doing this we had actually made a bee-line straight for the cache location.

Can you see it yet?

Using the hint I quickly found the cache container, but it was very well-camouflaged and could easily be missed by the casual glance. In it was a splendid Matchbox BattleKings Hovercraft that I just had to take, in spite of not having anything worthy to leave in its place, sorry. I'll need to come back later and leave something in exchange.

On the the edge of the cache location

This was a great place to visit although it was tinged with more than a little sadness now that Fred is no longer with us. A great bloke who is greatly missed.

Memorial plaque outside Fred's house

Steam Hammer - GC1F3W4

This was the first cache find of the day on quick spot of geocaching in Bolton with sarahjones65. Being a Sunday it was nice and quiet with no students to wonder at what we were doing. We parked in the student car park on the other side of the road and could see the steam hammer from quite a way off.

Shortly after we crossed the road Sarah had found the cache container, although getting it out was a little more difficult. Before leaving I took a few pictures of this massive machine - I wouldn't have liked to get my hand stuck under that one. A great place!

Gone With The Wind - GC1BPM4

This was to be the final cache of the day for Grandad Bob, Sarah and me. We'd just come down the road from the cache at Rufford Sluice and an interesting conversation with the farmer there and now the light was starting to fade quite rapidly.

We parked on the corner of the bend and headed down the public footpath across the fields, which crossed two small bridges on the way to GZ. By now it was very windy but there was a beautiful sunset in the sky and wonderful sound of rustling leaves in the trees.

In the distance we could see the TV mast lit up on Winter Hill and Ashurst Beacon which, together with the very moody grey and white clouds, made for a very dramatic backdrop to the large bales of hay in the fields.

I took a picture of Grandad Bob doing his 'Moses' impression towards the angry-looking heavens as Sarah got on with finding the cache. We had to resort to using the clue though, as it still hadn't been located after five or more minutes.

In the end it Grandad Bob who suggested looking under a large stone and 'hey presto', there it was. A great end to a fairly successful day with 4 out 5 caches under our belt. We trampled happily back across the fields to the car and then off home and Shepherd's Pie for tea.

Sarah and Martyn complete with 'sticky bobs' on shoulder