Granddad Bluff Quarry Cache Traditional Cache
Kealani: Replaced this one at least 10 times. Will need to find a less vulnerable location.
Granddad Bluff Quarry Cache
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(regular)
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Site of the tramway that served the quarry.
Every newcomer to La Crosse should make the scenic drive to the top of Granddad Bluff, just east of town. Canopies of trees highlight the winding road to the 540-foot-high peak that delights tourists with panoramic views of three states. There are walkways, benches and lookouts, abundant wildlife, and the view of the river valley is breathtaking. At the summit is a marker designating the place where pioneer missionaries climbed the bluff on June 23, 1850, and performed the first known Christian worship service in the area.
The tallest bluff in the area, Granddad Bluff has been a focal point of the La Crosse community. Limestone rock was quarried from the bluff and this served as a source of building material for many years. The quarry was opened in 1869 by Capt J S. Ranlam. He also built a tramway to carry the quarried stone down the face of the bluff.
Once the rock was blasted loose and cut in manageable-size pieces, it was hauled to the face of the bluff and loaded into tramway cars. In early days, the stone was hauled from the working face to the tramway in horse drawn carts. Later on, a narrow gauge railroad was built from the face of the bluff about a quarter mile back to where the quarrying was being done. A locomotive, called it a dinky, pulled the cars filled with stone from the work site to the tramway. The tramway had two cars connected by a long cable. When the car at the top was loaded with stone, it was sent rolling down the tramway rails. The weight of the descending car and its load of stone pulled an empty car from the bottom of the tramway to the top. At the foot of Granddad Bluff, the stone was dumped into a crusher.
When the property was about to be sold for large scale quarrying, La Crosse citizens were outraged. A prominent family, Joseph & Irene Hixon, bought the property in 1909 holding it in trust until it was donated as park to the city of La Crosse in 1912. During this time, local citizens, lead by Mrs. G. C. Hixon, raised $15,000 to purchase the property and to help build public roads. Along with this purchase was some property below the bluff which became the nucleus of Hixon Forest.
The cache is located at the site of the old tramway at the quarry. The quarry is on a lower plateau than the lookout site. There is a relatively easy trail to the cache so if your route takes you over a cliff you are going the wrong way. Be sure to stop at the main lookout. There are also good views of the City near the cache but be cautious in this unprotected area.
From the parking lot at the top of the bluff, walk east back down the entrance road, along the fence. The trail starts where the fence ends. About a 10 minute "hike" from the parking lot with the only steep areas at the beginning and the end.
Additional Hints
(Decrypt)
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