Das Laureldale GebirgscGipfel
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(regular)
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You are looking for Das Laureldale GebergscGipfel, the Lauredale Mountain Summit. When you arrive you will have climbed 592 feet over about a one-half mile distance. At a steady pace, it will take you about one-half hour to gain the summit and twenty minutes to descend. Your destination awaits you at 998' +/-.
Right now I have two active caches out there with this similar mountain theme and design. The other one is called Hochste GebirgscRegion Der Berks Grafschaft and it is at the highest point in Berks County.
We have also placed a cache on the slopes of the famous Matterhorn Peak on the border between Italy and Switzerland, just South of Zermatt, Switzerland.
Meanwhile, you are looking for the highest mountain in the Laureldale region. One of the best views of this mountain from afar can be witnessed from along the 5th Street Highway, (Route 222), just along side of the Muhlenberg Township High School. You can actually pull off of the highway, and onto the shoulder to admire the view. Just look East, past the high school and up towards the mountain. It takes command of your view. This mountain sits amidst the Borough of Laureldale, the town of Temple and the township of Muhlenberg.
Rising above Laureldale, (a borough named for the abundant wild Mountain Laurel and rolling hills in the area), this mountain does not have a name on any maps. I have always called it the Laureldale Mountain. As a small boy, I once climbed to its summit during a very nice snowstorm with my skiis lovingly strapped to my back. When I arrived at the summit, I attached the boards to my leather lace-up boots and enjoyed a thrilling descent!
To get to the nearest parking place for climbing this mountain, head to coordinates: N 40 23.473, W075 54.103. Here you'll find the parking lot for the Lauredale Park. It is a very under-utilized facility. It is clean and quiet and for those of you who feel the call of Nature, there is usually a Job Johnny on the lot. The parking lot is situated at about 406' above sea level, +/-.
From here, you'll climb to 998' and the summit!
Avoid the urge to follow your GPS literally from this lot to the cache. Your GPS will read something like .42 to the cache. If you enjoy very, very steep climbing, with all manner of bushwhacking, go ahead and follow a direct route with your GPS.
If you prefer an easier but slightly longer trek, totaling something like .50 from the parking lot to the cache, head from the parking lot to the gate across a gravel road and then proceed on foot past the gate, heading in a more or less Northerly direction up the gravel road. You will be ascending steadily.
Soon you will arrive at a plateau where the road flattens out. This is the site of some dumping courtesy of the Borough of Laureldale. When you arrive at the flat plateau, you will notice some good views of the Laureldale valley below. If you turn around, to the South, you will see this mountain's sister mountain. It is not named on maps either, but I call it Mannerchor Mountain because there is a road, (Mannerchor Road), that winds around its flank. The road got its name from the German literal term for a sort of singing choir for husbands. Anyway...the view from one mountain to the other is pleasant.
At this point, you will soon notice that the gravel road turns into a grass and dirt trail. Keep following this trail as it descends a bit. Then begin looking for a trail to your right. (This is the trail I once skied down.) In fact, there are numerous rough trails on this mountain and most will lead you to the area of the mountain's summit. This is due to the fact that there is a good population of Whitetail Deer on this mountain. Human traffic is minimal because most people simply never bother to enjoy this wonderful mountain. So, most of the trails you find will NOT be well-worn.
If you are taking the same route I use, you will be climbing steadily and you will soon arrive at an area which features a large exposed boulder field about 35 yards long from tip to tip. This boulder field actually points up and down the mountain in a direction to and from the summit. Ascend past the boulder field on its right hand side, looking up the mountain ridge), via a deer path. You are now on your way to the final climb to the summit.
Once past the boulder field, you will ascend a series of rolling humps, each one allowing you to gain 20 or so feet toward the summit. You are actually ascending up a summit ridge.
You will know you have arrived at the 998' +/- summit because it a classical summit. It levels off for a few dozen yards in each direction and then descends on all sides. I love this summit or gipfel because it really is a miniature version of a high, alpine summit. In late fall and winter, when the leaves are not in the way, you will be able to enjoy the splendor of an almost 360 degree view from this place!
Here is where you'll find the cache. Enjoy!
Frieden des Gottes kann in den Bergen gefunden werden!
Additional Hints
(Decrypt)
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V unir engrq gur greenva nf n #3 qhr gb gur yratgu bs gur uvxr sebz gur cnexvat ybg naq gur pyvzo gb gur fhzzvg.