Nesmith Point Cache Traditional Geocache
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Difficulty:
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Terrain:
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Size: 
(regular)
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Nesmith Point Trail. The US Forest Service url's provided below give a great description of the trail.
http://www.fs.fed.us/r6/columbia/trails/trail_428.htm (visit link)
The view from the top is incredible. If you head about 40 feet further up the trail past the "Nestmith Point" sign post, there's a view spot which is even better. It is just high enough to see over the west canyon walls. On a clear day you can easily see all the way to the Coast Range in the West.
Many of the views on the way up the trail are as good as the one from the top. Be on a constant lookout for these spots. And be proud if when looking down into the gorge, you see airplanes flying BELOW you. That sight sure made me feel like a mountain man.
This trail will only be 3.5 difficulty if you aren't packing anything, WHICH IS NOT RECOMENDED. Do not forget to bring THINGS on this hike. Some THINGS are good to bring. THINGS may include, but are not limited to: food, water, change of socks, first aid (mole skin/second skin), warm clothes/space blanket, etc.
The more weight you carry (in your body and in your pack), the more difficult this trail will be. Depending on how much you're packing the difficulty quickly becomes severe (5).
I was using this trail as a conditioning hike, but before I had even gone a mile I realized this was not the place to be lugging 46lbs of camping gear up 3800 feet of elevation just for the day. The weight I was bringing up the trail (myself 165lbs and my pack 46lbs) changed this hike from an uphill climb to a strenuous, hellish battle with gravity.
Also keep in mind that, in summer, there are no water sources along this trail. We saw some dry creek beds that may prove more rewarding in other seasons. Bring plenty of water. Pack a MINUMUM of 2 liters per person.
The cache is actually a couple hundred yards past Nesmith Point, so don't get discouraged when you find yourself at the Point and you're still not right on top of the cache.
With a GPS Reciever the cache should be pretty easy to find. I tried to make the encoded message descriptive enough for someone without a GPS Reciever to find it.
A MESSAGE FROM MOM: Don't forget to bring plenty of water and emergency supplies. Don't hike alone if you can avoid it and always let someone RESPONSIBLE know where you're going and when you'll be back.
Happy hunting.
Additional Hints
(Decrypt)
Urnq cnfg gur cbvag naq nebhaq gur pbeare. [Looking straight] qbja gur genvy [from the shack] frr gur [flatly cut stump]. Gur pnpur vf va [an adjacent stump] ba gur fbhgu fvqr bs gur [flatly cut stump].