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On the (not so) beaten track Traditional Cache

Hidden : 7/24/2002
Difficulty:
2.5 out of 5
Terrain:
3 out of 5

Size: Size:   regular (regular)

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Geocache Description:

As the name implies - this cache is directly on a barely recognizable path/trail in Burke Lake Park. I believe there is a small fee to non-Fairfax county residents during the summer months. The terrain rating is mostly due to the length of the hike.

When placed, this was a replacement for the other two caches in the park that seemed to have vanished (of course now there are 20+ in the park), I thought there should be a new reason to visit this nice place. The path/trail the cache is on is very overgrown and not on the usual loop (which I highly encourage you to enjoy). It is mostly flat and may be muddy in any sort of rain. Several smaller downed trees need to be crossed or gone around enroute.

There are several options of approach to reach this spot. The simplest involves a branch off of the main loop.

From the main entrance (parking by the boat rental area) the hike is on the order of 1.5 miles one-way.

As mentioned above the cache can be reached by staying on trails most of the way there (please stay on them since there is no reason not to). There is a side trail that appears to cut off the larger, middle spit of land directly across from the bird sanctuary at Vesper Island. This leads to an overgrown meadow with a few large trees (maybe an old camping area or the sight of a now gone dwelling of some sort). Another trail (not the one through it) heads off to the southeast from the eastern end of this meadow (at N 38 45.776 W077 17.547). There is one more obscure trail left to find at this point but I'll leave that one up to you (it's not obvious at all though).

The cache itself used to be a large ammunition box that started with a generous assortment of booty ranging from 2 bookcrossing books (please log them at www.bookcrossing.com); to a mini flashlight, 3 compasses, dice and a few various souvenirs; to a mix of kid's toys such as cars, bubbles, silly string, a dinosaur and 3-4 McD/BK prizes. As of 8/3/2013 the cache is now a smaller plastic container. The trees are pretty dense along the way but I was getting good readings all along - your coverage may vary. The box is well hidden but should not be too difficult to spot. Please cover the cache back up as best you can when after completing the adventure.

While I would not call it kid friendly, a 5 and 6 year old can do it with no problem. No stickers, water crossings, or poison ivy about that I noted. I ran across at least 10 deer while scouting this spot out, but also saw what appeared to be two tree stands also?

Additional Hints (Decrypt)

Cngu uvag: Sebz gur genvyurnq qrfpevorq tb ~600 sg naq ybbx sbe gjb fznyy qbjarq gerrf npebff gur cngu. Ghea yrsg/abegu - lrf gurer vf n snvag genvy gurer. Nygreangr ebhgr: Nccebnpu sebz gur abegu naq svaq gur whax/jbbq cvyr ng A38 45.932 J077 17.342 naq sbyybj gur arneol genvy gb gur fbhgu. Pnpur uvag: Vg'f evtug ba gur cngu/thyyl (BX uvqqra va fbzr yrnirf naq oenapurf ba bar fvqr), ohg ybbx sbe gjb zrqvhz fvmrq ebpxf arneol ba rvgure fvqr nobhg gra srrg ncneg.

Decryption Key

A|B|C|D|E|F|G|H|I|J|K|L|M
-------------------------
N|O|P|Q|R|S|T|U|V|W|X|Y|Z

(letter above equals below, and vice versa)