Bother at Beckhampton (Wilts) Mystery Cache
Wilburii: I’m taking some time out from geocaching and I don’t want to disappoint anyone with a poor quality cache.
Bother at Beckhampton (Wilts)
-
Difficulty:
-
-
Terrain:
-
Size: 
(regular)
Please note Use of geocaching.com services is subject to the terms and conditions
in our disclaimer.
Beckhampton, near Avebury, is little more than the large roundabout on the A4 and A361/A4361, a few houses to the south side of the A4, the racehorse training yard and the Inn. There is a probable literary association with this inn and that is the key to the finding of this cache. The going is suitable for buggies (more or less) and dogs but beware of the natives!
The interior of the Waggon and Horses is allegedly described (loosely) in a work of fiction but I think you could probably find any number of inns/pubs that might match!
Still, it's a good excuse for putting a cache nearby and definitely a good excuse to visit the Waggon and Horses! The co-ordinates are for the car park for the pub and it would be good manners to buy some refreshment as recompense for using their tarmac.
If you park on the south side of the pub and look at the right hand side of it there is a public footpath which runs up the hill behind the pub. The word footpath is used loosely here as it is a breeding ground for nettles and I think I was the first person to go up there this year. If you persevere and look to your right you get a good view of Silbury Hill. But that's another story… Please note that the cache isn't up here, not least because there's nowhere suitable to hide it. I offer this aside only because one of the good things about geocaching is that you get to go to places that otherwise you wouldn't.
You can find the text online but you may be unlucky and find an edition that has a variant text from the one I used.
The key is to start running at the start of 49 and go on from there!
A word of warning: the spot is surprisingly open to prying eyes - I was in danger from two pairs of eyes when I placed the cache - so take care to avoid the muggles.
This cache has been re-sited after it was pointed out that the cache breached guidelines as it fell within a World Heritage Site and one of our number thought it was vitally important that it was moved. When I put the cache down I didn’t know about MAGIC and relied on an information leaflet that seemed to indicate that the World Heritage Site didn’t extend as far south as it really does; and I thought I was well clear!
Still, the cache has moved and, although there are no prizes for guessing whereabouts it is, to find it you’ll still need to decipher the cipher below.
As another aside, you might spot the Roman road that you walk across as you head towards the cache. Look on the map and you can see the dotted line showing where it once was and how it should bisect the track. When you get to that point on the track, have a look down and you can see the bump where the track goes over the road and some of the stones are visible too though you’d easily miss it all if you didn’t appreciate what it was.
The cache is now well clear of the World Heritage Site but it is a bit of a hike and it’s a “there and back” route (over a mile each way) unless you like a big circular route of several miles! There is strong evidence of nettles at the cache site so I would advise anti-nettle gear (especially gloves) at all times except the depths of winter.
FFYPCNLKGNGMIRSHFDIW
YPJUYUZEQAGJSRWOSWAA
QRKPNSMKEZMNLOAXXOHB
PVJQZRMMJWYZFPZTUDHR
ZHVRZZIDVZNAMRMNDOSY
VBPFPFROZRXTKTXZWAMX
GGJHLAHBKJTUNIVLLFAY
GALLSXABXYMANOIVVBQW
GPWZFGZOTROVLTWCFLAO
XTQNFMSNXLRRPEIYGAPW
VIOLMFIVX
Additional Hints
(Decrypt)
Vg'f n ehaavat xrl pvcure -yvxr ivtrarer ohg zber pbzcyrk!