Part of the Isle of Wight Geocaching Project.
Check our website for a picture of the cache container and a list of all of our caches. Can you find them all?
This is an old quarry, and old quarries can be dangerous. Like coastal cliff areas, there are steep slopes that can be slippery; unfenced slopes and sheer drops. The path to the cache is safe, with one very steep part, but the surrounding area might not be. Please go prepared and be mindful of dangers to children and dogs in this area. Wear appropriate footwear and note that in wet weather or after heavy rain this site will probably be inaccessible or too slippery to safely visit.
Brading was a centre for cement-manufacture in the nineteenth and early twentieth century. The supply of chalk was short-lived though, and the cost of transporting the coal to burn it was too great. So a number of small quarries that sprung up were abandoned and remain as open areas with steep rocky sides and often thick overgrown vegetation. Some areas have been cleared, and some remain open. This cache is in one of the lesser-known pits to the south of Upper Adgestone Road.
We strongly advise that you approach this cache from the north, as it is on the top of a very steep slope that, whilst in theory climbable from the southern side, could be dangerous, not to mention the damage you might do to the delicate wildlife on the way up. Brading Down is a very nice walk up from the Roman Villa (good teashop) or the village (where a couple of pubs will revive the weary traveller, and there's a railway station) or you can drive up to the top and park there. If you park at the popular viewpoint on Brading Down, there are many different routes down to Lower Adgestone Road and then a couple of paths that will lead you southwards. The best one is a well-hidden small unmarked footpath that is almost opposite the gated vehicle entrance to the main Brading Quarry where Upper Adgestone Road meets Bullys Hill. This path gets quite overgrown as it is rarely used. If you follow this path through some wooden gates and alongside a fence it will lead you to the only recommended way to access the cache area. Other routes can get you to the same place but may be a lot more difficult. The cache area itself is a nice place to sit and enjoy the lovely view.
This cache is placed by kind permission of the landowner, the Isle of Wight Council.