Bottesford Junction Traditional Cache
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Difficulty:
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Terrain:
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Size: 
(small)
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This is a quick cache at the edge of Bottesford Village, where there is suitable off road parking in the nearby industrial estate. PLEASE PARK IN THE INDUSTRIAL ESTATE OR SOMEWHERE NEAR. DO NOT ATTEMPT TO DRIVE UP TO THE CACHE ALONG THE TRACK. I have marked this as NO Off-Road Vehicles as any strangers driving up this track will draw un-required attention to themselves and the cache.
At the parking coordinates, the small collection of modern commercial premises and the fields that stretch beyond were the site of a large Royal Army Service Corps Fuel Depot during WWII; with around 100 Huts, extensive storage tanks and around 130 personnel. Metal 'Jerrycans' were made at the Raleigh bicycle factory in Nottingham, brought out to Bottesford and filled with fuel before being distributed. The Army Depot straddled the road out to Orston, cutting local access for the duration of its existence. The new 'lock-up' units were built in the 1990s to replace a large group of old prefabricated Army Huts that had remained after closure of the Depot and formed an embryonic post-war industrial estate for the village.
The railway network used to go North/South to Newark and Melton Mowbray in addition to the current East/West Grantham/Nottingham line and additional sidings were constructed for the Fuel Depot.
The OS 1:50,000 map shows a short stretch of railway line along here as 'under construction'; a quite remarkable feat considering the remaining line was ripped up in the 1980s.
There is an innocuous sign warning of the penalty for trespass on the railway. What the sign really means is that the track is a dead end and the fenced and gated railway line is another half a mile on. This track is used for access to the back gardens of the houses and for local farm traffic. Your excursion will take you no further than this general access section.
It is also popular with local dog walkers, so it's best to avoid visiting around dusk.
This Cache was used as a launching point for a Diabetes Travel Bug destined for Idaho Falls USA.
Additional Hints
(Decrypt)
Qvssrerag onex cnggrea.
Treasures
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