Merlin Mania Traditional Geocache
Birdwatcher26: Time to retire this geocache.
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Difficulty:
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Terrain:
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Size: 
(small)
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This cache was placed in Wilber Park to celebrate the first documented breeding of Merlins in Otsego County. May not be available in winter.
Park closes at dusk.
The Merlin we have a mania for is not a magician, but a speedy falcon. Smaller than their cousin, the Peregrine Falcon, Merlins are so fast, powerful, and feisty that they’ve earned nicknames such as “Bullet Hawk” and “the Jack Russell Terrier of the bird world.”
This cache is in Wilber Park, near the nest site of the first documented breeding pair of Merlins in Otsego County. In June 2008 the newly discovered female Merlin was trapped and banded. She was released, unharmed, and went on to raise 3 chicks with her mate.
The white pine that housed their first nest was located between this cache and the road. That tree was felled in the spring of 2009.
Easiest access to the cache: from East Street, take the High School Drive. Stop at the “S” curve at a pull-off area. From here, start down the closed road that winds through the park, then take the small trail to the right. It’s a short and easy walk to the cache site.
Alternate access: enter Wilber Park from the Spruce Street entrance. Enjoy walking either the road past the swimming pool, or one of the trails that skirt the lower level of the park.
The cache is a camouflaged, medium-sized Lock ‘N Lock container, with a log, a pencil, and a variety of “bird swag,” including stickers with pictures of the female, held in the hands of the ornithologist who banded her. There are 4 “eagles” for the FTF.
Additional Hints
(Decrypt)
Orfg fryyvat nhgube J. Pyrzrag Fgbar bapr fnvq, “Ab znggre ubj pnershyyl lbh cyna lbhe tbnyf, gurl jvyy arire or zber guna cvcr qernzf hayrff lbh chefhr gurz jvgu thfgb.”
Gur pnpur vf uvqqra nobhg 15 srrg bss gur cngu haqre n ebpx.