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Unknown Cache

Spinal Tap

A cache by The Lazy Loppers
Hidden: 12/19/2008
In California, United States
Difficulty:
Terrain:
2.5 out of 5 4 out of 5

Size: Size: regular (regular)

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The Backbone Trail (BBT) is one of the jewels of the Santa Monica Mountains. Find all the caches along the trail, and you're eligible for the Spinal Tap!

Conceived decades ago, the Backbone Trail was originally to run from Point Mugu to Griffith Park. Mansion building outpaced trail development, and a continuous trail east of the 405 became infeasible, resulting in the almost-70-mile trail with its eastern terminus in Will Rogers State Historical Park. The entire trail is open to hikers except for an incomplete section near the Ventura/LA County line, with many parts open to bicyclists and equestrians.

One of the prime movers behind the BBT was the legendary Milt McAuley. Milt led hikes and volunteer trail maintenance crews. He was equally comfortable lobbying political figures to gain support for parks and trails, and negotiating with landowners for access. He wrote Hiking Trails of the Santa Monica Mountains, Wildflowers of the Santa Monica Mountains (for which he also drew the identification images), and of course a Guide to the Backbone Trail, along with books giving more details about the individual state parks. The books are widely available in local stores, especially Adventure 16 and REI, who deserve your patronage in return. Milt died at age 89 as Don and I were preparing Spinal Tap. We both express our gratitude for all he did for us and for our friends.

Naturally the BBT has been popular with geocachers as well. As of the publication of Spinal Tap, 88 caches were reasonably accessible from the BBT (including Spinal Tap itself), with a likelihood of many more to come. (In fact, the next one was placed the very day Spinal Tap was published.) And this is even though some long stretches of the BBT pass through NPS lands where geocaches are not allowed, notably a stretch of about 25 miles between Sandstone Peak and Corral Canyon. You could find all the caches on a single BBT through-hike, though it's expected that most seekers will spend a lot of time enjoying many parts of the Santa Monica Mountains while making progress on the Spinal Tap.

The official list of caches on the BBT is Don_J's Backbone Trail bookmark list, known here as "the BBT list". The list includes all active caches within roughly 250 feet of the BBT; see the bookmark list for details. If you notice errors or omissions in the list, send a message to Don_J. His word, not mine, is final as to the content of the list. You can also view the caches on a map, though the map is not guaranteed to be as up to date as the bookmark list.

The basic rule is that you must find all the other caches on the list to be eligible to log a find on the Spinal Tap final. However, you are given some leeway so that you don't have to chase down caches placed just as you are trying to finish: you don't have to find caches published within three months of your find log on Spinal Tap. Of course you are encouraged to find them all. Important exception: caches which are disabled due to environmental concerns are excluded for the duration of the disablement. These will be clearly noted on the BBT list.

The final cache location is not a secret or puzzle -- and of course it's on the BBT! When you have found the prerequisite caches, you may find the final cache. As with all caches, you are required to physically visit the final cache and sign the log. Only those who have completed the rest of the BBT list are allowed to log a find on the final cache, though others are welcome to log visits.

Getting to the final: The D/T for the final cache are 2.5/2.5. It's about 20'-30' from the posted coordinates, but only because posting the true coordinates might lead to confusion. It's close to the trailhead, which I haven't waypointed for you, since if you've found all the BBT caches, then you certainly know where the trailheads are! Ah, OK, if you need help with the trailhead, check it out on Trailheads in the Santa Monicas. There's a minor scramble to reach the final, and finding the correct route is important, justifying the ratings. The wrong route could be bad for your health. At the sharp turn in the trail, go a few feet up the drainage, make your way up to the rock wall that looms over you through the vegetation, and follow the wall up to a crack. Opinions will vary on whether this is a large crack or a small crack, but you've seen and probably passed through smaller ones on the way to other caches. You will need your hands and knees. The cache is in an open area at the top. It's also possible to go a short way past the opening and climb over rocks to reach the cache, but that route is probably more difficult than the crack.

Other rules:

New caches: to avoid a version of Zeno's Paradox on the BBT, you do not have to find very recently placed caches. This is defined to mean that if the publication date (the reviewer's publication log) is within three months of your finding the Spinal Tap final, you don't have to go back and find that new cache. The length of this timing window is subject to change, but any such change will not decrease the length of the window for caches published before the change.

The "date hidden", being completely under the control of the owner, is not used, only the date of the reviewer's publication log. Also, the date added to the BBT list is not used. Neither I nor Don_J can guarantee that caches will be added rapidly, though Don expects to maintain the list. This means that if you only watch the BBT list, your window on new caches could be smaller than three months. If you are nearing completion and this concerns you, you should set up notifications from geocaching.com to make sure you are alerted to new caches.

Disabled caches and caches believed to be missing are to be handled exactly as they are in other situations. They are not excluded from the prerequisites except as otherwise noted herein. You might simply wait for the owner to take action. When appropriate, you might contact the owner and offer to help. When necessary, you might post Needs Archived or contact a reviewer privately. These are the same options you have for any cache.

Environmentally disabled caches: there is one exemption for disabled caches. Caches which are disabled due to environmental concerns are excluded for the duration of the disablement. These will be clearly noted on the BBT list. Whether a disablement is for environmental concerns is solely Don_J's judgement. In such cases, the three-month rule does not apply at either end. Once a cache is placed in this category, you don't need it for the final until it is removed from the environmental concern category. However, once that happens, you also do not have a grace period unless the cache is still within three months of publication.

Prerequisite caches means all caches on the BBT list except the Spinal Tap final and caches excluded by the "new caches" and "environmentally disabled" rules.

Archived caches: You do not have to find archived caches, even if they have not been removed from the BBT list.

Prepublication finds: If you found a cache before publication of the Spinal Tap, it does count -- you are not expected to revisit caches you already found.

Hiders keepers: You get automatic find credit for caches you hid.

Claims: This is for fun and you are on the honor system. Issues about the validity of finds on caches in the list are between you and the cache owners.

Logging the final: You may only log the Spinal Tap final cache after you have logged finds on the prerequisite caches. You must log all your qualifying finds on geocaching.com. Non-completers are welcome to visit the final, sign the log book as visitors, and log notes to the cache page. If you visit the final before completing the prerequisite caches, you must revisit and re-sign the log afterward to log your find on Spinal Tap.

Finding vs logging: You must visit the final and sign its log ("find" it) after finding all prerequisite caches (visiting them, and signing their logs except for virtuals and Earthcaches). You must log all your prerequisite finds before logging your find on the final. You do not need to actually log your other finds before your official visit to the final. Many finishers have found several caches near the final, then the final, and then logged them. In fact, you could through-hike the entire BBT, finding all the prerequisite caches, go back and sign the final, then go home and log them all. This isn't as complicated as it sounds—it's really just the natural way of doing it—but it's difficult to eliminate the ambiguity without spelling it out in detail.

One special case: if you DNF (logged on gc.com) a prerequisite cache, then visit the final and log a note, and the cache you DNF-ed gets archived with no further finds, you may log a find on the final (as of the date of your visit) without revisiting it. The intent is to allow you to complete the series without waiting for the wheels to slowly grind, if you are willing to bet that your unfound cache(s) will be archived. Note that in this case you have still conformed to the rule that your visit to the final is after finding all prerequisite caches, so this is just an explanation and not an exception.

Terrain: Parts of the BBT are only accessible to strong hikers. As of publication, there are no caches on the BBT list which require physical skills beyond strong hiking. I reserve the right to exclude future caches which would require additional skills, such as rock climbing. The point is to keep this cache accessible to all strong hikers.

Difficulty: As is typical of hiking caches, the BBT list caches are generally easy to moderate in difficulty (as opposed to terrain). I reserve the right to exclude caches whose actual difficulty proves to unreasonably prevent cachers from completing the Spinal Tap.

Difficulty/Terrain: The listed difficulty and terrain (2.5/4.0) are the maximum you will encounter while completing the BBT list. This is the D/T in my judgement. Henry's Cache (the oldest on the BBT list by seven months) has a difficulty rating of 4.5, but this is a misclassification.

Follow the code: It's the GCxxxx code that matters. Occasionally cache names change, though I'm not aware of any on the BBT list changing.

Cachers who have completed the challenge as of 2013-05-21:

Name Found
or
Owned
Date
Completed
Found
at
completion
Big Eagle 266 2008-12-23 93
PezCachers 218 2009-01-02 94
sr.hikers 96 2009-01-05 94
Mountain Cat 175 2009-01-21 90
Don_J 245 2009-01-25 96
OLdweeb 235 2009-01-25 96
robb_dogg 115 2009-01-25 94
SoCalifSue 221 2009-02-19 91
TOHiker 264 2009-02-23 98
GeoCraig 223 2009-03-14 95
BWidget 233 2009-04-19 101
Big Foot Moose 259 2009-05-08 105
erik 264 2009-05-10 112
pianofab 161 2009-09-07 118
paleolith 118 2009-09-26 117
dbir 120 2010-03-15 120
Cairngorm 176 2010-03-27 118
Let's Fly 208 2010-05-16 139
location_scouts 134 2010-06-17 133
benandjayme 136 2010-10-03 136
benh57 142 2010-10-03 140
foomanjoo 135 2010-10-03 135
forest22 135 2010-10-03 135
Albackore 218 2011-01-30 165
foon 173 2011-01-30 162
camsoradap 177 2011-05-27 175
fastflyer 235 2011-05-31 176
VCTrails 191 2011-06-19 180
cahikerchick 180 2011-06-19 180
GWRoss 180 2011-08-22 180
3rd wheel 183 2011-09-29 176
K and K 184 2011-09-29 177
NakoTacoPatrol 194 2012-02-03 192
lostpup4 256 2012-03-13 198
TRUROKR 194 2012-03-21 194
the chick 194 2012-03-21 194
TropicalJoe 238 2012-09-13 229
Timoteo70 217 2012-09-26 212
bleed_blue_LA 247 2012-10-10 246
EcuaDeb 249 2012-10-13 249
Foocachers 246 2012-10-13 246
Marzenbac 249 2013-01-19 249

Cachers with 25 or more finds as of 2013-05-21:

Name ----- Number of Caches Found or Owned -----
Total Active Archived Remaining
Big Eagle 266 251 15 complete
erik 264 250 14 complete
TOHiker 264 251 13 complete
Big Foot Moose 259 250 9 complete
lostpup4 256 250 6 complete
EcuaDeb 249 249 0 complete
Marzenbac 249 249 0 complete
bleed_blue_LA 247 246 1 complete
Foocachers 246 246 0 complete
Don_J 245 233 12 complete
TropicalJoe 238 238 0 complete
fastflyer 235 233 2 complete
OLdweeb 235 225 10 complete
BWidget 233 225 8 complete
GeoCraig 223 214 9 complete
SoCalifSue 221 214 7 complete
Albackore 218 211 7 complete
PezCachers 218 206 12 complete
Timoteo70 217 217 0 complete
Let's Fly 208 200 8 complete
tozainamboku 205 194 11 56
NakoTacoPatrol 194 192 2 complete
the chick 194 192 2 complete
TRUROKR 194 192 2 complete
VCTrails 191 185 6 complete
K and K 184 183 1 complete
3rd wheel 183 182 1 complete
cahikerchick 180 174 6 complete
GWRoss 180 174 6 complete
camsoradap 177 176 1 complete
Cairngorm 176 173 3 complete
Mountain Cat 175 168 7 complete
foon 173 168 5 complete
pianofab 161 154 7 complete
benh57 142 136 6 complete
interbang1 139 133 6 117
lapetus 137 136 1 114
benandjayme 136 134 2 complete
foomanjoo 135 133 2 complete
forest22 135 133 2 complete
location_scouts 134 128 6 complete
w_bovine 128 125 3 125
duprev 124 122 2 128
klk8675309 124 122 2 128
Insidevc 122 119 3 131
dbir 120 115 5 complete
paleolith 118 111 7 complete
robb_dogg 115 105 10 complete
Emma&Roo 114 114 0 136
chaosmanor 96 91 5 159
sr.hikers 96 84 12 complete
crossbow spartan 95 94 1 156
TOcowboy 89 89 0 161
ca.scubastar 87 87 0 163
RiverBoatKing7 87 87 0 163
Sond813 80 79 1 171
Seashock 75 68 7 182
tom4props 71 66 5 184
capdude 70 67 3 183
RCKen 62 62 0 188
sissopolis 61 61 0 189
Gummyfrog 60 59 1 191
LAEd 60 57 3 193
EMC of Northridge, CA 58 50 8 200
lightningstar 56 55 1 195
Eagle Rock Rob 54 53 1 197
drewton 52 52 0 198
70type3 51 51 0 199
slomoot 51 51 0 199
Greymalkin 50 50 0 200
KF6JML 48 43 5 207
BenM1 47 47 0 203
1SGRock 46 46 0 204
Aravinda24 46 44 2 206
MaxGold 44 42 2 208
deeznutz® 43 40 3 210
space_man 43 36 7 214
TerryDad2 43 42 1 208
HH242 41 40 1 210
retrofit 41 41 0 209
GoinHikin 40 38 2 212
J-Man 40 36 4 214
spoondoggie 40 39 1 211
Wanderer7 40 36 4 214
mrdsw 39 39 0 211
piquets 39 39 0 211
Bambi1581 38 38 0 212
lifesajrny 37 34 3 216
lribbeck 37 37 0 213
AWEMM 36 34 2 216
badfeet 36 36 0 214
4marknbethb 35 35 0 215
Jebs and Lebs 35 35 0 215
Cachemanian Devil 34 34 0 216
ojait 34 34 0 216
javaa 33 29 4 221
CacheyMcCowski 32 31 1 219
mrlinus 32 32 0 218
6_Fan 30 29 1 221
djohnson28 29 29 0 221
gsmx2 29 28 1 222
MightyYT 29 29 0 221
skinnyquest 29 29 0 221
Réd 28 28 0 222

Additional Hints (Decrypt)

perrx fvqr hc penpx

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)

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Inventory

There are no Trackables in this cache.

 

Find...

94 Logged Visits

Found it 42     Write note 48     Publish Listing 1     Owner Maintenance 1     Update Coordinates 2     

View Logbook | View the Image Gallery of 47 images

**Warning! Spoilers may be included in the descriptions or links.

Current Time:
Last Updated: on 5/21/2013 8:43:00 AM Pacific Daylight Time (3:43 PM GMT)
Rendered From:Unknown
Coordinates are in the WGS84 datum