Bowling for Copters Traditional Geocache
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Difficulty:
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Terrain:
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Size: 
(small)
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Located about a half mile east of the Sierra Peak in the eastern portion of the Santa Ana Mountains in SoCal.
Originally placed during a fun hike / exploration of Sierra Peak. We used the "Dead Horse Trail" route (named after an old cache of the same name). The trailhead is located at about N33°52.240, W117°38.500, at 800 ft. From Green River Rd, take Canyon Crest Dr., turn right on Oakridge and park on the right side of Oakridge just before San Ramon. You will see the start of the trail to the east; no formal trail signs. It is also the trailhead for a number of other caches that are less strenuous to get to. I won't post it, but if anyone is unsure of the route, I will be happy to assist.
About halfway up the ridge line you will be hiking up, the trail begins to get MUCH steeper. It was a real push for TreailDude & Klemmer. The other two folks - well, thanks again for waiting at the top for us!
The Cache: The name says it all!! Credit to TrailDude for the final name. No idea how the original bowling ball got there; we sure didn't bring it! But we had a ball playing with it! Be sure to bowl a few frames and take pictures. Watch out for copter traffic! Extra credit for a pic of the ball & a copter on the pad (digital patching doesn't count!). The cache is just a few hundred feet off the pad. Yes, we left the ball by the cache. Please return it when your frames are done! Highest bowling in Orange County? No doubt about it! Cache container is about a 3-1/2" X 3" round container, with some old-ish geoswag stuff, log book, pencil. Lightly cammo'd & hidden WAY under some native rock type materials, but it should be very obvious when you see it! Look for a rock pile, with a chunck of a big black ball showing! The fun is the hike or drive, not the hunt, on this one. Don't forget the other caches up there near the peak. PLEASE put the ball back with the cache, and at least partly under rocks.
The hike: As you will see in the pics, there is one stretch that most will want to use hands and feet on going down (yes, Klemmer tossed down his normal trekking poles down for this one). Other areas are very slippery/ pebbly steep slopes. Do please be careful. I recommend not doing it alone. Yes, you can call for help with your cell, but not if you are unconscious! The cache is at about 2960 feet. That is about 2100 feet altitude difference, and there a few up/downs on the way, total climbing was 2700 feet (including over to Sierra Peak). It is certainly possible to hike up Coal Canyon (the right side trail) then east on the "Main Divide" Road (also called a few other names at this point on various maps). A year or so after the initial cache placement, a friend and I went UP Dead Horse Trail, and then DOWN via Coal Canyon. A MUCH better choice, although requiring two cars.
6-22-2014: Major cache maintenance and cache page re-write. Attempted to retain the original "flavor" of the cache and the cache page, but had to remove references to several archived caches, etc. No change in coordinates. I really wanted to properly restore this cache (with an old ball I had), after the original bowling ball went missing. No one I know (especially me!) was going to hike up there carrying a bowling ball (maybe a 20 year old US Marine...). So - using the opportunity to test out my new off-road tricked out 4Runner, my co-pilot d4wmike & I headed up Bedford Motorway early one Sunday. Pretty serious & fun drive. [BTW: I'm quite happy with the 4Runner!]. Post drive dustball pic below. Better bring a good off-road vehicle, not the soccer mom variety of SUV. With 5 or 6 stops for caches and one for lunch, we ended up off pavement for about 5 hours. Wish I had some bowling pins to leave up there. There ARE some beer bottles under a bush just off the pad to the east. Try no to break any. Better yet, someone bring some large plastic water bottles, and take the beer bottles out of there. ENJOY!
Additional Hints
(Decrypt)
YBBX SBE ONYY!