Now that we've gotten our geocaching feet wet (sometimes literally!), we figured it was time to try a hide. For our first cache, we decided to pay homage to the neighbourhood of Britannia, where we've lived for more than thirty years. While you're in the area, if you haven't already done so, we suggest checking out the nearby Historic Britannia Village cache (GC1HMFH). The description of that cache also has a nice concise history of the area. Our cache is not located at the posted coordinates, but it is a short distance away (less than 1 km). It should prove to be an fairly easy find once you determine a few key factoids about the area, namely:
1. There is a historic former church (now a private residence) on Britannia Road. The year it was built = ABCD.
2. The number of the bus stop at the corner of Bradford and Rowatt in Britannia Village = EFGH.
3. There are a number of poles at Britannia Beach supporting wires that are intended to scare away gulls, whose droppings pollute the water. Counting only those poles installed in the water, the number of poles = I. [Note: with the Ottawa River at historic low levels in the summer of 2010, one or more of these poles may now be high and dry - just remember, any time of the year, Google Maps is your friend!]
4. The Britannia Yacht Club has had several name changes over the years. The year the club adopted its current name = JKLM.
5. The Britannia Conservation Area (Mud Lake) is a hotspot for area birders. The number of different species of warbler that have been seen here [as of the year 2000] = NO.
Note that it should be possible to research the answers to all of these questions without visiting the referenced locations - of course, you can always do it the hard way if you prefer. You'll have a lot of trouble counting those warblers, though! Also, there seems to be no heritage plaque visible at the site of the old church, and the current owners of the property don't appear to be too friendly, so we don't recommend researching the answer to that question on location. The location of the cache is N45 22.DGF, W75 47.IMO.
We approached from the south when placing the cache, but early finders have reported easier access from the north, where there is a trail that passes within about 40 m of the cache location. Some bushwhacking will be required no matter how you approach it, so be prepared. We previously had a more accessible location picked out, but it was vetoed due to being too close to an existing puzzle cache that we had been unaware of.
Be alert for poison ivy, which is plentiful in the general area, though none was noted in the immediate vicinity of the cache.
Original contents: a couple of bracelets, a set of earrings, a keychain, an amusing button, a pin in the shape of a dove, a German coin, a "rattleback" (look it up!), and for the FTF, a $5 gift certificate from one of Britannia's most prominent and venerable businesses, Rainbow Natural Foods (established in 1978). Congrats to missbug for grabbing the FTF!!