The geocache in located within Confederation Park, and placement has been authorized by the Hamilton Conservation Authority. The conservation authority no longer charges admission to this park, so it is free to access and park between dawn and dusk.
This is one of small series related to the Hamilton and Scourge shipwrecks, and the War of 1812 Naval Memorial. Collect clues from the first three caches (listed below) to determine the location of a bonus cache.
#1 - Hamilton & Scourge - 1812 Naval Memorial Garden (Multi-cache)
#2 - Hamilton & Scourge - Ned Myers' Account (Puzzle / Mystery Cache)
#3 - Hamilton & Scourge - Archaeological Treasure Hunt (Letterbox Hybrid)
There are letters and number recorded on the underside of the lid. Be sure to record those details. You will need them to find the bonus cache: GC5TGX0 Hamilton & Scourge - Cleared For Action
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At the posted coordinates, you will find a memorial to Captain Archie Hodge. Captain Hodge was a part of a great archaeological treasure hunt. Read the plaque (optional, it is missing but you can view it here. Your treasure hunt will begin at his memorial.
The Hamilton and Scourge sank in Lake Ontario on August 8th, 1813. Their exact location would remain a mystery for over 150 years. According to online sources, the general location of the wrecks was first identified in the early 1970’s by was Dr. Daniel A. Nelson, a dentist from St. Catharines and an amateur archaeologist.
At the time of the accident, a number of British ships were stationed not far from the Hamilton and Scourge. According to Ned Myers, “The English fleet was but a short distance to the northward of us; so near, indeed, that we could almost count their ports. They were becalmed, like ourselves, and a little scattered.” The English fleet included the HMS Wolfe, the flagship of the British naval commander on the Great Lakes, Commodore James Lucas Yeo. Nelson estimated the location of the Hamilton and Scourge by using Commodore Yeo's logbook from the Wolfe, which gave his ship's location the day of the accident: "Light breezes variable, very warm weather. At 5 o'clock the 40 Mile Creek bore SSW distance about 8 miles, wind southerly. Saw the enemy squadron bearing E by S about four or five leagues..."
The first searches were made in 1972 using magnetometer and side-scan sonar. Later deep-tow side-scan sonar trials with new equipment in 1975 offered researchers their first views of the vessels, upright on the lake bottom with masts intact. The first images of the wrecks were obtained in November of 1975. All indications were that the cold, 300-foot deep water had preserved the ships intact. In the summer of 1980, Jacques Cousteau photographed the Hamilton with his mini-sub, the Soucoupe.
Now for your treasure hunt to find the cache:
Read the plaque (plaque is missing but you should see the base where the plaque was mounted, at the posted coordinates; you can view it here), then turn 180 degrees, so that the memorial to Captain Hodge is directly behind you. You will see a blue pedestrian bridge ahead of you and to your left. Proceed to the center of the bridge walkway.
- To use your GSP, from the posted coordinates, project a waypoint 152 meters at 167 degrees.
Once you are on the center of the bridge, have a look over the south side of the bridge (towards the highway). You are standing over a long narrow pond. On the eastern side of this pond (your left hand side), about 10 meters south of the bridge, is a long fallen log. The cache is hidden in the end of the log furthest from the bridge
- To use your GSP, from your current location, project a waypoint 14 meters at 130 degrees.
The letterbox hybrid cache contains a handmade stamp - please bring your own ink if you plan to use it. It is in a small container, within the larger geocache container. This is my first time carving a stamp. The stamp turned out better than I expected, but I still hope to replace it with something better when time permits. Please do not take the stamp.