You can park for free (assuming there are spaces) at the top of the cliffs at Keat's Green. The journey will take 20 minutes, if you wish you could make this a circular walk, going back up the final footpath (which you will pass) from the beach to Rylstone Gardens, through Shanklin Old Town, then back to Keat's Green. Alternatively, once you finish finding this cache, assuming if it is low tide, (please check before deciding to going on from here) , you could continue along the beach to find 'Smuggler's Lost Cache' near Luccombe Chine. Shanklin Chine was used as a path for Smugglers, and the Excise Officers were stationed at Keat's Green to try and intercept them. The Isle of Wight was famous for smugglers, many families of smugglers living in Rookley and Niton. The Chine Inn on your path was often frequented by many a smuggler.
Until about 150 years ago, the mainland population regarded the Isle of Wight almost as a foreign country, the inhabitants being potentially suspicious and hostile. Islanders nicknamed mainlanders as 'Overners'. The Isle of Wight with its sheltered coves and sandy beaches was ideal for smuggling and an ideal stepping stone onto the mainland. A broad beamed rowing boat with four or six oars could get from France in a few hours, or access a larger ship anchored offshore, transport 40 large casks to the beach. The casks would be carried by a team of smugglers up the beach and then hidden in caves such as those at Freshwater, in properties, such as under floorboards at Vernon Cottage in Shanklin Old Town. The nerve centre for smuggling operations was the pub, you will pass a smuggler's pub, The Chine Inn, on your travels to the cache. The pub served as a meeting place, recruitment centre and secret storage place. In fact it is thought that the well, with large chamber, which is covered in the dining room floor was used to hide contraband. Shanklin Chine used to be an overgrown hidden track, ideal for transporting contraband, being obscured from view. William Arnold became the Collector of Excise for the Isle of Wight in the latter part of the eighteenth century (can't give you the exact date as you need this to open the cache). William was based in Cowes and was responsible for seizing smuggling vessels, registration of new vessels. His riding officers patrolled the coast from the Needles, along to Atherfield, Niton, Shanklin, Culver Downs to Brading, Ryde and back to Cowes. The punishment for smuggling was 5 years spent on board a man-of-war, or potentially a £100 fine and a jail sentence in Winchester or locally in Parkhurst on the island. After William Arnold's death in 1832, the excise officers were not as effective and the estimate in 1836 was that over 80% of the island was consuming contraband.
Step 1:
This is a micro cache that contains a code to open the final Cache.
Step 2:
Next waypoint is N 50 37.587 W 001 10.440 Find the date that Shanklin Chine first opened you can do this without paying for entrance to the chine. Date = ABCD, e.g 2017 = A = 2 B= 0 C = 1 etc.
Step 3:
The final coordinates of the cache are: N 50 37.4AB W 001 10.4(D+C+A)0
