The Legend of Capt. Black Jack Starling
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Size: 
(regular)
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Located on the shore of Narragansett Bay at the mouth of The Warren River
THIS IS PART 1 OF A 7 PART STORY. FOR PARTS 3 AND 4 SEARCH ZIP CODE 02885. FOR PART 2 SEARCH ZIP CODE 02809. FOR PARTS 5+6 SEARCH ZIP CODE 02769. FOR THE FINAL SEARCH ZIP CODE 02885. The inspiration for this series was Black Jack, our 16 year old Maine Coon Cat. Capt. Jack died Wed. Aug, 19, 2009. He will be missed.
This is the Legend of Capt. Black Jack Starling and The Lost Treasure of The Pirate Ship, The Gray Pearl.
Sometime around 1735 a pirate named Black Jack Starling worked the waters of Block Island Sound, raiding British shipping that traveled between New York and Boston. His ship, The Gray Pearl (named for a pearl he found in a quahog, not an oyster, and wore around his neck), was the thing feared most by every merchant captain that sailed this trade route. For years Capt. Jack and his crew terrorized the merchant fleet, getting richer and richer at the expense of colonial merchants. The British Admiralty, acting on complaints of the merchants, made several half hearted attempts to capture The Pearl without much success. Capt. Jack would hide in the upper reaches of Narragansett Bay. One of his favorite anchorages was Potter's Cove, on the north side of Prudence Is. With The Pearl anchored here he would post a lookout on the southern tip of Prudence Is. Any ship coming up the East or West Passage would be quickly spotted. A rider would race the length of Prudence and warn Capt Jack. He would immediately set sail and escape down the East, West, or The Sakonnet River, depending on which channel the British were coming up. This method worked time and again for Capt. Jack. The merchants, growing tired of losing money, pressured the Crown into making an all out effort to rid the seas of The Pearl and her crew.
One early spring morning One Eyed Eddie Hackett was on lookout at the south tip of Prudence Is. Despite having one eye, Eddie was Capt. Jack's most trusted lookout. Jack swore Eddie could see better with one eye than most men with two. It was just after dawn and Eddie was brewing tea, enjoying the warmth of the early spring sun. Suddenly, a glint of white caught his attention. Something was off Beavertail Pt. at the mouth of the bay. He brought his glass up and trained it on the white speck. What he saw made his pulse race. It was the topsails of a British Man O' War. He saddled his horse, preparing to ride and warn the crew. As he mounted his ride he saw something white in the West Passage. He brought his glass up and trained it on the object, glinting in the sun. The day they feared had come. A second Man O' War was coming up the West Passage. Eddie rode like the wind, covering the distance to the north end of Prudence quickly. The alarm was sounded. The Pearl was hastily made ready for sea. Capt. Black Jack Starling's day of reckoning had come. He had only one out, he had to get to Mt. Hope Bay and The Sakonnet River before The Man O' War in the East Passage. The British had sent The HMS Resolute up the East Passage. The West was blocked by The HMS Reliance. As The Pearl neared Popasquash Pt., Eddie shouted from the crows nest, "sails in The Sakonnet!" The British had sent The HMS Gibraltar up the Sakonnet River. The 3 Men O' War had The Pearl trapped! Capt. Jack ordered The Pearl about. His only option was to head deeper into the bay. He couldn't make The Providence River, Reliance would cut him off. The only deep water left was the Warren River. Jack headed The Pearl for Rumstick Pt. He entered The Warren River under full sail. He couldn't go up the Palmer River because he would have to pass the Warren waterfront and the British garrison there. He turned the Pearl due east and ran her hard aground on Jacob's Pt. The crew scrambled off, unloading all the treasure they could carry. One chest proved too heavy. They quickly buried it on Jacob's Pt. and headed across the marsh by the secret Pirate's Path, known only to the crew of the Pearl. The British would be slowed while they slogged through the marsh. Capt. Jack was the last to leave. With tears in his eyes he put a torch to the Pearl, her decks already soaked with whale oil. He stepped back, watching the flames consume his beloved ship. With sails still full, the Pearl became her own funeral pyre. Capt. Black Jack Starling turned and hurried after his crew. He knew the British ships had Royal Marines on board. They would be sent after the pirates, he was not out of the woods yet. He couldn't go south, that would just trap him on the Bristol Peninsula. The east was blocked by the Kickemuit River. He couldn't go north, the British garrison from Warren was already heading for the burning Pearl. The British finally had Capt. Black Jack Starling, or did they?!
For almost 300 years people have looked for the chest that became known as "The Lost Treasure of The Gray Pearl". It was never found....until now! You see, I found the lost chest. It has been removed for safe keeping. I decided to share with my caching friends some of the "lost treasure". Buried in the exact spot of the original treasure is a waterproof, snap lid, container. In it is a log book, gold coins, and treasure from the original treasure chest. How I found this treasure and what happened to Capt. Black Jack Starling and the crew of the Pearl will be revealed in my next cache.
The walk to the cache is flat and should be accessible to all except wheelchairs. The path can get a little muddy but can be negotiated in regular shoes. Closest parking is at The Audubon Environmental Education Center in Bristol RI, on Rt. 114, just over the Warren town line. From here follow the trail to The East Bay Bike Path. Turn north on the path. At 41.42.681n 71.17.198w you should see The Pirates Path, heading toward the water. Follow the path to the shore. From here follow your GPS. It's about 1/2 mile walk to the cache from the Audubon Center. For a longer walk or ride park at the Park & Ride on Franklin St. in Warren. It's about 1 mile from here to the cache but it's a nice walk or ride along the Warren River. The cache, like the treasure, is buried but requires no digging. I've change the hint because some people were finding this too easy. Please respect this area. It is public land and a fragile ecosystem. Be respectful of wildlife(Click on the image attached to this page. This beautiful lady showed up to watch me place the cache) and try not to disturb anything. Again, this is one of my favorite spots for photography. Enjoy the views of Warren to the north, and Rumstick Pt. across the river. If you look SW you will see Prudence Is. About the middle of Prudence is Potter's cove, the anchorage of The Gray Pearl.
The cache is a small plastic jar so think small
with trades or travel bugs.
It contains..what else? ..pirate treasure
It should be a great kids cache, especially with the
story to go along with it
I don't recommend it at night. It's quite isolated and
dark.
Could be buggy in warm weather.
Please re-hide as found. This will keep it from
floating away in a extreme storm tide.(in March
of 07 this entire area, including the cache, was
completely submerged for several hours. The cache
didn't move and stayed dry)
Muggles should be few but keep an eye out.
Additional Hints
(Decrypt)
1. "Ohevrq" nobir gur uvtu gvqr znex...
2. Guvf pnpur vf 1 bs gur fvk gung pbagnva vasb lbh'yy arrq gb qb gur svany.