Sawmill Gulch: The Summit Traditional Cache
tsunrisebey: Time to say goodbye.
Sawmill Gulch: The Summit
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Difficulty:
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Terrain:
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Size: 
(small)
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This is cache #3 in a series of 3 placed along the Sawmill Gulch Trail.
Please read the whole cache description because there is some important information to be heeded.
Cache is a quart sized rubbermaid type container. There are a few trade items in the cache, smaller items are best. Remember to trade up or trade even.
Park at the Sawmill Gulch Trailhead coords; N46.42.506 W111.47.048 There is a small pull-off area off the main road. This trailhead is located right off York/Trout Creek Rd. about a mile from the York Bridge.
CACHE INFO: This cache series is up a heavily forested trail, this entire trail is a gradual climb up the mountain. It is not steep but there are some relatively strenuous areas. From the trailhead, your GPS would indicate that this is about a 1 mile hike (all uphill) but it is actually longer than that, more along the lines of 1.3 to 1.5 miles. There is a total elevation gain of 761 feet.
Please bring something to drink when walking this trail, you will need it (especially during the summer). There is also a very real possibility that you may lose your GPS signal if you do not keep your antenna pointed up, once the signal is gone, you will probably not get it back until you reach the summit. I only say this because there may be a couple places where the trail might be hard to distinguish at times, it's not bad but you should pay careful attention to the trail if you are not familiar with this area.
Once you complete the second cache and you continue up the trail to this one, you will come to an area that has a bunch of fallen trees all over. You will be pretty close to the top by now. The trail becomes a little bit difficult to see but if you climb over the trees or veer off to the left and walk past them and then veer back right after the area is clear, you can easily pick the trail back up.
Note: When you finally reach the top, you will see a small rock structure (man made) and a clearing. You should be able to see the trail continue on for a bit, stay on the trail for about another 300 feet and then head left up to the cache. If you have not been on this trail before it might be wise to mark your location as soon as you reach that rock structure before you continue on. This will allow you to easily find the trail leading back down, should you decide to wander around a bit or even continue further up here on your own. If you forget to mark the waypoint, just remember the rock structure and look for that, it's close to the trail heading down.
I'm enclosing pictures of the cache site and views of the surrounding area. It's very peaceful up here. This trail can be done all year round, I've hiked it in the winter when the snow wasn't deep.
Please let someone know where you are going if you head up this trail. The entire hike would take the average in fairly good shape person about 45 minutes to 1 hour, this includes a couple of rest breaks along the way. Again this trail is all uphill, most of it is gradual but the last stretch is the most strenuous until you reach the top, even on a really hot day, the breeze is pretty good up through here.
Enjoy and have fun!
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Treasures
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