This is
probably very similar to how Chardstock Mill looked when it was in
operation.
Back at the time of the Doomsday Survey Chardstock had two
mills. We don't know where they were for sure, but its likely that
one of them was where the present buildings known as the Chardstock
or Leat's Mill are located.
Whilst milling ceased in the early 1900's the present buildings
(Grade II listed) still show the signs of having been a mill and
still contain some of the original machinery. In particular the
footpath past the mill follows the line of the old leat ... which
brings us to the subject of this cache.
Wikipedia has this to say ...
A leat (also spelled lete) is the name, common in
the south and west of England, for a man-made watercourse, or
makeshift aqueduct, often an artificial channel which supplies
water to a watermill or its mill
pond, collecting water from upstream of the mill so that the
natural level of the driving water is above the level of the stream
at the mill. (see here for full
reference)
In times gone by the Chardstock Mill took its water from a weir
higher up the valley (removed in the 1960's to improve drainage)
and ran down the leat to the mill. As you walk to/from the cache
you'll pass the point where the leat turned towards the mill and
formed the overshoot for the wheel. You'll also see a footbridge
over the point in the leat where an overflow sluice took the excess
water back down to the stream.
A very similar construction and arrangement can be seen at the
Branscombe working water mill (National Trust) which is well worth
a visit in its own right (see
here for opening times and details).
Anyway, I digress ... on to modern times ...
Whereas in times gone by the word 'leat' denoted something
useful ... these days the word 'leet' denotes something quite the
opposite ... something which is designed to be an almost complete
waste of time and resources -- Leet Speak.
For the masochists here's Wikipedia's take on
the subject and here for the cache nuts is the co-ordinates of what
you're looking for in ... yes you guessed it ...
ƒ1ƒ7¥ Ð39®33$ ƒ1ƒ7¥ p01|\|7 0|\|3
$3\/3|\| 7\/\/0 |\|0®7|-|.
7\/\/0 Ð39®33$ ƒ1ƒ7¥ |\|1|\|3 p01|\|7 7|-|®33 0|\|3
0|\|3 \/\/3$7.
Personally I've always found the best way to read this is with
your eyes screwed up after a few beers ... but there's always the
possibility of finding a translator out there on the web somewhere
for those that have 20/20 vision or have taken the pledge.
A working
mill, not too far from here, that has a similar arrangement to the
leat at Chardstock Mill.
You can check your answers for this puzzle on
Geochecker.com.
When first placed the cache contained a selection of child
orientated goodies.