The Legend of Capt. Black Jack Starling VI Traditional Cache
The Legend of Capt. Black Jack Starling VI
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Size: 
(regular)
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Located at Bad Luck Pond in Rehoboth MA. Parking on Resevoir Rd.for 1 or 2 cars at 41.49.455 71.13.072.
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.
The Legend of Capt. Black Jack Starling And The Lost Treasure of The Pirate Ship, The Gray Pearl VI- Bad Luck Pond (The Prequel).
THIS IS PART 6 OF A 7 PART TALE. FOR PARTS 1,3 AND 4 SEARCH ZIP CODE 02885. FOR PART 2 SEARCH ZIP CODE 02809. FOR 5 SEARCH ZIP CODE 02769. FOR THE FINAL SEARCH ZIP CODE 02885.
In late 1734 The Gray Pearl had been raiding shipping in Block Island Sound long enough that the British merchants were getting fed up and they started putting pressure on the Crown to do something about it. In one of the first attempts to stop the Gray Pearl and her infamous captain, Black Jack Starling, the British sent the Man O’ War, The HMS Thames out of New York to find and engage the pirates with the hope of destroying The Gray Pearl. Late one fall evening, south of Block Island, The Gray Pearl had intercepted a merchant ship bound for New York. The pirates had forced the ship to heave to and boarded her. They were busy off loading loot when Eddie Hackett called from the crow’s nest, “Man O’ War rounding Southeast Point”! The HMS Thames had just rounded Southeast Point on Block Island (the future site of the now famous lighthouse Southeast Light). The pirates scrambled aboard the Pearl. The Thames was closing fast. There would be no escape from this one, they would have to fight their way out! Capt. Jack was a master tactician. Had he been in the Royal Navy he would have rivaled any captain they had. He had the crew hoist sail and hurried to bring the Pearl up to speed. She would be a sitting duck if she were not moving at top speed before the Thames closed. Jack watched the wind. He knew he couldn’t let the Thames “Cross the T” on The Pearl (a maneuver where one ship crosses the bow or stern of the other bringing all her guns to bear while the other ship is helpless with all her guns pointing at 90 degrees to the attacker). A wind shift was coming, Jack could see it. As dusk fell the winds lightened and shifted. To the Thames it looked as if the Pearl were doomed. Then the wind shift came. The Pearl picked up speed. The Thames lost headway. Capt. Jack Crossed the T on the Thames raking her with cannon fire. Her rigging toppled, one mast was splintered, one badly damaged. She was almost dead in the water. One thing The HMS Thames did have was a bow gun. As the Pearl “Crossed” The Thames she took a cannon ball through her planking just above the waterline. Capt. Jack brought the Pearl about. The crew made emergency repairs to the hull. The Pearl bore down on the crippled Thames again. Crossing her stern this time the Pearl unloaded a broadside into the helpless Thames. Capt Jack broke off the engagement. He knew The Thames would sink before dawn. He needed to repair his ship as quickly as possible. He also knew Vice-Admiral Linus Whitehall would not receive this news well. The British would not take the loss of a Man O‘ War lightly. Arriving at Potter’s Cove he had his ship’s carpenter, Patches Perriman, asses the damage. There would be no repair, she needed new oak planking. Now the problem was where to get oak planking without raising suspicion? He made a night trip to Warren to talk to Eb Luther. Eb knew of a man up in Rehoboth who owned a sawmill on Bad Luck Pond and could be trusted to keep quiet. Especially if he were compensated handsomely. The next evening he sent Moose Boy Merriweather and George Greeliegh to Rehoboth to see George Beverly, who owned the mill on Bad Luck Pond. Arrangements were made and oak planking was milled. Now they had to get it back to Prudence Island. The lumber was transported by wagon at dusk to the banks of the Palmer River. Near where Rocky Run enters the Palmer River it was rafted behind a longboat and towed down the Palmer River under the cover of darkness, past the sleeping Town of Warren, and out into the bay to Potter’s Cove. Working day and night Patches and the crew had the Pearl seaworthy again in short order. Capt. Jack had no way of knowing at the time what was going on in New York. The Admiralty wanted the Pearl and hatched a plan to get her. It would take until the following spring to get the 3 Men O’ War to New York. In the spring of 1735 The HMS Resolute, The HMS Gibraltar, and The HMS Reliance left New York bound for Narragansett Bay. They were going to trap the pirates in the bay and destroy them once and for all. What happened next can be read about in The Legend of Capt. Black Jack Starling and the Lost Treasure of The Pirate Ship, The Gray Pearl I (search zip code 02885).
What started out as a 2 part, 2 cache story has now expanded to a 6 part, 6 cache story. The pirates have been so much fun to do and I’ve been able to come up with a story line for every cache I’ve placed that ties in with the pirate tale. The saga is coming to an end though. There is one more cache to do but that will have to wait until warmer weather.
The cache is located on the shores of Bad Luck Pond. It is a good sized snap lid container. In it is the pirate treasure payment to George Beverly. This is one of the historical sites listed on The Town of Rehoboth’s website- historical sites (visit link) There are walking paths along the shore of Bad Luck Pond. You can access them from Reservoir Ave. This is another popular fishing spot so muggles will be around, especially during fishing season. There is parking along the Reservoir Ave. (1 or 2 cars) at 41.49.455n 71.13.072w. The path is well traveled and should be easy to follow. Minor bushwacking at the end. I had a pretty clear canopy when I placed the cache so the signal should strong enough. After placing the cache I followed the trail around the pond for ½ mile until it ended at private property.
Additional Hints
(Decrypt)
1. V qba'g guvax n uvag vf erdhverq.
2. Znxr fher lbh ybbx va gur pnpur, vg pbagnvaf vasbezngvba lbh'yy arrq sbe gur svany.
Treasures
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