GC1BXRG Virginia Beach Railway (Unknown Cache) in Virginia, United States created by Lego Fans

This cache has been archived.

Lego Fans: This one must have become a victim of recent flooding. It was a magnetic key holder attached to one of the center trestle supports near the waterline ... and nearly impossible to see from above and only reachable by climbing down or via approach from the water. Of course you had to find the coordinates embedded in the geotagged picture first.

GC1BXRG ▼

A cache by Lego Fans Message this owner

Hidden : 5/4/2008

Difficulty:

Terrain:

Size: Size: micro (micro)

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Geocache Description:

The posted coordinates would put you on top of the tallest building in Virginia. The cache is not there.

The Norfolk & Virginia Beach Railway inaugurated rail service in 1883 and by 1906, 16 passenger trains ran between downtown Norfolk and the Beach daily. Summertime excursion trains included special cars taking church members to Sunday School picnics; and the One-Step Special, carrying young people to the "Old Casino" for dancing each evening. The popularity of railroads waned when automobiles came onto the scene; however, dirt and shell roads between Norfolk and the Beach made travel by auto dusty and treacherous. The first hard-surfaced road from Norfolk to Virginia Beach opened in July 1921. The dedication ceremony drew 1500 spectators, and more than 500 automobiles joined the parade from Twenty-First Street in Norfolk to the oceanfront via the new Virginia Beach Boulevard. By the 1930s the use of trains had declined. To compete with the automobile, Norfolk Southern inaugurated the Norfolk-Virginia Beach railbus in 1935. The rail buses were much like streetcars, but could travel at speeds up to 50 mph. This service was discontinued in 1947. (Source: Norfolk Library, accessed 3 May 2008).

The abandoned railroad track where you can find this cache was considered in the 1990s for a light rail system connecting Norfolk and the Virginia Beach Oceanfront and studies are ongoing. However, in November 1999, the City Council of Virginia Beach gave its citizens an opportunity to decide if they wanted to continue to be a part of the Light Rail Transit studies by placing a referendum concerning the project on the ballot. The referendum failed and as a result, City Council passed a resolution opting not to participate further with the proposed Light Rail project. The City of Chesapeake's referendum passed in 2000, and the City of Norfolk is moving ahead with the final design for a proposed project that extends 7.4 miles from the Eastern Virginia Medical Center through downtown Norfolk, and continuing along the Norfolk Southern Right of Way, adjacent to the I-264 corridor to Newtown Road. (Source: Hampton Roads Transit, accessed 3 May 2008).

Until the gas prices are $10 per gallon and the citizens of Virginia Beach reconsider their decision,* the abandoned tracks provide plenty of real estate for geocaches. You will have to figure out the coordinates for this cache from the picture.

* Update 2009: The City of Virginia Beach signed an agreement with Norfolk-Southern to acquire the property to extend the light rail project to the ocean front.

Additional Hints (Decrypt)

Trbgnttrq. Zntargvp.

Decryption Key

A|B|C|D|E|F|G|H|I|J|K|L|M
-------------------------
N|O|P|Q|R|S|T|U|V|W|X|Y|Z

(letter above equals below, and vice versa)