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Come and follow Dorothy's footsteps as you relive her adventures in the Land of Oz. Follow the yellow brick road (with a little imagination) and meet some of her friends. But first you must find Dorothy and Toto where they are waiting for you near Munchkin land.
The coordinates listed above will take you to them. They will help you find the Lion, the Scarecrow and the Tin Man at the next stop, where they are hiding from those pesky flying monkeys. If you are really brave, you can sing “We're off to see the Wizard” as you skip along the path, but the Munchkin Muggles might give you a strange look!
First, park behind the Mount Uniacke Fire Hall at N 44° 53.661’ W 063° 50.006’. Begin your journey at the trailhead (N 44° 53.650’ W 063° 50.044’). Once you have crossed two small foot bridges at the beginning of the trail, you will have magically entered the Land of Oz. The “yellow brick road” appears yellow in colour due to all those fallen white pine needles covering the road. Have faith – under all those pine needles and mud there really is a brick road!
The first part of the trail, known to muggles as the Murphy Lake Trail, is actually the Wicked Witch of the West’s Trail, as designated by black triangle trail markers. Beware as the Wicked Witch may be watching! Remember to bring a water bottle. It might come in handy if you run into her!
The second part of the trail, known to muggles as the Drumlin Field Trail, is really the Ruby Slipper Trail, and of course it is designated by red triangle trail markers. Now you can breathe a sigh of relief, as Glinda, the Good Witch of the North reigns supreme here, and will keep you safe. She once reigned over both trails, but that sneaky Wicked Witch of the West took over part of her territory and painted some of the red trail markers black! (If you don’t believe me, check on the back of the black triangle trail markers, and you will see that they were once red!) Just before you find the Lion, the Scarecrow and the Tin Man at the second waypoint, you will have to cross a long wooden foot bridge. You must be very quiet when crossing it as the area underneath the bridge is known to be a favourite place for the flying monkeys to gather for a long nap. If you accidentally wake them up, who knows who they might carry away!
At the third waypoint, a lone flying monkey is standing guard over all that is left of the Wicked Witch of the West. The Wicked Witch of the West hid a couple of magical emeralds from the Emerald City, but sadly the secret to their location disappeared along with her. Perhaps, with the help of the guardian flying monkey, you can discover their location once again. These magical emeralds in turn can reveal where the Ruby Slippers have been hidden. Once you have found the 5th waypoint, you will have found the long lost Ruby Slippers. They hold the key to your final destination. As Glinda once told Dorothy, close your eyes, tap the heels of the ruby slippers together 3 times, and repeat the words “There’s no place like home.” Then peek at the bottom of the slippers in order to continue on the last leg of your journey.
Waypoint containers are smaller peanut butter jars, and pill bottles that open by pushing down on the cap and turning. They are all bark covered and winter friendly. The final cache is a winter friendly camoed 2 litre lock and lock spaghetti container. Dorothy has kindly filled it with souvenirs of her adventures in Oz, and a guest book (logbook) that she would like you to sign. She has even agreed to donate a geocoin from her home state as a FTF prize.
*****MAINTENANCE NOTE - September 2009: The new waypoint #4 container (emeralds) that was placed during our April maintenance visit is still in place, just as it was during our July maintenance visit. The old waypoint #4 container was missing/muggled last year, and was seen on the ground by the last two groups of cache visitors. We have not been able to find it, and this has been the 3rd time that we have tried. Please - for the next person in the area - if you find the old muggled container on the ground - we would really appreciate it if you would CITO it out with you, and at the same time continue to search for the new waypoint #4 container. This container and the waypoint #5 one are small bark covered pill bottles hanging in trees - so they are smaller and a little more challenging to find than the first 3 bark covered peanut butter jar waypoint containers.
Please note that these trails are in heavily forested areas, so GPS reception can be tricky at times.
Thank you to Martina Murphy, Site Manager of Uniacke Estate Museum, for allowing this cache to be placed.
Additional Hints
(Decrypt)
1. Zngher Qrpvqhbhf Gerr
2. Zngher Rireterra Gerr
3. Lbhat Rireterra Gerr
4. Lbhat Rireterra Gerr
5. Lbhat Rireterra Gerr
Svany pnpur: Ner lbh fghzcrq?