Trilliums Traditional Cache

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Hidden : 6/18/2008
Difficulty:
2 out of 5
Terrain:
2 out of 5

Size: Size: regular (regular)

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Geocache Description:

This cache is only a few meters off the Bruce Trail. Do not leave the trail until you are very close to the cache location.

Trillium As I was hiking along this trail one beautiful morning in mid May I came across this wonderful patch of blooming White Common Trilliums (Trillium grandiflorum) and I thought that this would be a perfect place for a cache in honour of what has been a Ontario's provincial flower since 1937.
About Trilliums:
  • Trilliums are a genus of about 50 species of perennial herbaceous flowering plants, native to temperate regions of North America and Asia.
  • They are members of the Lilly family.
  • Common names include trillium, snow trillium, wake-robin, and birthroot.
  • The above ground parts of Trilliums are scapes with three large, leafy bracts with the true leaves reduced to underground papery coverings around the rhizomes.
  • Trillium is one of many plants whose seeds are spread by ants and mice. Trillium seeds have a fleshy organ called an elaiosome that attracts ants. The ants take the seeds to their nest, where they eat the elaiosomes and put the seeds in their garbage, where they can be protected until they germinate. They also get the added bonus of growing in a medium made richer by the ant garbage.
  • It can take 7 to 11 years for a Trillium plant to grow to maturity, and the typical lifespan is 20 years.
Tirillium field
drooping
The Endangerd
Drooping Trillium
  • In the east of North America, the most common is Trillium grandiflorum.  The name was given by Linnaeus. 
  • Picking Trillium for their flower can seriously injure the plant. The three "leaves" below the flower are the plant's only ability to produce food stores and a picked trillium can take many years to recover. For this reason in many areas, e.g. British Columbia , Michigan, New York, Minnesota, and Washington, it is illegal to pick and/or transplant trilliums from public lands with out a permit from the State or Province.
  • While it is a popular belief that it is illegal to pick the White Common (Trillium grandiflorum) in Ontario, in reality no such law actually exists (link). 
  • The rare Drooping Trillium (Trillium flexipes) have a flower which is bent downward, below the "leaves". This species IS protected by law in Ontario. However, there are only two remaining populations of the Drooping Trillium in southwestern Ontario, one in a Middlesex County Conservation Area, and the other on private land in Elgin County. Also, please remember that picking ANY wildflowers in provincial parks is not allowed.
The Cache:

Construction on Highway 6 has now been completed and the Bruce Trail crosses under Highway 6 using the new tunnel. Access to this cache is now a bit easier and parking can now be found at N 43° 18.450 W 079° 54.697. It is a relatively easy hike from there to the cache along the Bruce Trail.

The cache is located on the southeast (downhill) side of the trail. The trilliums are on the northwest side. Please do not leave the trail until you are within a few meters of the cache, and do not hunt or walk on the northwest side, as the trilliums will get trampled.

Additional Hints (Decrypt)

ebpx perivpr

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)


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