*** Changed to a Micro Cache 28 Sept 2010 - take a pencil! ***
***The plaque has been removed for maintenance, see the Hint for
the date that you would have seen on it *** This involves a round
trip walk of about a mile and a half. The cache is hidden on
Longmoor Enclosure which was purchased by the military for training
purposes in 1863, and is still in use. Most areas have full public
access but nearer the Longmoor Camp itself there is a simulated
urban area used for street fighting training and the public must
keep clear. Longmoor Camp was the site of the “railway
soldiers” who set up the British Army’s railway
transport system which played a crucial part in WW2. You can still
spot sleepers on some of what appears to be a pathway now.
The best place to park is at N51 03.468; W00 53.223 where the
old railway line crosses Forest Road. This is a two stage cache and
you must first find a simple clue from a memorial you will find at
the waypoint at the top of this listing. This memorial was erected
to honour Richard Pryce-Hughes, a Canadian pilot who circled his
burning Halifax bomber after a raid on Dortmund in WW2 to allow his
crew to bail out before it crashed near here.
Read the date on the memorial - DD/MM/YYYY. The cache is located
at N51 03.(880+DD) W00 52.(563+MM) - don't go in a straight line to
the cache as there are some bogs and a fenced area in the way.
Follow paths in the general direction and you will be fine.
The Army requests that you do not climb onto any abandoned
miltary hardware as you could easily hurt yourself on the
metalwork! According to the Army Eastates web site there are three
tanks, one you will see on the trip, another is just up the railway
track at the top of a bank.
The Enclosure is teeming with wildlife including deer, a huge
variety of birds and the Greater Mottled British Soldier. All
species seem quite tolerant of the presence of the public while
they are going about their business. This is a training area that
is actively used so there may be times when there is too much
activity going on to approach the cache site. ****Please Note: ****
This is a Military Training Area to which Public access is open at
all times but which can involve the use of Pyrotechnics. One of the
safety rules for public access is:- " Do not, (and ensure that
children do not) approach, touch or pick up any metal objects lying
on the ground. Please adhere to all Byelaws."