The Well-Known Five loved nothing better than to spend a holiday with Grandad Joe, down at his caravan at Sandy Bay. They especially liked going through his collections, amassed from years of beachcombing along the coast. But one day, towards the end of a stay, they were getting rather bored and restless. Grandad Joe decided to liven them up a little.
“Did you ever see my most prized find?” he asked them. Headshakes and shrugs all round.
“Hmm, where is it now?” Grandad Joe rummaged through his old trunk. All sorts of things came out: driftwood, shells, fossils, a rusty old lamp. Finally, he held something aloft.
“A bottle?” went the cry from the Five. (Well, four of them cried; the fifth just woofed.)
“It’s not so much the bottle, but what’s in it,” explained Grandad Joe; and with great care, he extracted an old piece of parchment.
“A map!” exclaimed Anne. “A real treasure map!”
“I found this many years ago, out there on Straight Point,” Grandad Joe went on, “and I’ve puzzled over it ever since.”
“It says Hook’s Haven,” said Julian, doubtfully. “But Captain Hook is just a made-up character in a story.”
“Well most stories have some truth in them. Although I’m not so sure about flying boys, there was a real pirate in these parts. Captain Hook, he was called, and for very good reason: he really did have only one hand, plus a hook.”
The children shuddered.
“But where's the treasure?” asked Dick. “I can't see where to find it.”
“That’s what has puzzled me all these years,” replied Grandad Joe. “I’ve never been able to work it out, but maybe you could help me.”
...
Perhaps you can help the adventurers to solve the puzzle and find the treasure?
Now for the all-important small print. The cache is NOT at the posted coordinates. The posted coordinates are close to the Sandy Bay archway. If travelling by car, you could park at the roadside coordinates for free; any further, and you may need to pay to park (unless of course you are staying at the Holiday Park). Alternatively, you could take the 95 bus from Exmouth right into the heart of the Holiday Park!
The cache itself is somewhere in Devon Cliffs Holiday Park. The cache has been placed with the kind permission of the Management at Devon Cliffs, and the site’s Security Team is aware of its presence. Just to clarify, this cache is available to all, residents and non-residents alike (just bear in mind the parking notes above). The Park has public rights of way running through it, including the coastal route, although you will deviate from them a little on your quest; however, you should not need to stray far from any regular paths to reach the cache. The cache should normally be accessible at all times.
This is a large Holiday Park that can get very busy in places, but the cache itself is sited in a pleasant spot that is usually quiet; nevertheless, please be stealthy and re-hide well. Please respect everyone’s property and privacy, and note that you should NOT need to directly approach any caravans. To reduce any uncertainty, the puzzle coordinates may be checked here.
If you are in need of a little sustenance while you are here, there are a number of facilities nearby that are open to non-resident Geocachers! A couple of waypoints are given below. Note that Devon Cliffs has a closed season from Dec – Feb inclusive. The cache is still available during these months, but the Park’s facilities will be closed.
We regularly stay at the Park (thanks to Abanazar Elders who have a caravan here!), hence our idea of placing this cache. We’d love to learn from your logs whether you are holidaying here, walking through along the coast, a genuine local, or whatever!