The Weavers Trail Traditional Cache
Hidden : 8/1/2010
Difficulty:
1 out of 5
Terrain:
3.5 out of 5

Size: Size: regular (regular)

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Geocache Description:

This is another cache in our series based on interesting features we have seen on maps. In this case the cache is situated at the top of Crook Hill, which we subsequently found was part of the old Weavers Trail that ran between Darvel and Eaglesham. It is now within the new Whitelee Windfarm, the largest onshore windfarm in Europe.

In the 18th century, the main industry in many Ayrshire towns was silk and lace. The Weavers Trail allowed the transportation of finished products from towns such as Darvel and Newmilns, to Eaglesham and on to the markets of Paisley and Glasgow, while fresh yarn was transported in the opposite direction to the weavers.

The full route can be seen on the Heritage Paths website along with some further information. Kenneth Williams has also written an excellent article about the Weavers Trail - many thanks to Ken for permission to use his article.

The cache is also situated on the boundary between East Renfreshire and East Ayrshire, and also the bounday of the Forestry Commission land of Whitelee Forest. Thanks to the Forestry Commission Scotland for their permission to place caches in their Lowland Scotland forests.

The other caches in the "interesting map features" series are :

GC2C94E - The Carlin Stane
GC2CDRW - Double Dam
GC2CDKV - Star and Garter
GC2CGTM - Dunton Cove
GC2CJ1Z - Craigendunton Reservoir
GC2CNN3 - What a Place for a Picnic
GC2CZ58 - Spiersbridge Branch Line
GC2D520 - Jurassic Moss
GC3AHYC - Cuckoo Stone


Congratulations to the Sweeney Toddlers - FTF on 6th August 2010.


Update Spring 2011

There is a major extension to the windfarm being constructed over the next 18 months. The Whitelee Countryside Rangers Whitelee have been fantastic at providing help and information for our caches during this period.

The Weavers Trail is located on a right of way so there is no problem in people using this route to access the cache. The route does cross over the main windfarm spine road which Scottish Power Renewables (SPR) are including in their construction site and therefore falls under Construction and Design Management (CDM) Restrictions for the duration of their works. However, there is a crossing point in place on the spine road for the Weavers Trail as this is a historic right of way that needs to remain open. Which, incidentally will be upgraded in the not too distant future to improve the path surface quality (which at the moment is quite poor).

This means that Crook Hill and the Weavers Trail Cache can still be accessed via the right of way throughout the construction period that SPR have identified.

Note also though that the Forestry Commission are undertaking felling works in the area of forest beside the Weavers Trail. This is quite a large area of work and Forestry Commission have applied for, and been granted, a temporary restriction of access on the Weavers Tail in the area around the felling works at Overmuir. This restriction is likely to be in place until the end of April 2011 when work on the area closest to the track should be complete and the restriction lifted. So up until this time, geocachers will not be able to access the cache from the Darvel, East Ayrshire end of the Weavers Trail. It will still be accessible from the Eaglesham, East Renfrewshire end of the trail. However, there are Forestry Commission works going on in the Carrot area too. So although the trail is not closed, and access is still available, you should be aware of large machinery and activity in this area and be advised to take care when in this area and follow forestry commission advice signs.


Check the Scottish Outdoor Access Code for further information about access rights in Scotland and keep up to date with information specific to the Windfarm on their website.

Additional Hints ()

Gur pbzvat gbtrgure bs 3 sraprf.

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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