Hairy Tree Multi-Cache
dotscot: I've had a message telling me the tree is to be cut down so no other option but to archive this... Such a shame :(
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This is a moderate walk through the town of Girvan to various historical and scenic sights telling a local urban myth.
Originally a fishing port, it is now also a seaside resort with beaches and cliffs. It lies 20 miles south of Ayr, and 30 miles north of Stranraer, one of the principal ferry ports from Scotland to Northern Ireland.
Family friendly but not all areas accessible for wheelchairs. Takes less than an hour. Would be an interesting after-dark Cache!
Fact or fiction? I’ll let you decide, either way it’s a great tale!
Alexander "Sawney" Bean(e) was the legendary head of a 48-member clan in 15th- or 16th-century Scotland, reportedly executed for the mass murder and cannibalisation of over 1,000 people. This is a popular story in Scotland and it’s unclear if this is fact, fiction or urban legend built on a grain of truth (as the locals will tell you).
However there is a lesser known story connected to the gruesome tale...
Local legend suggests Sawney had a daughter called Elspeth McCrudden who managed to escape the clan and set up home in the small fishing town of Girvan. There she planted the ‘Hairy Tree’. As Elspeth's mother was kicked out of Ballantrae for being a witch could Elspeth have planted her Fairy Tree to protect her home from evil spirits as is common in Wiccan tradition? Over time it is suggested the name fairy tree may have been changed to Hairy Tree.
Legend (or some would say fact) has it when Sawney and his clan of 48 were captured they were marched through Girvan to be put to death at the tollbooth in Edinburgh. One of her cannibal siblings saw Elspeth and cried out to her thus connecting her with the clan. Locals mobbed Elspeth and eventually she too was captured by the outraged crowd whereby she was hung from her very own tree.
Local legend tells of a ‘Hanging Tree’ in Girvan and it is suggested that this is indeed the ‘Hairy Tree’ Elspeth grew in her Garden. It is said if you stand beneath the Hanging tree you can still hear the bough’s creak under the weight of bodies hanging ...However the exact location of the Hairy tree remains a mystery. Here your quest to find it begins!
Way points for parking: N55 14.650’ w 004 51.259’
Your co-ordinates take you to the Hamilton Arms. This public house has an inaccessible secret garden which some say may be the original location of the Hairy tree. It is currently being redeveloped and I hope it will re-open soon. Have a look at the sign... this is your first connection to the tree and could be a clue to its possible demise...
How many windows are on the main building: A
How many branches on the tree: B
how many window pain on the left side of the ground floor: C
How many windows in total: D
Next co-ordinates: N 55 (AX2). (B+C) (D-1)
W 004 B1. 3B (C divided by 2)
You should now find yourself at Girvan’s former jail. Occupying a key position at the junction of Girvan's Knockcushan Street and Dalrymple Street, Stumpy Tower was purpose built as the Town Jail in 1827.
Stumpy Tower is a Grade B listed building. Stumpy and the adjacent properties at one time enclosed the town's former market with a square of buildings which included the town hall erected around 1822.
Auld Stumpy
Purpose built as the town jail, Stumpy replaced the former jail sited on the south west corner of the market place, approximately 20-30 feet from the new building. The old jail built in 1789 was a two storey building with a thatched roof through which prisoners frequently made their escape. This first jail was also known as Stumpy.
After the tree was cut down, all sorts of problems befell the construction of Auld Stumpy Tower, and, eventually it collapsed. According to local legend, there are twenty-six mysterious and inexplicable deaths associated with the chopping down of the tree and the building of Auld Stumpy Tower.
What's in a Name?
Kevin McDowal in his book 'The Carrick Gallovidian' suggests the name Stumpy comes from the Gaelic “Olladh Stiom Paidh” meaning the great Circle of Justice, where wrong doers had to atone for their crimes. This is a similar meaning to ‘Knockushan’ which means the hill or knoll of Justice; however locals will tell you it’s called ‘Stumpy’ as the Hairy Tree was cut down and the jail built over it’s stump.
Look at the tower and the date the tower was built gives you ABCD-EF
N 55 A (B/2). (B/2) B F
W 004 DA. D(E/E) (D-A)
This set of co-ordinates takes you to the 3rd possible resting place of the Hairy Tree. Was this the tree that was planted to neutralise the curse? It certainly is in roughly the right place on the south west side of the ‘New Stumpy’ and almost right around the corner.
Catholic emancipation came to Scotland in 1829, and the Irish potato famine in the 1840s drove many people out of Ireland, Scotland being a popular destination. These two factors resulted in many Catholic parishes in Scotland, including Girvan, dating from the 1850s. In 1878 the Sisters of St Joseph of Cluny arrived in Girvan to teach in the school. This was also the year in which the hierarchy was restored, and six dioceses replaced the three missionary vicariates. Girvan now became part of the new diocese of Galloway and its Bishop, Bishop McLachlan, resided in Dumfries. The Church of the Sacred Hearts was extended and renovated for the centenary in 1960; and after the Second Vatican Council the altar was turned to face the people. A new hall was opened to replace the old one, which was in need of extensive repairs. Unfortunately in 1991 the Sacred Heart Academy closed due to falling numbers.
Count the panes of glass in the arched window in the centre of the building = AB
On the road side there is drain cover this gives you CDE
N 55 A4.DDE
W004 DA. 7A7
From where you are standing you should be able to see the Ailsa Craig. This is the granite rock used to make the famous Scottish curling stones. But where did it get its name? Ailsa Craig is also known as “Creag Ealasaid”, or Elizabeth's rock. Local legend suggests the name Elizabeth is actually a corruption of Elspeth, and refers to Elspeth McCrudden. It is told that Elspeth tried to swim out to this Rock to escape the mob who later hanged her from The Hairy Tree and hence thereafter it was known as ‘Ailsa Craig’.
Look backwards towards Girvan and how many count the letters on the sign of the local entertainment venue CD (C+D)= E
N 55 14.7EE
W 004 (C+E)D. C(Ex3)7
These co-ordinates take you to your final location and the cache.
Sawney’s daughters last words when she was hung were to curse anyone who harmed the tree. About 100 years later Girvan was granted a charter confirming the right to form the burgh and parish and Girvan. At this time Girvan was a small village with less than 200 inhabitants centred on the old graveyard and the High Street. Residents were a mix of merchants, lawyers and doctors covering Girvan parish and local trades people, craftsmen and fishermen. Locals believe the Hairy tree was actually the Hanging tree that stood proudly outside old Girvan in what is now the old graveyard. This is the tree the locals believe was the replacement for the Hairy Tree. This graveyard is now unused and well worth a look. However firstly you should stand a while under the tree... Listen carefully... you may hear the boughs creak from the weight of the bodies hung from it...
Box is a medium plastic container. Please replace Cache as found...
******* Congratulations to biffo69 for being FTF*******
Additional Hints
(Decrypt)
Nf lbh jbhyq rkcrpg... Vg'f va gur gerr!
Treasures
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