This is one of seven caches located on Fort Ord Public Lands,
which is managed by the Bureau of Land Management. The
purpose of these Listings is to demonstrate each of the seven
principles of Leave No Trace. The way this will be done is
with the use of a Wherigo Cartridge that will take you through
various games that are utilized in Leave No Trace Classes.
Stick to Trails and Camp
Overnight Right
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I only went out for a walk and finally concluded to stay out till
sundown, for going out, I found, was really going
in.
~John Muir,
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By the 1980's the Forest Service had formalized a "No Trace"
program which emphasized no trace travel and camping for the
backcountry. The success of the program caught the attention
of the National Park Service and the Bureau of Land Management, and
a joint authorship of the "Leave No Trace Land Ethics" pamphlet was
made, which was distributed by these agencies. By the early
1990's, the success of the program was such, that some thought was
given to providing a formalized training course. The Forest
Service enlisted the expertise of the National Outdoor
Leadership School, to provide a curriculum and training for a
"Master Educators Course",
This is number two in the series.
- Walk and ride on designated trails to protect trailside
plants.
- Do not step on flowers or small trees. Once damaged, they may
not grow back.
- Respect private property by staying on designated trails.
- Camp only on existing or designated campsites to avoid damaging
vegetation.
- Good campsites are found, not made. Don’t dig trenches or
build structures in your campsite.
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The Bureau of Land Management manages a complex system of trails
that stretches for more than 86 miles through the rolling hills of
the former Army Base. Off trail use is fairly restrictive,
not merely to protect visitors from possible unexploded ordinance
that is still out there, but also to protect animals and
habitats. Many of the existing trails were improved from
roads and trails that were previously used for maneuvers for Army
training exercises. A few trails were added in order to allow
better access to some areas. The BLM has done an excellent
job of marking trails that are intended for recreational use, and
marking other trails, left over from the Army Base days, as
closed. Nonetheless, the rule of thumb is, if it isn't marked
as a trail, assume it's not.
The Fort Ord Public Lands are open dawn to dusk. No
overnight camping is allowed.
The coordinates for the this cache are most likely the most
remote corner of the Public Lands that you can find, out at the end
of the junction of Pilarcitos Ridge Rd, and Trail 84.
Inaccessible to the East due to private property, it is about equal
distance from three Trailheads (Laguna Seca, Creekside, and
Intergarrison). For a bit of a taste of how my son and I
approached the location, you can see our route at the following
link:
Approach
from Laguna Seca
The Cartridge associated with this Listing is an adaptation of
"Choose The Right Path" lesson from a Leave No Trace Class.
References:
Fort Ord Public Lands - Laws and Regulations
Fort Ord Trail Map Brochure
Dear Treasure Cacher:
The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) welcomes “treasure
cachers” to the Fort Ord Public Lands and we hope that enjoy
your visit to this ecologically unique and diverse area. At
Fort Ord, the BLM is carefully managing this activity to ensure
that your visit is safe and enjoyable, and that the sensitive
natural, cultural, and historic resources are protected for current
and future generations. The cache you are searching for has
likely been posted on one of the many “treasure cache”
related websites such as geocaching.com, letterboxing.org,
atlasquest.com, etc. When looking for this cache, we ask that
you take note of our public use restrictions on the land that
include:
- Please use only trails that are signed open and shown on our
Fort Ord Public Lands Trail Maps. Cross-country travel, use of
unsigned trails and bushwhacking is not allowed.
- Please limit your cache searches to daylight hours. The
BLM lands are closed from ½ hour after sunset to ½ hour before
sunrise.
- Enjoy your cache hunting on foot, hoof or bicycle wheel because
vehicle use (including motorcycles, ATV’s and four-wheel
drives) are not allowed on the BLM road and trail systems.
- When considering a treasure to leave, please remember that this
is a family-friendly sport and never leave anything pornographic,
offensive, or flammable. Please never leave food items.
Caches that have been approved by the BLM will never be more
than 20 feet from one our designated trails or roads, so save the
effort looking far off trail. Also, be sure to avoid tampering
with anything that is not within a clear container because there is
still a chance that dangerous military artifacts may be in the
area. Always obey signs that indicate closed areas that
include habitat restoration sites and dangerous munitions
sites. And remember, the lands you visit are home to several
species of rare and endangered plants and animals, so please tread
lightly and respect the natural environment.
If you have any questions about your visit to this area, feel
free to contact the BLM at or (831)630-5000.
*This Leave No Trace information has been
reprinted with permission of the
Leave No Trace Center for Outdoor Ethics. For more
information: www.LNT.org