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Mossley White Horse Traditional Cache

Hidden : 1/31/2011
Difficulty:
2.5 out of 5
Terrain:
3 out of 5

Size: Size:   small (small)

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Geocache Description:

This cache is close to the site of the famous Mossley White Horse, now unfortunately overgrown and invisible.

The Mossley White Horse was created by local hero and eccentric Bill Rawsthorne in about 1981. Bill was determined to 'beautify' his native Mossley, creating a 100ft white horse sculpture on a local hillside. This was clearly visible from around Mossley and nearby Carrbrook, where his family lived at the time. Bill is said to have created the sculpture at night and without the permission of the landowner, who asked him several times to stop the work. He then uncovered the horse one evening: astounding local residents by its sudden appearance the next morning. Bill was 67 at the time and claimed he wasn't hampered by the fact that he only had one arm (having lost the other in a railway accident in the 1940s). Various newspaper articles have included comments from Bill's son Keith, whose own son, Andrew (who was really close to his Grandad) has apparently been keen to ressurrect the horse in recent years. Bill died in 1992, after which the horse became sadly overgrown. It is still clearly visible, however, in a photograph taken by the canal restoration company, prior to work on the Scout Tunnel and Huddersfield Narrow Canal in the 1990s. The Mossley White Horse geocache is situated close to the point-of-view of the photograph taken in Scout Quarry. It is still possible to see the position of the white horse on the opposite hillside. Chalky Too, the replacement white horse travel bug, is 'stabled' here and will return periodically from his visits to other white horses. The original went missing in action near Longleat in 2014, presumed eaten by lions.

Additional Hints (Decrypt)

Ubyr va tebhaq, haqre fznyy bnx gerr. Gur gerr vf nobhg 10-12 srrg gnyy naq tebjf ng gur gbc bs n irel fgrrc oenzoyl onax bireybbxvat gur sbbgcngu.

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)