-
Difficulty:
-
-
Terrain:
-
Size: 
(regular)
Please note Use of geocaching.com services is subject to the terms and conditions
in our disclaimer.
The cache is in the vicinity of Grace Dieu Woods in the village of Thringstone.
The co-ordinates are for the first clue, and are not the final cache location.
This is a multi-staged cache with a number of questions that need to be solved before you can identify the final cache location. The cache is a walk of about a mile from the start.
* CONGRATULATIONS TO JAYJAYBEE8 FOR A QUICK FTF*
This is my second cache. It is located in the vicinity of Grace Dieu Woods in the village of Thringstone, close to the ruins of Grace Dieu Priory and near to the disused railway line (the Bluebell Line). I could give you loads of history, but perhaps easier you refer to another cache in the area (GC29YVB – Rusty Mary’s Vow).
I’m sure that the questions are easy and I hope that they are kid-friendly questions too. I would add that tree cover may give a couple of slightly irregular GPS readings, but the questions should be easily solvable irrespective of this and you should never be more than a few feet out. I have tested it three times and had differing GPS readings each time, but all close enough.
Parking is advised at the Bulls Head Pub, which is on the A512 in Thringstone, mid-way between Loughborough and Ashby-de-la-Zouch. It is the official car park for the Priory.
Stage One. It is only a short walk to N52 45.519 W001 21.721. What number cycle route is the Grace Dieu Trail? Take the two numbers, add them together, and call this A.
Stage Two. Head to N52 45.459 W001 21.638, passing a cricket pitch. Coincidentally, if a batsman scores a half-century in cricket, how many runs has he scored? Add the individual digits together, call this B.
Stage Three. Once at N52 45.459 W001 21.638 turn left at the junction but, before doing so, pay attention to the two posts just after the bridge. Count the number of rectangular signs affixed to the posts. Call this C.
Stage Four. Head to N52 45.552 W001 21.540. Look back at the bridge / viaduct and count the number of arches. Call this D.
[Clue (check digit) – at this stage, A+B+C+D should equal 22].
Stage Five. Continue walking to N52 45.610 W001 21.573. Here you may need to take a minor detour to look more closely at a metal statue that you should be able to see if you look around carefully. Is this of a man or a woman? If it’s a man, then call E = 1, but if it’s a woman, then call E = 2.
Stage Six. Retrace your steps and head nearby to N52 45.606 W001 21.569. On the gate you should see the five digit STD dialling code for the Coalville area. Add the five digits together, call this F.
Stage Seven. Walk past the stream down to N52 45.602 W001 21.425. On the gate you should find the date of the Priory (hint:- look carefully). Add the four individual digits of the date together, call this G.
Stage Eight. Head on up to the high level disused railway line (by whichever means you see fit) and head to N52 45.618 W001 21.384 to find something old with two big numbers showing. Take one of the numbers away from the other. Call this H.
[Clue (check digit) – at this stage, E+F+G+H should equal 18].
You should now have enough information to locate the final cache, which you will find by substituting the letters below for the answers to the questions solved:-
N52 CB.D(D+E)(C+E)
W001 E(A-D).(F-G)(D-H)(G-D)
[It is worth double checking your calculations at this stage maybe?].
The cache itself is a medium-sized clip-lock container, with lots of space for swappables. It is disappointing how much tat is found in many caches nowadays, and I hope that people leave something nice, and maybe aimed at children as I’d like to see more Geokids my age out and about caching. It is my intention to regularly restock this cache with goodies.
To start off this cache, the box contains:-
A hamster travel tag
A fridge magnet, with pen
Three pencils
A selection of junior dingbat cards
Ladies’ earrings
A pair of earplugs with bag
A wind-up torch / key ring
A Yankee candle
A pair of blue butterfly earphones for IPod, laptop etc.
Two highlighter pens
A set of post-it notes
A lion eraser
A £1 shaped trolley key ring
A small toy car
Bouncy ball
A car air freshener
Some foreign coins
And for the first to find:-
A National Lottery scratch card – good luck (and well done)! I hope you win a fortune!
Please sign the logbook and maybe leave me a joke!!!
To return to the start you have three choices. You can return by the main road - it's about a half-mile walk, but please take care - it's busy and the footpath is intermittent. Alternatively, you can retrace your steps or my recommended option is to stay up on the higher level and follow the old railway line back, crossing the viaduct, before alighting near to the cricket pitch. This does require an element of scrambling, but hey … it’s more fun, especially in Spring time when the bluebells are out.
Additional Hints
(Decrypt)
Lbh ner qbvat svar ng gur raq bs gur yvar.
Lbh jvyy svaq zr va gur ynfg ohg bar gerr.