Terenure College was founded in 1860 and is the oldest
educational establishment in the Carmelite Order. It is a boys
Junior (primary) and Senior (secondary) school as well as being one
of the largest houses in the Province. In 1972 it ceased being a
boarding school and is now solely a day school though it is also a
centre for the Open University which holds classes in the evenings
and at weekends. The school educates boys for the Department of
Education’s Junior and Leaving Certificates and also has a
wide range of co-curricular activities and is probably best known
as one of the country’s leading rugby-playing schools. The
school recently embarked on another building programme which has
seen the swimming pool renovated and the Community Residence
upgraded. The College Chapel also has a series of stained glass
windows created by Frances Biggs, a well known artist, and which
depict Carmelite themes and saints.
Terenure College developed the Lake Wildlife Walk as part of the
"Environmental and Heritage" aspect of their 150th Anniversary
Celebrations during the academic year 2009/2010. In March 2009 they
commissioned an Ecological Study of the College and devised the
Lake Wildlife Walk and a Biodiversity Action Plan. The walk
provides a little-known quiet zone in the Terenure area but is
generally unknown to most people living in the area. I lived in the
area for a year, walked past the College daily but yet never
realised any of this was here.
The Cache: This is an eleven stage multi cache designed
to take you on a tour of the Lake Wildlife Walk and visit each of
the information stations on the trip. Its the usual multi-cache
story, a piece of information is collected at each stage followed
by the calculators coming out to determine the final location! You
will however require LONG ARMS or a stick to get your hands
on the box.
Update 22/09/11: The stages seem to be getting
damaged/removed by gurriers. The college do work to replace them
but I've placed the answers to all the stages in the hints below in
case one goes missing. Its up to you whether you cheat or not, I
don't care if you do but you'll miss out on a nice walk and the
spirit of the cache if you do!
Station 0: Starting Point The starting point for this
cache will bring you to a sign with a map of the Lake Wildlife
Walk. Find out how many sites Greenstar sponsor in Ireland. Call
this X.
Station 1: Reedbed Station How many 'options for dealing
with such a problem' are mentioned? Call this A
Station 2: Lichens How long can Foliose be? Call this
B
Station 3: Bats - Nocturnal Natural Fly Traps How many
species of bat have been found in Terenure College? Call this
C
Station 4: Holm Oak and Ornamental Trees How many meters
high can a beech tree grow? Call this D
Station 5: Songbird Station How many warbler species look
remarkably similar? Call this E
Station 6: Wild Plants How many times are the words
"Lords and Ladies" mentioned in the text on the right of the
station? Call this F
Station 7: Tree Station How many million Croke Park
Pitches worth of rainforest are lost each year? Call this
G
Station 8: Amphibian Zone How many species are mentioned
in the first paragraph? Call this H
Station 9: Dragonflies and Damselflies If their EYESIGHT
is excellent, let I = 1. If their HEARING is excellent, let I =
2.
Station 10: Waterbirds In the first paragraph, how many
species of swan breed on the main island? Call this J
Final Location: N53 18.LMN W 6 17.QRS
Use the following and work LEFT TO RIGHT. No BOMDAS!
L = (G - X - A)
M = (C + I - J)
N = (E + F + C + I + J)
Q = (D - B)
R = (E + F + C)
S = (E + F + H)
All the waypoints were found using 30+ cycles of Waypoint
Averaging. The final location however has tree cover so a bit of
hunting may be required. Online and GPS mapping is generally
hopeless in this area however www.openstreetmap.com maps the paths
in the area (I did them myself).
Bear in mind you are in the grounds of a College so act
appropriately. Please keep dogs on a lead at all times and don't
let them onto the playing pitches. Permission for this hide has
been granted by the College (many thanks to them!). It is
recommended to do this cache in the evenings, weekends or outside
of term time as hunting will be easier and it will be quieter!