Fallasburg Bridge Multi-Cache
Hidden : 9/6/2013
Difficulty:
2 out of 5
Terrain:
2 out of 5

Size: Size: regular (regular)

Join now to view geocache location details. It's free!

Watch

How Geocaching Works
Looking for a different adventure?

Please note Use of geocaching.com services is subject to the terms and conditions in our disclaimer.

Geocache Description:


Fallasburg Bridge
To find the final geocache for this two-stage multi, proceed to the posted coordinates where you will find a historical sign for the Fallasburg Bridge. Find the values for a,b,c, and d and plug those numbers into the coordinate listing below.

N 42 59.0ab  W 85 20.2cd

a = Last digit of the year several wooden bridges were placed across the Flat River
b = Last digit of the number after 'REGISTERED STATE SITE NO", minus 2
c = At the very bottom of the sign is a year. From that year, take the last digit and subtract it from the second to last digit.
d = Third digit from the year the Fallass brothers settled in the area

You can check if your answers are correct by adding up all 4 numbers.
Their sum should equal a checksum of 14

The 100 foot, single span Fallasburg Bridge crosses the Flat River five miles north of Lowell. The picturesque setting of Fallasburg Park displays one of Michigan's oldest native covered bridges to perfection. The use of the Brown truss in this bridge and its two close neighbors, Ada and Whites is unique to this area of the state. John W. and Silas S. Fallass settled here in 1837, founding the village which soon became the main stage route from Ionia to Grand Rapids and boasted a chair factory(considered an important precursor to the furniture industry in the Grand Rapids area), sawmill and gristmill. The grist mill site was the focus of an archaeological dig by Michigan Tech industrial archaeologists in 2003.

Around 1840 the first of several wooden bridges was placed across the Flat River, but all fell victim to high water and massive spring ice jams. Bridge builder Jared N. Bresee of Ada was given a contract in 1871 to build the present structure. Repairs in 1905 and 1945 have kept the Fallasburg Bridge safe for traffic for more than one hundred twenty five years. Along with Zehnder's Holz Brucke (in Frankenmuth), it is one of only two Michigan covered bridges open to vehicle traffic (sadly, the third was White's Bridge which was burned down by an arsonist in July of 2013). The bridge has warning signs on each portal: "$5 fine for riding or driving on this bridge faster than a walk".

In August of 2013 the bridge was closed after a 31 ton cement truck drove over the bridge (which has a 3 ton weight limit!) The truck caused minor damage to the bridge's interior cross-bracing, and while it was feared there were more substantial structural damage to the bridge, it survived and was re-opened. The County Inspector said steel tension rods installed on the bridge in the 1930s, and replaced in 1994, likely kept the span from collapsing into the Flat River below.

With the loss of Whites Bridge to an arson fire on July 7, Fallasburg is the last original construction covered bridge in West Michigan. The Ada Covered Bridge, once the oldest, was rebuilt after a 1979 arson fire. All three were built using the Brown Truss design that did not achieve wide popularity outside of West Michigan.

Vergennes Township and Kent County approved splitting the cost of spraying the bridge with a fire retardant and security measures like lighting and/or some form of surveillance camera or monitoring system at the bridge.

Additional Hints (Decrypt)

Terra Qrpba pbagnvare ghpxrq vagb gerr nobhg 4 srrg bss gur tebhaq

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)


Advertising with Us