Rackwick View Traditional Cache
ussr1049: Sadly the owner of this cache has passed away
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Difficulty:
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Terrain:
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Size: 
(small)
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A cache at the stunning beach at Rackwick, Hoy, in the Orkney Islands
A 1.5l clip and lock plastic box in a camouflage bag, which has a log, pencil and various tradeables.
Rackwick Bay is a strikingly beautiful beach enclosed by red sandstone cliffs. If travelling north on the road from Lyness, turn left onto the road signposted to the Dwarfie Stane and Rackwick, alternatively, if walking or driving from Moaness Pier the junction is on the right. At the very end of the road, park at the carpark, from where the walk to the Old Man of Hoy starts, but don't follow that path! Parking coordinates N58°52.396' W003°.23.157'.
For the cache, walk down past the public toilets and bothy to the dunes and the beach.
The terrain can be quite boggy when on the paths and close by the cache, and also either requires walking in sand dunes or on a rocky beach so walking boots are advised. The Rackwick Burn has to be crossed, if walking above the beach, by a foot bridge. The cache is situated a little less than a mile from the carpark. Be careful, the final approach to the cache site can be quite wet and slippery and there are a couple of what look like surprisingly deep holes in an otherwise shallow stream. Please be cautious of overshooting the cache site if you are on the beach, as the tide comes right in at the base of the cliffs – but you can get to the cache without walking on the beach.
Rackwick has its own microclimate and is often warmer than elsewhere in Orkney. Though it can suffer from midges in the summer, the views and landscape make the suffering worthwhile!
Rackwick is the home to the Crows Nest Museum, a bothy which people can stay in, the Rackwick Hostel, and was, for a time, home to composer Sir Peter Maxwell Davies, who wrote works inspired by the area, including a beautiful piece, Lullaby for Lucy, for the last baby born in the bay, Lucy Rendall.
To get to Hoy from the Orkney Mainland you can get either the foot passenger ferry from Stromness to Moaness, or the car ferry from Houton to Lyness.
The cache is sited in the Hoy RSPB Reserve. The RSPB have very kindly given permission for the cache to be sited here, but please, as always, respect the environment around it as well as enjoying this wonderful reserve.
Additional Hints
(Decrypt)
Jrqtrq va orgjrra fgbarf haqre urngure
Treasures
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