Dumbiedykes - Bauks View Traditional Cache
Lorgadh: As the owner has not responded to my previous log requesting that they check this cache I am archiving it.
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Karen
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Beautiful wild garden near the Dumbiedykes Estate. Enjoy the views.
Dumbiedykes is an area of central Edinburgh, located between Salisbury Crags, the Pleasance, and the Moray House campus of Edinburgh University. It comprises the three streets of Viewcraig Gardens, Viewcraig Street and Dumbiedykes Road.
It takes its name from the first School for the Deaf and Dumb that was founded nearby by Thomas Braidwood in the 1800's. For many years in the late 1800's and the first half of the 20th century the housing in the area was of a very poor quality. Indeed the Victorian tenements were known as the "Penny Tenements", the story being that the dilapidation was so bad that the owner of the properties, afraid of being liable should an accident occur, was so desperate to sell that he was prepared to let the properties be purchased for a single penny! No-one took him up on the offer.
Dumbiedykes is now a council housing scheme. Built in the 50's and 60's, and owned by the council ever since, it has until recently been the centre of a controversial plan to transfer the council's housing stock in the area to Housing Association control, with the promise of a massive injection of cash to renew the fabric of the properties (which fell through just before Christmas 2002).
There are around 700 individual flats and maisonettes in all, compressed in an area about a quarter of a mile square. Apart from owner occupiers and private tenants (of which there are a growing number, consisting of young professionals and students), the vast majority of residents are council tenants, some of whom have lived on the scheme since its inception, with a smaller proportion finding temporary accommodation on the scheme.
The district between Holyrood Park and the Pleasance was once an area of arable land divided into strips by DYKES.
Around 1764, Thomas Braidwood established an Academy for the Deaf and Dumb here, on the east side of St Leonard's road.
The Academy soon became known by the nickname DUMMIE HOOSE. It closed in 1873, but the nickname remained. The house appeared on Kirkwood's 1817 map of Edinburgh as DUMBIE HOUSE, and was later known as Craigside. It was demolished in 1939.
This cache is situated in Bauks View, a small garden which was formerly an old car park, which, when it became unused, was neglected and became waste ground. When work was carried out on the new houses at Briary Bauks, the local community got together and discussed what could be done with this piece of land. It was agreed that the most appropriate use of the ground would be to turn it into a nature garden and a community grant was obtained in 1998 to fund the transformation of the site.
Work started on the garden in late 1998 and was completed in April 2000. The works included the planting of the mixed hedge around the perimeter which includes a mix of blackthorn, dog rose, holly and field elder. Wooden seats were also installed with a small bridge, a rock garden and a heather border which has almost every variety available within the UK. A hardcore pathway was put in by volunteers from the 104 Field Squadron Royal Engineers from the Teritorial Army. Local school children and other volunteers helped to plant and set up other items in the new garden.
The garden is not high maintenance and is left in a mostly natural state, to encourage a wide range of bodiversity within its boundary. In spring and summer the grassed areas are a mass of colour created by the many wild flowers.
The garden today is still mostly maintained by keen local volunteers, with any other required maintenance carried out by the council's task force.
The garden has spectacular views of both arthur's Seat and Salisbury Crags and walking to Edinburgh's famous hill is only a matter of minutes away. Many local residents who also use the garden as a short cut to and from the neighbouring Dumbiedykes Estate.
For those wondering where the name Bauks View came from, the word Bauks is old scots for an uncultivated piece of land beneath crags, and view was formed from the fantastic view of Salisbury Crags from the garden.
The cache itself is a micro containing only a log book. BYOP.
Additional Hints
(Decrypt)
Ovfba ba ohfu oruvaq orapu.
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