Skip to content

A House in the Woods (Five Rivers MetroParks) Traditional Cache

This cache has been archived.

Clan RunningBison: I'm sad to be doing this, but it's time to archive this cache. I received a very nice email today from the MetroParks telling me that the way the container is hidden violates the park system's geocaching policy. It's frustrating because the cache has been in place for more than four years and I was very clear about the details surrounding how this cache would be hidden from the moment I completed the application. The cache was also inspected several times over the years by MetroParks volunteers and I never heard any concerns. I had the option to remove the birdhouse from the tree and hide it on the ground, but that doesn't make sense given the intent of this cache.

In any case, I want to be a good steward for geocaching in the parks so I'm archiving. Thanks very much to everyone who made this find, especially those with kind words for the container. And thanks to MetroParks for allowing caches in the awesome parks here in the Miami Valley. This is a nice spot for a cache and is very close to my house so maybe I'll come up with something more traditional if nobody places one here soon.

More
Hidden : 1/7/2013
Difficulty:
2 out of 5
Terrain:
2.5 out of 5

Size: Size:   other (other)

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

Watch

How Geocaching Works

Related Web Page

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

Geocache Description:

Small Lock 'N Lock container hidden in a creative way just off the Inspiration Point Trail in Hills & Dales MetroPark. Please park in the Old Barn Camp lot at the provided coordinates. Parking is not permitted along Oak Knoll Dr. west of Ridgeway.

From the Five Rivers MetroParks history of Hills & Dales Park:


John H. Patterson, chairman of National Cash Register Company, believed that education and outdoor exercise were the pillars of good health for not only himself, but also his employees. He began a relationship with the Olmsted Brothers in 1894 after developing a strong appreciation for their “natural school” of landscaping gardening.


Hills & Dales Park must have been a novel experience for most Daytonians when it opened in 1907. With its carefully designed meadows, water and woods, it was meant to recreate in gardens the perfection found in nature. It was intended to provide a place for city dwellers to conveniently enjoy beautiful natural scenery and obtain relief from the nervous strain of urban life.


In its early days, park goers could take a short ride from the city and be immersed in nature. They strolled walking paths on foot or horse. They picked blackberries, wild strawberries, May apples, walnuts and hickory nuts and ate them on the grounds. They lingered near wading pools and picnicked in Adirondack camps.


Since then, the original character of the site has been transformed by years of vegetation growth and the addition of new park features, including a Patterson memorial and a golf course in what was once a series of open meadows and a Polo course.


The park became a MetroPark in 1999, and is currently in the middle of a massive master plan improvements intended to bring the tract of land back to its former glory

This geocache is placed near the ruins of an old house in the Old Barn Camp section of the park, just south of Oak Knoll Drive. I've included a keychain TB that's looking to visit all 50 United States and a few of my Vinylmation Boy Scout Pathtags for trades. After you find the cache, take a look up in a tree about 30 feet east of the old chimney and see an old basketball-sized hornet nest.
 
The cache has been placed with the kind permission of Five Rivers MetroParks, permit# 12-12-2039. To learn more about geocacing in the Five Rivers MetroParks, please visit their website.


Park Hours: 

  • Nov. 1 - March 31, 8 am – 8 pm

  • April 1 - Oct. 31, 8 am – 10 pm

  • Closed Christmas and New Year's Day

Additional Hints (Decrypt)

Ab arrq gb sbepr vg. Ybbx sbe n qbhoyr-urnqrq anvy arne gur gbc evtug.

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)