Credit River - Nuestra Señora de Atocha Traditional Cache

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Hidden : 7/5/2013
Difficulty:
2 out of 5
Terrain:
4.5 out of 5

Size: Size: regular (regular)

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Geocache Description:


Credit River - Shipwreck Series

Nuestra Señora de Atocha
 September 6, 1622



There are many shipwrecks around the world. Some very famous and others not so. Each however has it’s own story to tell. As you travel along the Credit River doing this series of caches, we have highlighted a number of these shipwrecks. During low water levels on these parts of the Credit River, you need to be careful in a canoe or kayak so as you don’t wind up in your own shipwreck. Besides the many large rocks along the way, there are also some other obstacles such as dams which should be avoided. All of the geocaches in this series have been placed by tubing, inflatable boat or on foot by walking in the water along the Credit River. Whichever way you choose to search for these caches, use caution and common sense.
More information about this series can be found here: Credit River - Shipwreck Series

Nuestra Señora de Atocha
On September 6, the Atocha was driven by a severe hurricane onto the coral reefs near the Dry Tortugas, about 56 km west of Key West. With her hull badly damaged, the vessel quickly sank, drowning everyone on board except for three sailors and two slaves who had lashed themselves to the masts.

After the surviving ships brought the news of the disaster back to Havana, Spanish authorities dispatched another five ships to salvage the Atocha (and the Santa Margarita) which had run aground near where the Atocha sank. The Atocha had sunk in approximately 55 feet of water, making it difficult for divers to retrieve any of the cargo or guns from the ship. A second hurricane in October of that year made attempts at salvage even more difficult by scattering the wreckage of the ship still further.

The loss of the 1622 fleet had an immediate impact on Spain, forcing it to borrow more to finance its role in the Thirty years’ War and to sell several galleons to raise funds. While their efforts over the next 10 years to salvage the Margarita were successful, the Spanish never located the Atocha.

American treasure hunter Mel Fisher and a team of sub-contractors, funded by investors and others in a joint venture, searched the sea bed for the Atocha for 16 ½ years. Fisher had earlier recovered portions of the wrecked cargo of the sister ship Santa Margarita in 1980. He also proposed the idea to several other potential helpers who were discouraged by the fact that this dangerous professional diving job was at minimum wage unless the ship was found. On a sad note, Fisher suffered many personal losses to keep his dream alive during his 16 year search. July 20 1985 marked the tenth anniversary of the death of Mel’s oldest son, Dirk, Dirks wife-Angel, and a crewman Rick Gage. The three drowned when the company’s salvage tug Northwind capsized. Three days before his death Dirk had located a pile of bronze cannons. Those cannons confirmed that these scattered artefacts the divers had been finding for the past years were part of the long-lost Atocha.

The Atocha wreck and its mother lode of silver, gold, and emeralds was finally discovered in July 1985. It was Mel’s other son Kane who radioed the news to Treasure Salvors headquarters on the Florida coast. It is now understood by the experts that the stern castle, the part of the ship that would hold most of the gold and rare Muzo emeralds is still missing from the shipwreck. These would have been stored in the Captains cabin for safekeeping in the rear part of the Atocha.

After the discovery, the State of Florida claimed title to the wreck, and forced Mel into a contract giving 25% of the found treasure to the state! After EIGHT years of litigation, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in favour of Fisher on July 1 1982. Fisher died on December 19,1998. In addition to the loss of lives, the search consumed 58 million dollars-profits from Fishers earlier salvage of a fleet of galleons sunk in 1715-plus the funds of hundreds of investors. ( One being a friend of mine)

In June 2011, treasure divers from Mel Fisher’s Treasure found an antique emerald ring believed to be from the Spanish boat. It is said the ring is worth an estimated $500,000. The ring was found 35 miles from Key West, along with two silver spoons and other artifacts.



Congratulations Flinhi FTF!!!

Additional Hints (Decrypt)

Onpx fvqr bs ovt qbhoyr gehaxrq gerr. Ba Tebhaq. Terra Ybpx naq Ybpx gernfher obk svyyrq jvgu tbyq qhoybbaf.

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)


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