The Metropolitan Branch Trail, a rail-trail conversion that was originally conceived of in 1988, will eventually be an 8-mile trail running from DC's Union Station up to Silver Spring, Maryland. The existing portion of the trail connects a number of vibrant neighborhoods, and boasts a number of great views of places in the city as well as some unique artwork.
Did you know there's a coffee roastery along the trail? The owner, originally from Honduras, imports the coffee from his home country and roasts and sells it here in DC. This cache is meant to highlight the mural on the back of the building. From Meghan Taylor, one of the artists (local artist Qwest Skinner was the lead artist on the project):
"That mural was painted by DC youth in the summer of 2010, I believe as part of the DC Summer Youth Employment Program. There's a lot going on in that mural...the roads symbolize on a literal level the bicycle path and transportation - and on a more abstract level the idea of journeys. The butterflies are symbols of transition and journey (like the roads), and within the wings are symbols of different places all over the world. In the center of the mural is a big coffee cup with a waterfall of coffee pouring into it. Of course meant to represent the building itself (a coffee roaster) and Honduras. There's also a lot of brightness - all of the flowers and colors, which I saw as kind of a message of optimism."
This cache is only accessible from the trail. Coordinates are as close as possible, but geosense will serve you better on this one. Bring a writing utensil!
Congrats to wizardofmd69 and Dixiegurl Suzanne for FTF!!