Fort Townsend was established by the U.S Army in 1856 to protect settlers in the area. It was used off and on until 1895 when it was abandoned after a fire destroyed major buildings. Few signs of structures from this era (such as the guard house and dock pictured above) remain. There is, however, an short interpretive trail in the park that will lead you through some of the history of Fort Townsend.
This puzzle cache uses information gathered from interpretive signs along the walk to lead you to the final. The listed coordinates will take you to the start of your walk. The final is located at N 48° 04.ABC' W 122° 47.DEF'. The clues below are given in the order that you'll encounter them on the walk. Not all signs will be used. You'll need to do a bit of rearranging when you fill in the final coordinates.
The starting coordinates will take you to a plaque commemorating Fort Townsend's placement on the state's register of historic places. What year did this take place? The third (tens) digit of the year will give you B.
The interpretive walk starts to the left of this plaque. It continues down a small hill and then south following the trees planted on the edge of the parade grounds. Follow it to the southern edge of the clearing. The large firs that you'll see along here are believed to be the oldest planted in Washington state. When were they planted? Subtracting the third digit from the second digit of the listed date will give you A.
The company barracks (interior pictured below) was the largest building in the fort. What was its size? The last digit of the largest dimension will give you E.
The interpretive walk continues up the hill through the woods. When you reach a split in the trail bear left, staying in the woods. This will bring you to a description of the fort's cistern. Fort Townsend is in the rain shadow of the Olympics. Providing water to the fort was always a problem - even before the spring described here dried up. How many tanks were in this cistern? Doubling this figure is probably a better take on how many tanks they wish that they'd been able to fill and will give you C.
Turn left when you reach the trail paralleling the bluff.
The post trader's headquarters gave soldiers an opportunity to purchase basics and some luxury items to improve what could be a dreary life in the fort. When did the Army start allowing franchised traders? Use the last digit of this date as F.
Fort Townsend was primarily an infantry fort. There is, however, record of one company of artillery stationed at the fort. The regiment number of this artillery gives you D.
If you've calculated correctly you should find that A + B + C = 16 and D + E + F = 11.
The final for this cache is located at:
N 48° 04.ABC' W 122° 47.DEF'
These coordinates will take you to another relic of the park's history.
Fort Townsend's yearly living history encampment provides another opportunity to learn about life during the early days of Fort Townsend. This event, cosponsored by Washington State Parks and Friends of Fort Townsend, takes place in late summer or early fall.
Fort Townsend State Park is located on the Olympic Peninsula a few miles south of Port Townsend. The park is open year round for day use from 8 AM to dusk. A Discover Pass is required for parking. The park is open for camping from late spring through early fall (see the park page for details).
Congratulations to hawknomore and the Pirate for a cool (err... cold) first to find!
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- This geocache has an approved Permit to be placed at this location on property managed by the Washington State Parks and Recreation Commission. Visitors are responsible for acquainting themselves with policies and rules pertaining to State Parks areas.
- The following items may not be placed in the geocache: food, illegal substances, medications, personal hygiene products, pornographic materials, hazardous materials, or weapons of any type.
- By searching for the cache, visitors agree that they are responsible for their own actions, and acknowledge that neither the State of Washington nor the cache owner is responsible for any loss or injury that may occur in relation to such search.
- Report any incident, problem, or violation to State Parks staff.
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