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Hill-man goes fishing, misses the train! Multi-Cache

Hidden : 7/11/2014
Difficulty:
3 out of 5
Terrain:
2 out of 5

Size: Size:   small (small)

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Geocache Description:

A short stroll along a well-used path, leading to a fairly easy walk up a bank, no hands-on climbing involved! Under trees, so GPS variable in summer. Please hide the cache carefully, this area is popular with oik-type muggles.
I will keep checking the coordinates for a while, but you should always be on the Nunnery side of the river and between the railway and the power station. The easiest parking is on the Middle River Ind. Estate. 


Hill-man has made it into the big city yessir! Having had a look around, been unimpressed by being surrounded by so many people, he lights out for the country again. Coming out along the Old Castletown Road he spots a footpath bearing off to the right at the Nunnery, it looks like it may go near the river and he has his fishing gear to hand (don't ask why he took fishing gear to town, we're talking about Hill-man here). Part way along there is an open area, glorious for sitting in the sun for lunch or just reading on a fine day as it is sheltered by high trees all around. The only problem is finding your way in! Having inspected this area Hill-man proceeds on to the nearby river to try his luck. Several suitable spots to be found, I just hope he has kept his licence valid, and doesn't upset the local anglers association! Standing under the trees, lost in thought on a warm, sunny afternoon, suddenly he hears the train whistle in the station. "Oh Lors, I forgot the train, I wonder if they'll let me get on just up the path?" A very rapid grab of rod and line, a run up the path and round the wall (that was a sight to behold), he arrives just as the train does. Stop? No chance, the driver is giving it full steam, this is the worst part of the journey south. In the days of full trains there used to be a banking engine up here, until the track levels out at Lough Ned. Sadly surveying the receding train Hill-man considers his options; a) wait in Douglas for the next train (tomorrow), b) get the bus (can't carry the fishing gear) or c) walk back south. Option a) is out, he hasn't enough cash for B&B, c) will take too long, so he hides his gear in the woods for later recovery and strolls on along the path until he comes out near the power station. Following his usual hopeless plans he heads past the nearby bus stop, over the old bridge, and turns left to catch the bus as it comes along Peel Road. This will allow him to obtain a butty at one of the filling stations before the bus comes and takes him off to Quarterbridge and a left turn south. Yes, you've noticed the flaw, the southbound bus turns left over the old bridge, along Groves Road! How long will he wait before the truth dawns on him? We will see, further adventures await?

Apparently, long before even the days of Hill-man's adventures, even before the power station, the path from the Nunnery was an accepted route for the residents of Douglas to get to Braddan Church for Sunday services. At sometime in the nineteenth century the then-owner, one of the Goldie-Taubmans, tried to stop the path, to preserve the privacy of his grounds. This led to protests and eventually a judicial hearing which found in favour of the protesters, reinstating the right of way. Shades of PROWL at Langness! Apparently the present wall was built to delineate the path. What was the purpose of the gates which used to open onto the railway at stage two of this cache is unclear to me, as there is no access into the grounds on the other side of the track. Further investigation, while waiting for trains to photograph, revealed the remains of a possible entrance into the grounds some yards down the track on the Nunnery side. There is also a residual gateway at the lower end of the wall near the river. A private entrance to the Braddan path possibly? A more knowledgable Douglas resident could perhaps enlighten us further?

Now to find the hidden gear. At the given coords (close to Hill-man's fishing spot) you will spot a two digit number. Add this to 862 to find to the west coord, add it to 913 to find the north coord of stage two. On your route between stages you should spot a phone number, take a note of this, it may be useful later. S2 is the spot he thought to hop on the train. If you time it right this gives a great view of the train blasting up towards Port Soderick. On the fence is a sign, count the number of letters before the hyphen, add this number to 925, add to 982, these are the N and W coords for the final. This will be found in a tree not too far away. Approaching the fence you will have a grandstand view of the trains, pulling up or coasting down the track. I apologise in advance to all who attempt this in summer, the tree cover really confuses the GPS devices. The final is in a hollow tree.

 

Additional Hints (Decrypt)

[S1] Haqre gur genpx. [S2] Orfvqr gur genpx. [Final] sbhe srrg hc.

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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