This geocache is located near 'The Flag Pole' which, as you can probably guess by the name, is a flag pole. 'The Flag Pole' is located at the top of a mountain on the Laurentian University campus and it is a place that Laurentian students like to hike up to. You can see it from the parking lot of the Northern Ontario School of Medicine. This mountain has a great view of the Laurentian campus and the surrounding lakes.
Once at the top of the mountain, there is a summit log in a long black bison tube among the rocks at the base of the flag pole. This is NOT the geocache. Students who hike up here sign the summit log and write about their hiking adventure. In order to keep the geocache safe from muggles, it is located away from the flag pole but it is still within the vicinity.
Part of the adventure is to figure out how to get to 'The Flag Pole' yourself so I leave that up to you. I will, however, give you a few tips:
1) A good place to start is to the right of the green shed at the end of the parking lot of the Northern Ontario School of Medicine. You can then start hiking through the bush.
2) It is possible to cross the stream by walking across some large rocks that you can find at a certain spot in the stream.. If you feel uncomfortable crossing the stream this way, there is a road nearby that you can simply walk along and then you can go back into the bush once you are past the stream.
3) You will cross a trail that is used for cross-country skiing during the winter.
4) If you go during the winter, you will probably be able to find a trail of footprints in the snow that you can follow up the mountain.
5) As long as you are going up and towards the flag pole, you will get there eventually.
6) As always, be safe! During the winter, be careful as you will be walking through deep snow and the rocks will be slippery. During the spring and summer, practice bear safety. At all times of the year, be careful if you cross the stream by using the rocks because they may be slippery.
How long it takes you to get to the geocache depends on your hiking and climbing ability as well as which way you go to get up the mountain. The geocache is a large pill bottle so simply push down on the lid and turn it to the left in order to open it. It is still a small container so it can only fit tiny items. BYOP and watch out for muggles! Please make sure that you hide the geocache back properly and out of view.
Parking
Parking in a Laurentian parking lot requires payment and there is a pay and display parking lot near the Health Sciences Education Resource Centre which is near the Northern Ontario School of Medicine. It is $2 for an hour or $8 for a day. Parking information can be found on the 'Parking' page on the Laurentian website and there is also a map showing all of the parking lots and Laurentian campus buildings on the 'Campus Maps' page on the Laurentian website. If you choose not to pay and park in a Laurentian parking lot, you could probably park along South Bay Road and then walk through the bush to either get to the starting point near the green shed or to find your own way up to the flag pole.