While driving round Sheffield's inner ring road in recent years, I have often glanced towards an almost hidden and apparently forgotten footbridge spanning the River Don between two parallel road bridges. It had looked completely inaccessible, but more recently I noticed that it had been renovated and so I went to explore further.
I was pleased to discover that a group of local volunteers are in the process of renovating the bridge which, as it turns out, has a fascinating history. The first bridge spanning the river here was built early in the 18th century and made of wood. It was replaced by the first iron bridge in 1815, which in turn was replaced by the present structure in 1841.
By this time, the Industrial Revolution was well underway and Sheffield was growing rapidly. In 1845, Bridgehouses railway station opened and the bridge became a popular short-cut for passengers. However, the bridge was washed away in the Great Flood of 1864 when the Dale Dyke burst.
The ironwork was replaced in 1921, supported by the original ramparts from 1841. However, over the years that followed the bridge became neglected, inaccessible and very rusty. Finally, in 2015, the Friends of Bridgehouses Footbridge were formed and approached Sheffield City Council with a view to restoring it. Yorkshire Water, whose water main still ran under the walkway, agreed to fund the project and so today the bridge is once again accessible (even if it still can't be used to cross the river!).
In order to find the cache, answer the following questions using information you will find close to the bridge's entrance. Simply make a note of the numbers denoted by each letter...
The distance to Sheffield, Ontario: 5A52 kilometres
The distance to Darnall: 2B furlongs
The distance to Saffron Walden: C37.2 miles
The distance to Sheffield's twin city of Esteli, Nicaragua: 85D5 kilometres
The distance to Fulwood: 2EF chains
The distance to Woodseats: G312 rods
The distance to Sheffield, New Zealand: 187H4 kilometres
Note: This information is now missing from the sign, so you will have to think outside the box to get the answer (a map app might help...)
The distance to Sheffield, Jamaica: 746K kilometres
Now substitute the letters for numbers in the following set of coordinates and find the cache:
N53 2A.BCD, W001 2(E+F).GHK
The cache container is only a short walk away and is large enough to contain small swappables and trackables. You don't have to enter any private property to retrieve it. Please note that the location of the final container, and the nature of the container itself, were changed in November 2016.
Happy finding!