FULL DESCRIPTION:
These coordinates are NOT where the cache is hidden -- but instead mark the beginning of the “Fisherman’s Path,” which is an unmarked and unmaintained herd path that runs along the East Branch of the Neversink River in the Slide Mountain Wilderness forest preserve. This preserve is managed by the New York Department of Environmental Conservation (“NY DEC”).
The Fisherman’s Path is a popular approach that many hikers use to access Lone Mountain and Rocky Mountain (which are in the Catskill Mountains of New York State). Although long and strenuous, this hike along the Fisherman’s Path runs through beautiful less-traveled sections of forest and features many beautiful and interesting geological features along the river. It is one of my favorite hikes.
The cache is located somewhere near the Fisherman’s Path – but may be up to 100’ off the path itself. To solve the puzzle and get the coordinates to the cache -- you will need to complete a short orienteering challenge near the canister that is mounted at the summit of each mountain, and then complete a final orienteering challenge to get to the cache itself from the final coordinates. Oh, and because of the (potentially) very valuable swag inside the cache, it is also padlocked. In order to open the padlock -- you will need to do a little extra homework before leaving for your trip. See below -- don't forget!
A “Three Season” Cache -- Not Appropriate If There is Snow on the Ground
Although the Slide Mountain Wilderness is open for recreation year round – you should not attempt this puzzle cache if there is snow on the ground. The orienteering challenges require you to identify objects that likely would not be visible under a coating of snow, and even minor digging in the snow could spoil the scene for other hikers.
The best times of year to attempt this cache are probably in the Spring and Autumn when most of the leaves are off the trees but there is little or no snow on the ground. Most of the tough vegetation that can get in your way while bushwhacking in the summer is gone at these times, and the thorns and poison ivy are much reduced.
However – I hiked these mountains in early July, and still thoroughly enjoyed my hike despite having to deal with some thorns and thick vegetation at times. I wore long pants and long sleeves (synthetic light weight hiking clothes – see link to my checklist below) which kept me from getting scratched-up or exposed to poisonous plants, and kept the biting bugs off my skin as well.
Getting There
Parking is available in Claryville, NY at the end of Denning Road (see parking waypoint provided). From the parking lot, begin on the Phoenicia East Branch Trail which starts out as a gated carriage road at the parking lot. At about 1.2 miles, the trail intersects with the Peekamoose-Table Trail where you will make a right turn at the trail signs to follow the blue markers (see trail waypoint).
Finding the beginning of the Fisherman’s Path can be a bit tricky – if you miss it and keep following the blue markers for too long, you could end up on the summit of Table Mountain instead!
Bushwhacking Lone Mountain and Rocky Mountain
Lone Mountain and Rocky Mountain can be challenging to summit since there is no official trail maintained by NY DEC up either mountain. So anyone attempting to summit these peaks -- or any of the 13 "un-trailed" peaks of the Catskill High Peaks -- needs to learn at least basic orienteering skills using a compass and map. A GPS is obviously great to have as well (especially as a Geocacher) -- but you should always be able to use a compass in case your GPS dies or breaks.
This puzzle cache is designed to be a fun (at least I hope so!) way to start learning about orienteering skills for those who are new to bushwhacking. You should also learn about some hiking safety, and environmental responsibility as you plan your trip to these mountains.
For those who are seasoned at bushwhack hiking and using a compass to find a bearing – you can probably skip right to the section titled “Special Equipment for this Puzzle Cache.”
Basic Orienteering and Navigation
There are many great resources on the Internet for learning basic orienteering skills. To solve this puzzle, you will need to at least be able to find a bearing on a compass and then travel along that bearing from your current location. Although not required to solve the puzzle, before you start out on your hike to Lone and Rocky (or any off-trail "bushwhack" hike) you should also be able to navigate using a compass and map, and should learn about navigating using natural features and landmarks.
Here are a few links to sites and videos that teach basic orienteering and navigation skills – and there are dozens of other great tutorials available on the Internet as well:
http://www.us.orienteering.org/content/orienteering-skills
YouTube: Basic Orienteering Skills [https://youtu.be/bzNA6-lx5n8]
YouTube: Woodsmanship 101 - Navigation I [https://youtu.be/4yli86dgFDw]
YouTube: Woodsmanship 101 - Navigation II [https://youtu.be/z-FsuV_3RLw]
YouTube: How to Get Free Topo Maps - Map and Compass Skills - Video 1 [https://youtu.be/xhaaIG7qpNs]
IMPORTANT -- Don’t Forget About Magnetic Declination!
Also -- it is important to learn about "magnetic declination", because each of the bearings for this puzzle are based on "true north" (NOT magnetic north). So you will need to learn how to adjust your compass to account for magnetic declination.
Some compasses (like mine) allow you to permanently adjust for magnetic declination so you do not need to worry about constantly doing math to make the adjustment. But if you do not have such a compass, then you will need to remember to do the math each time you find a bearing!
Here are a couple of links to sites about magnetic declination, and there are many others available as well:
https://www.rei.com/learn/expert-advice/compass-declination.html
http://www.compassdude.com/compass-declination.php
Proper Equipment and Preparation for a Long Hike
If you hike both Lone Mountain and Rocky Mountain in the same day - you may be hiking more than 12 miles from the Denning Road parking lot and back. Before you strike off into the woods on any long hike you should be sure to have sufficient water (or a way to purify/sanitize water), food, a first aid kit, broken-in hiking boots, a headlamp and other items. You should also consider wearing a “bear bell” when hiking anywhere in the Catskills.
There are many good checklists available on the Internet for the proper equipment and preparation for a long hike. Here is a link to a checklist I’ve put together – which is an ongoing work in progress.
Here is a link and another link to a couple checklists published by the NY DEC as well.
Be Environmentally Responsible While Hiking/Camping
Be sure that "If you carry it in, carry it out" and to "Leave no trace". In fact, to support the gocaching "Cache In Trash Out" initiative, if you see some trash on the ground from someone who didn't "carry it out" -- pick it up yourself and feel good about being a Geocacher who left the Catskills a little cleaner than when you arrived.
Special Equipment for this Puzzle Cache
You will need the following to complete the puzzle:
· Compass with rotating bezel to use for finding a bearing
· Tape measure or rope to measure distance to at least 40’ (I recommend a rope – see below)
Make your own “Measuring Rope” For the puzzle orienteering challenges, you will need an easy and quick way to measure distance along a straight line to about 40'. Here's what I did and took only a few minutes:
· Take a thin nylon rope that is 40' in length (available at popular hiking/camping stores) and lay it out on the floor
· With a black marker, use a metal tape measure to mark off every 5' along the rope starting at one end
You can then use that as your lightweight and easily packable measuring “tape” for the puzzles below. And it’s a lot easier to drape a thin rope along the forest floor and over rocks and plants than a rigid metal tape measure.
The Puzzle
Finally – the puzzle!
On the top of Lone Mountain and Rocky Mountain, you will find a canister maintained by a local hiking club. Go ahead and sign the log book in each canister when you arrive -- this is a nice tradition and it is fun to read the other log entries of prior hikers.
To complete the first part of the puzzle challenge -- you will need to fill in the "xxx" and “x.xxx” portions of the latitude and longitude for the following coordinates:
N 41 58.xxx W 74 2x.xxx
On each mountain, follow these directions (note that the apostrophe symbol ' is used to abbreviate "feet" for distance):
Lone Mountain (Latitude):
1. Standing directly in front of the canister, take a bearing of 16 degrees (from true north! NOT magnetic north! see above)
2. Go 17' along that bearing
3. Then take a bearing of 58 degrees from that location
4. Go 37' along that bearing
5. Take note of the object at that location -- write down the number below corresponding to that object:
· Dead standing tree = 827
· Dead leaning tree (not on the ground) = 752
· Tree Stump = 533
· Log (on the ground) = 466
· Thicket of tangled tree limbs = 676
· Small rock = 813
· Large boulder = 793
· Patch of fern plants = 768
· Bare open rock (under foot) = 512
· Herd path = 479
Rocky Mountain (Longitude):
1. Standing directly in front of the canister, take a bearing of 72 degrees (from true north!)
2. Go 30' in a straight line along that bearing
3. Then take a bearing of 139 degrees from that location
4. Go 38' along that bearing
5. Take note of the object at that location -- write down the number below corresponding to that object:
· Dead standing tree = 2.869
· Dead leaning tree (not on the ground) = 3.257
· Tree Stump = 3.154
· Log (on the ground) = 4.704
· Thicket of tangled tree limbs = 3.059
· Small rock = 3.412
· Large boulder = 5.091
· Patch of fern plants = 4.125
· Bare open rock (under foot) = 3.853
· Herd path = 5.386
Final Coordinates and Getting to the Cache
Go to the coordinates based on the above – it is a location somewhere within 100’ of the Fisherman’s Path. At those coordinates, do the following:
1. Look around and find a tree that appears to be defying gravity.
2. Now turn around 180 degrees to look behind you. You should see a large tree a few yards away with an interesting feature at the bottom of its trunk.
3. Stand directly in front of that tree on its north side.
4. Take a bearing of 63 degrees and go 19' to another tree.
5. Keep going past that tree on the same bearing.
6. 6' beyond that tree on that same bearing there is a moss covered stone.
7. At the base of this stone you will find a smaller stone - hidden underneath you should find the cache.
The cache is a small latching Pelican container inside two zippered plastic bags. As discussed above, it is also padlocked. The padlock is a letter combination lock. You have to figure out the right word to make from the letters available. Remember to do your homework (see below) – or else you might have a hard time figuring out the combination...
Once you figure out the combination -- be careful removing the padlock. You will have to unlatch the lid and then twist and wiggle the padlock a bit. It will come off without forcing it too much. The plastic of the container is pretty tough but not unbreakable.
WHEN YOU PUT THE PADLOCK BACK ON -- BE CAREFUL NOT TO PINCH YOUR FINGERS IN THE LID - I did that the first time. Ouch!
To re-lock the lid, you will have to twist and push the latch of the padlock back through the holes while the lid is still unlocked -- it's a bit tricky but you'll get it with a bit of maneuvering and wiggling around. Once the padlock is latched, then you can snap shut the latch on the plastic lid too.
PLEASE RESET THE WORD ON THE COMBINATION LOCK TO "MARK" -- DON'T LEAVE THE ANSWER ON THE LOCK PLEASE!
Then please return the cache to the plastic bags, zip up the bags and then return the cache to beneath the smaller rock like you found it.
Wow that was a lot of work putting that together (including the hikes up both mountains) but a lot of fun! My first cache too... I hope everyone who attempts this has as much fun finding this cache as I did hiding it!!
Thanks for playing!
CrazyNightHiker
DON'T FORGET YOUR ADDITIONAL IMPORTANT HOMEWORK:
2016 saw several movies devoted to the superhero genre. Before you leave on your trip -- you should be familiar with the names of each of the superheroes who appeared in these movies.
PERMISSION TO PLACE THIS CACHE:
Geocaching is permitted by the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation ("NY DEC") on NY DEC-managed lands, which includes the Slide Mountain Wilderness where this cache is hidden. See http://www.dec.ny.gov/outdoor/98952.html for more information.