Isaac Graham, a mountain man of Scottish descent, settled here near Felton in 1842 and it wasn't long before his wild settlement was dubbed Roaring Camp. Here he founded a distillery and the first saw mill west of the Mississippi. Today Graham's Roaring Camp provides the location of the annual Scottish Gathering and Highland Games each October. The cache container itself is within view of Roaring Camp.
According to the Mountain Bulletin, "Former Boulder Creek business owner and Celtic jewelry artist, Garth Duncan, helped bring the Games to the valley in the 1990s with the inception of the Loch Lomond Celtic Society. Inspired in part by the legendary “Scottish Days” at Ben Lomond’s Highlands Park back in the 1960s, it started conceptually in Garth’s shop on Memorial Day 1994. Garth spearheaded what became the popular Loch Lomond Games at Highlands Park, which lasted from 1996-2008 before moving his family and his craft to Scotland. The Loch Lomond Highland Games attracted professional athletes, skilled artisans, internationally renowned Celtic musicians, and thousands of visitors, which, as the festival grew, resulted in traffic difficulties along the Highway 9 corridor. Increasing costs and other factors contributed to the decision by the Loch Lomond Celtic Society to suspend the Games in 2009 ... (The games were moved) ... to San Lorenzo Park in Santa Cruz to more readily accommodate the crowds and alleviate parking restrictions inherent with Highlands Park. The Santa Cruz Games where a roaring success but the location did not replicate the magic and charm of the Highlands; the Games were suspended in 2010." Now as Chief of Big Trees Scottish Gathering and Highland Games, Jeff Simpson says, the new location breathes life into the celebration of all things Scottish and rekindles the connection to the Santa Cruz Mountains. As Jeff says, “The reason we want to have the Games in the valley is because of the rich Scottish heritage.” Place names such as Ben Lomond, Bracken Brae and Bonny Doon; road signs bearing the names of the valley’s Scottish settlers; a stone fountain near Highlands Park marking the location of the long vanished 19th century Rowardennan Hotel , the name referencing an enchanted Scottish flower and the Celtic word for “high woodland.”
Other caches in this series are:
The Road to Alba: GC1H4C4
The Rowardennan Fountain II GC6NDY7
The Bonny Doon Bus: GC2H6GG
MacKenzie Creek GC29D6R
The Kirking o’ the Tartans GC1HARB
Bonny Doon GC4W111
Howden Castle GC6NDXN
Ben Lomond Lookout Trailhead: GC2K2JZ
MacGregor Despite Them: GC5YM8A
My Heart’s in Highlands Park II GC6NEM1
Jason Brown & Ben Lomond Mountain GC6NHJ8
Loch Lomond GC6NF0R