For those who enjoyed my local sets of multi-caches, Rambling round Reading (RrR) and Wandering 'wound Wokingham (WwW), I have at last expanded my horizons (slightly).
It has often been suggested that I do a set of caches in Bracknell, but those who know the town will understand that at a first visit it seems rather "modern" which precudes many of the themes I've used before. I used to work there - I know. Moreover, it is now in the grip of a major town centre refurbishment, which adds to the lack of nice nooks and crannies where you can hide a cache. However, I found a place - and realised I could also use a unique theme that Bracknell has, for the clues.
What is the cache?
This cache requires you to visit a number of locations in the central area of Bracknell. Having solved a clue from each location you'll be able to determine/calculate the location of the final cache. The nature of the series of locations will become apparent very quickly!
Where are the clues?
The route is mainly in the south and east of the central part of the town - as far out as the ring road - but never out into the suburbs. The published coordinates of the cache relate to Bracknell Railway Station - as good a place to start as any if you like. The route between clues depends on exactly which paths you take but isn't critical and there's no significant back tracking in the order I've chosen (just a few short sections!). The locations form a sort of round trip and that's roughly the order given below. As with the original WwW, the intermediary points need NOT be tackled in the order given below, because they do not depend upon the one before.
If you need a map of Bracknell, I have one here.
How far is it?
The total distance is about 2 miles - perhaps a good hour's walking unless you know the area or plan it well in advance. At worst two hours, at a more pedestrian pace!
What's the going like?
The terrain is of course urban, so it's plain easy walking - and Bracknell centre doesn't have any hills. But a point to remember - buildings tend to spoil reception sometimes - and of course young children need supervising. However, I must emphasise that kids might like tackling these clues and it can be walked without crossing any significant roads at all.
Can I have a hint?
I haven't bothered with the normal "Additional Hints" section this time - there's just a hint to the final cache. But the difficulty rating is 'pretty easy' - you should find all this a doddle.
So off we go. In each case I want you to count the items mentioned. To make it even easier I give in each case 5 possible answers - one is right!
|
Number
|
Coordinates
|
Find
|
Answer
|
| 1 |
N51 24.784
W 000 45.047
|
How many cats (1,3,5,7,9)
|
A = |
| 2 |
N51 24.788
W 000 45.042
|
How many chimney stacks (NOT pots) (8,10,12,16,18)
(NB: these are all under cover)
|
B = |
| 3 |
N 51 24.803
W 000 44.993
|
Count the birds on one side; then on the other. Take the smaller from the larger. |
C = |
| 4 |
N51 24.850
W 000 45.025
|
How many footballers (3,5,7,9,11)
|
D = |
| 5 |
N51 24.975
W 000 44.810
|
How many dogs (1,2,4,6,7) |
E = |
| 6 |
N51 25.039
W 000 44.808 |
How many birds (2,4,6,8,10) |
F = |
| 7 |
N51 25.031
W 000 44.783 |
How many horses (1,2,4,6,7) |
G= |
| 8 |
N51 25.022
W 000 44.717 |
How many letters in the longer of the girls' names that start with "L" (3,4,5,6,7) |
H = |
| 9 |
N51 25.049
W 000 44.650 |
How many motorised vehicles (1,3,5,7,9) |
I = |
| 10 |
N51 24.997
W 000 44.656 |
How many bikes/trikes (1,2,3,4,5) |
J = |
| 11 |
N51 24.963
W 000 44.730 |
How many 4-legged creatures (1,2,3,5,7) |
K = |
| 12 |
N51 24.830
W 000 44.863
|
How many iron gates (2,4,6,8,10) |
L = |
| 13 |
N51 24.851
W 000 44.884
|
How many flower pots (2,4,6.8,10)
|
M = |
| 14 |
N51 24.750
W 000 44.900
|
How many divers (1,2,3,4,5)
|
N = |
| 15 |
N51 24.754
W 000 44.948
|
The number of stripes on the balloon [count them all!] (3,6,9,12)
|
O = |
| 16 |
N51 24.763
W 000 45.027 |
How many green shapes (3,5,7,9,11) |
P =
|
Now to determine the final location, you need to do these calculations:
a = C - A
b = M - J
c = B - O
d = E + K - A
e = D - H
f = O - N
g = P - L
h = M + K - D
i = C + G
j = I - P
and the 'cache' is at N51 ab.cde W000 fg.hij
The final cache is a magnetic container.
UPDATE November 2025.
The original host is no longer there !
In order to keep as much of the original cache true to the original cache owner - all the clues and calculations are the same.
To calculate the new coordinates - ADD 4 to the North coordinates and 10 to the West coordinates.
The cache is now located UNDER in the CENTRE.
The GPS is not great due to be "undercover".