The Lucky 7 series. Find seven cache types in a day!
This short Wherigo adventure takes you to meet the ghosts of Kings Edwin and Penda, and then on to a historic spot and the information needed to find the cache.
Edwin was King of Northumbria from 616 until his death in 633. His early years were spent in exile in Wales and East Anglia while Ethelfrith ruled Northumbria. Edwin was originally from Deira, the southern part of Northumbria, while Ethelfrith was from Bernicia, the northern half. He married Cwenburg of Mercia and they had two sons. In 616, with the help of Redwald, king of East Anglia, Edwin defeated Ethelfrith and won back his lands and the right to be king.
Cwenburg presumably died and Edwin sought to marry Ethelburga, a Christian princess from Kent. Permission to marry Ethelburga was granted on the condition that she be free to practice her own religion and that Edwin seriously consider adopting the religion for himself and his people. And so, Ethelburga travelled to Northumbria with her chaplain Paulinus, who would spread Christianity throughout the north. It was not until Easter 627 that Edwin finally agreed to be baptized.
Edwin expanded his kingdom north and west so that it came to include the Isle of Man and Anglesey. However, he was unable to defeat Penda of Mercia who killed him at the battle of Hatfield Chase in 633. This battle site is traditionally thought to be near Doncaster, but the area just north of here known as Hatfield may have stronger claims.
Did a king die at Cuckney?
In any case, nearby Edwinstowe is thought to mean "King Edwin's resting place", and the cross close to this path is dedicated to Saint Edwin.
You'll need to download the Wherigo cartridge to your phone or device, then go to the published coordinates and use a Wherigo player to follow the trail. It should take less than 15 minutes altogether. Along the way you might want to log the neighbouring Virtual cache, so that you can follow the challenge of logging 7 different cache types in a day (or even an hour!).
Click here to access the wherigo cartridge.