Welcome to the Chelsea Youth Fields, the primary center of the youth baseball program in the city! (At least, until the new complex was built on Highway 11. . .) These fields have been in Chelsea since before I was born (to the best of my knowledge; in any case, its been a pretty long time), and many a-game have filled the stands through the years. Plus, the concession stand has good boiled peanuts! This is where I played for my entire baseball career: exactly one (1) year, fall and spring season, when I was 9 years old. I then realized that I was bad at baseball. I've since learned to cope with this reality. In any case, with the fields having been here for so long, it was no small travesty for them to be cache-deficient! Luckily, I'm here to fill the pill bottle-sized hole in Chelsea's heart.
Well, you won't *really* be going to the baseball fields, but behind them. The cache is placed along a creek that runs behind the parking lot (and holds quite a few lost balls by now), and I recommend parking at the back of the complex (near the dumpster). The lot may be busy on practice or game days, and getting into the woods without getting spotted may be difficult, but the woods and creek are far from public-access, so once you break the woodline, stealth won't be difficult to maintain. There are two basic routes to get to GZ, and the best route may change with the seasons:
Route #1: Direct Terrain: 2.5 in winter, 3.5 in summer
Walking directly past the dumpster and into the woods offers the most direct route to GZ, and when the area is clear of underbrush, this is certainly the easier route to take. Simply follow your GPS to the cache! There are still some logs and debris to dodge, but nothing too difficult, so I would rate it around 2 or 2.5 stars in terrain. HOWEVER, the summer months seem to welcome the growth of the 'local' kudzu and other vine populations, and on a summertime visit to the cache, I was physically unable to penetrate the wall of vines to get past the dumpster. During these months, I would easily rate the terrain at around 3.5 stars, and a machete may be the best way through.
Route #2: Creekside Terrain: 3 year-round
If the first route proves impossible, the best alternative is to follow a narrow trail by the edge of the creek around to GZ. This path is tougher to follow and features significantly more vines, thorns, and roots to climb over, but is relatively clear year-round. The creek is only 10 or 15 feet past the treeline in front of you when you pull into the parking lot (with the fields on your left and the dumpster on your right); just walk through the thin wall of brush to reach the trail. Follow the creek toward GZ, and be careful not to fall into the creek! The bank can be quite slick.
For either route, please keep an eye out for snakes in the summer! Thorns and poison ivy are also present, but are spread somewhat sparsely and should be avoidable. The cache is a small (around 1" x 2") black-taped bottle with a flip-top lid, with a pencil and logbook inside. There isn't much room for tradables, and I have yet to stock any, but if someone wants to leave a coin or some dice (as I keep finding all over OMSP), feel free to! The cache is placed near the bank of the creek, and water crossing is not necessary (though if you feel so inclined, I guess I can't stop you from swimming across). The satellite service here seems spotty, and I ended up with two different sets of coordinates on my visits, so the hint contains thorough spoilers for the cache location. Please do not remove the paracord from the container! It is necessary for keeping the cache secured in place, especially through storms or tree damage. Thanks for stopping by!
~Congratulations to fathertree for FTF!~