SLB #7: Rail Bridge Short Multi
(previously called Rail Bridge Short Multi)
Note: the given coordinates are for suitable parking
The cache is now incorporated as the 6th of a 10-cache series circuiting through some fine countryside to the west of Burley-in-Wharfedale.
For background info on the trail including a Map (also available in this cache's Gallery) showing caches and parking spots, and waypoints for parking | trail access, see GC7E48T SLB#1: What a Tip!.
The cache, a small camo-taped pre-form tube, is hidden near this rail bridge along the old farm track leading from Saxon Lodge (previously the Mount Lodge) on Coutances Road (A65) up to The Mount at Stead and Wharfedale Grange Farm located towards the upper end of Ben Rhydding Drive.
At various points along the path, there are fine panoramic views to the north, and along the Wharfe Valley.
The Lodge and the Mount were both built around 1780 and the track was the link between the main Skipton-Otley turnpike and the large residence and adjacent 17th century (?) farm up on Mount Stead (see OS 1851 map in the Gallery).
The cache was hidden in recognition of Santos L Halpers's GC1BMEP: A Road Anarchy A65 Riverside which was hidden along the approach trail to this cache on 26/4/08 and archived after being washed away on 13/10/19 after 127 finds.
To reach the cache location: park at or near N 53 55.248 W 1 46.517 in the large car park of the Indian restaurant, which should have plenty of spare spaces. Starting at the Public Footpath sign @ N 53 55.259 W 1 46.520 head up the narrow lane turning right at the top and on to the bridge.
Step 1: as you reach the bridge on the lower (north side) you will notice a plate up on the bridge wall with the following information:
a) The Name of the Bridge: in this case it consists of two words with A letters in the second word . . . followed by
b) The Engineer's Line Reference (or ELR - see here and here ): a three letter code +/- an additional numeral which identifies the particular rail line and (if applicable) which portion of that line. In this case it is the Burley to Ilkley portion of the Ilkley Branch line which is designated as ILK B where B is the number required.
c) The Distance from a Defined Datum (fixed starting point): here it is given as miles and yards from St Pancras Station in London via Cudworth (why Cudworth - a small village NE of Barnsley - is not known).
The distance is 209 miles - 0C94 yards where C is the required number
* Sometimes this distance is given as miles [m].chains [ch]. A chain = 22 yards, the length of a cricket pitch! and there are 80 chains/mile. This is possibly the only remaining case where this obsolete Imperial System unit of length is still use. The reason given for this is that 'as the majority of railways were built in the 19th century, it is usually more convenient to stick with older units of measurement, rather than try to convert all records to modern standards'.
d) A Phone Number: this is the number to contact in case of a bridge strike. In this case it is an 11 digit number which has D as the 6th digit
There is also a second older oval plate on the inside west wall of the bridge which shows the line designation (as above) and another figure (13 - assumed to be the bridge number or a number indicating its location on this line).
Step 2: just inside the left (east) side of the bridge at about head height you will see a date inscribed into a patch of mortar which is 28.E.05 where E is the figure required. The significance of this date is not known.
Note (16/8/25): It seems this is difficult to see, so use E=1
Step 3: pass through the bridge where ahead of you is a large metal barred gate with F horizontal bars.
The cache is hidden at:
N 53 55.BEC W 1 46.(A+B)(F-D+E)(B+F)
