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Oliver's Island Mystery Cache

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lsugaralmond: Cache appears to have gone missing so time to archive

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Hidden : 8/13/2020
Difficulty:
3.5 out of 5
Terrain:
2 out of 5

Size: Size:   micro (micro)

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Geocache Description:


Oliver's Island derives its name from a story that Oliver Cromwell once took refuge on it, but there is almost certainly no truth to this. It was called Strand Ait until a century after the Civil War, by which time a myth had arisen that Cromwell had set up an intermittent headquarters at the Bull's Head, Strand on the Green. The story was embellished with the suggestion that a secret tunnel connected the island to the pub, but no evidence of any tunnel has ever been found.

In 1777 the City of London's navigation committee installed a tollbooth on the islet to levy charges on passing craft to fund improvements to the river’s navigability. This was a wooden structure in the shape of a small castle, and a barge was moored alongside, from which the tolls were taken. This "City Barge" gave its name to the pub at Strand on the Green. A smithy was on the island by 1865 and it became a place where barges were built and repaired. The smithy was only demolished in 1990.

The cache is not at the listed coordinates, which is lucky because I don't have a boat and I don't fancy the swim. It is nearby though, with a lovely view of Oliver's Island. Even though the connection to Cromwell is dubious, the name has stuck for centuries and so here is a puzzle in his honour, made up of words associated with his controversial history.

 

final

 

Additional Hints (Decrypt)

Fbyir gur jbeqfrnepu naq nyy jvyy or erirnyrq. Zvtug or rnfvre vs lbh cevag vg.

Decryption Key

A|B|C|D|E|F|G|H|I|J|K|L|M
-------------------------
N|O|P|Q|R|S|T|U|V|W|X|Y|Z

(letter above equals below, and vice versa)