BRISTOL PARKS [3] : ST ANDREW'S PARK
This Bristol's parks series is designed for you to enjoy a nice leisurely stroll around these parks, collecting numbers on the way for the final co-ordinates of the cache.
St Andrew's park brings back memories of BBQs and kicking a ball about with mates when I lived in this area as a student. It is one of the nicer parks in Bristol, a bit of a hidden gem and I hope I bring a few cachers to the park that have never visited before.
Although laid out at the same time as several other Bristol parks, St. Andrew's Park has a very individual character. This is due to its situation on a slope, its neat box bushes and the variety of its trees.
I do like the fact you see all sorts at this park: kids, teens, students, families plus some zany characters if you're lucky - they all come in the summer and as a result the park has a lovely mini festival vibe. Cachers it is an ideal park to visit on a summer's evening.
St Andrew's Park introduction
Although proposed in the 1880s it was 1895 before St Andrew's park was officially opened. The original idea had been to buy 30 acres from Henry Derham but this plan was not followed up and eventually a park of 12 acres was achieved, on sloping land, to be bounded by Effingham, Leopold, Maurice and Sommerville Roads and enclosed within a stone wall and railings. Even when the site had been acquired in 1891 there were complaints of delays and unfinished work.
But at the opening ceremony everyone agreed the result was worth the wait, although it would be a while before the avenues of limes achieved a good height and there were 'keep off the grass' notices in the main area. Hundreds of people attended and the surrounding streets were decorated with flags. In August 1899 it was declared in the newspaper to be the most attractive park in Bristol, displaying beds of roses, geraniums and mignonette with sunflowers and hollyhocks planted among the shrubs. At the time there was a bandstand where music was played three times a week.
After more than a century the trees have matured and others have been planted. One tree, the European black pine, survived being hit by a Wellington bomber which crashed in the park during the Second World War on 30th April 1941. The plane sliced off the top of the pine which was luckier than another tree growing close by that was ripped from the ground. Of the six crew on board the bomber, sadly only three survived, they were saved from the wreckage by local residents. A memorial was erected in the park in 2009 to record the event.
In the centre of the park there is a large tarmac circle whcih was the site of an air-raid shelter. To the south-west is a circular freestone plinth which used to bear a sundial. Although the bandstand no longer exists there are still beds of roses and other colourful plants and there is a very popular children's play area, a wildlife area, a paddling pool (currently closed due to the pandemic), a pop-up cafe and a bowling green.
The Walk
Enter the park at the Effingham Road entrance. Some answers are found inbetween waypoints, no need to veer off the path. Follow the instructions. (Also the snail is there, just difficult to spot!)
Waypoint 1
Number of daily post deliveries A
Waypoint 2
Month the pizza lover died B
Devils Darning Needles are a shade of blue C
The week tadpoles get social D
On your way to the next waypoint
Monday's practice start time E
Waypoint 3
Crash day FG
On your way to the next waypoint
T Bomber number HIJK
Waypoint 4
Chaffinch songs LMNO
Waypoint 5
Alphabet number of snail's last letter PQ
Waypoint 6
How to voyage through time and space R
(number of letters in word)
The cache is at:
N51 28. [F-N-G] [B-P-J] [I-O-K]
W02 35. [A-M] [D-L-G] [R+Q]