They look like they have been here for decades, but these stairs did not exist when geocaching began!
About Uli's Stairs (From Atlas Obscura)
THE WORK OF A SINGLE man, Ulrich (otherwise known as Uli), these 305 stone stairs wind their way up the Hamilton escarpment.
Uli was born in Austria, and formerly owned a steel factory. Upon retirement he spent two (to five, depending on your source) years constructing these stairs by hand, a few hours each day. At the time, there were no other stairs nearby to connect upper and lower Hamilton. These stairs were completed in 2007, despite looking a lot older.
The stairs are constructed primarily from natural stone, but also include what looks like manufactured stone or concrete in a few spots, and the handrails are long tree branches wired into place. The lower portion of the stairs, which begins at Greenhill Ave., just off of the Bruce trail, meets up with the Hamilton Rail Trail halfway up. This section is has a relatively gradual incline, and is easy to navigate.
The stairs continue from the Rail Trail and exit out onto Mountain Brow Blvd. and Fennel Ave. on the “mountain.” This upper section is where the adventure is, since the incline is much sharper and the stairs are very close together, often offering only 3-4 inches of space for your foot.
The stairs are punctuated with handmade benches and rest areas, and garden planters, complete with flowers.
On to the virtual:
You will need to climb the length of the stairs to complete this virtual cache.
Note: While technically available year round, one question may be difficult to find the answer for if there is an accumulation of snow. In addition, this path has the potential to be extremely icy in colder weather: attempting it after dark or in icy conditions will increase the terrain difficulty.
Parking is available close to either trailhead. Regular visitors to the area will know that coordinates bounce a lot around here. I've done my best to get you close to what is needed for each stage, but the difficulty level reflects that you may need to search a broad area to find the answers you need to qualify.
How to claim this virtual:
Photos; You will need two photos at specific locations. Post the photos in your log. Group photos are acceptable, but cachers in a group who don't upload a photo in their own log should indicate which group member is posting a photo on their behalf.
1) at the posted coordinates, Take a picture of yourself (you do not have to show your face), a personal item, or a sign with your name on it, with the sign for Uli's stairs in the background.
2) at the waypoint for photo 2, you will find a different sign for Uli's stairs. Take a picture of yourself (you do not have to show your face), a personal item, or a sign with your name on it, with the sign for Uli's stairs in the background. (Bonus points if you can also get the stairs in the shot!). depending on how bouncy the coordinates are, there are multiple signs at lower levels that may be close to this waypoint that will be accepted.
Questions; visit 3 locations along the stairs and send a message or email answering the questions (please do not post answers in your log). Group answers are acceptable, but the person submitting the answer then needs to include a list of all cachers present so I can confirm they were there.
1) coordinates for question 1 will take you to a seating structure. There is a personal item of Uli's attached to the structure. Find the month written on the personal item. Part of the structure has been removed or fallen in the last few weeks, and the personal item, a license plate, is no longer here. A replacement question will be posted soon, but until then, the missing answer for question one is "January".
2) around the coordinates for question 2 you will find a stone with a year engraved on it. What year does it say?
3) around the coordinates for question 3 is a post with several sports items nailed to it. What is the red number on the one that says Spalding?
Virtual Rewards 4.0 - 2024-2025
This Virtual Cache is part of a limited release of Virtuals created between January 17, 2024 and January 17, 2025. Only 4,000 cache owners were given the opportunity to hide a Virtual Cache. Learn more about Virtual Rewards 4.0 on the Geocaching Blog.