This is a NIGHT cache with a puzzle element.
The published coordinates are for the recommended parking.
Start to finish (back to your car) will take approximately 2 hours with a 3 mile (4.5km) walk, all of which is on designated footpaths although parts could be muddy so don't wear your best shoes if it's been raining.
BACKGROUND
You take on the role of Will Stanton, the last of the Old Ones. A guardian of the Light in the eternal battle against the Dark - and the Dark is Rising...
When the Dark comes rising, six shall turn it back:
Five from the trail, One you do not lack
Wood, Bronze, Iron; Water, Fire, Stone;
Five you need to find, One you already own.
Iron below an Iron Road, Wood among the trees
Water by a Common source and Stone's near two of these
Fire by a “burning” fence, Bronze already took
Turn each Sign's colour to match the order from the book
STEP 1
Go to the published co-ordinates which is the Pay & Display Notice board and if you are parking here, ensure you obtain a ticket if within the chargeable time window - I would err on the side of caution and plan on being 3 hours.
Convert the appropriate telephone number to ABCDE CEFEAA
Convert the appropriate Ringo Code to FGHGJ
Car Park Charges apply from K a.m to K p.m.
STEP 2
Proceed to North HB DK.DHF West AAA FC.CGD and look for a Sign.
Use the power of the Light and the Dark to follow the trail from here. The Dark will reveal where you need to be next and the Light will show the way with silver markers. After you find the cache, red markers will guide you home.
Use the poem to help you identify what material each Sign you find along the way represents. You are collecting information, nothing physical. Observe the colour assigned to each Sign. The material will be within 10 metres.
STEP 3
The physical Signs will magically appear at the end of the quest on their own belt (of sorts). When each Sign shows the correct number to match the order that Will found them in the book, you will have activated the Circle of Power, defeated the Dark and the cache will be yours.
General Advice
Do not (metaphorically speaking) bring a knife to a gun fight. The more power you bring, the easier it will be. I set this using a Rechargeable 10W 365nm UV Darkbeam Torch. You may struggle with less Dark power. A good CREE-type normal torch where you can switch to long narrow beam to look for reflectors in the distance and wide local illumination to navigate the footpaths is useful too.
Take sensible precautions - Back-up torches, spare batteries for torches/GPSr/Phone.
It will be helpful if you know how to project a waypoint on your GPSr (or physical map) from a bearing and range. As you head towards the next waypoint, be aware you may not necessarily be able to get there in a straight line, keep to footpaths and be aware of your surroundings as you will come close to hazards such as water and roads.
NB NB NB Google AI will give you duff information so if you haven't read the book (The Dark is Rising), you need to google using human intelligence. If you think he finds Wood first you have not done enough homework. BBC Sounds is a good resource.
Geocache Container Use
I only found out when writing this section that Huntercombe, the fictional village in "The Dark is Rising" was based on Dorney and the manor was based on Dorney Court, just 3 miles from Eton. The author Susan Cooper grew up in Burnham and her imagination was fired by the beautiful area this cache is set in.
I don't know how practical this is, but I would love the cache to be used for people to swap their favourite books from their childhood. I will leave my copy of "Over Sea, Under Stone" which was a treasured book from my childhood. The fictional cornish fishing village of Trewissick where it is set, was based on Mevagissey, a place we often holidayed and loved when I was a kid.
In these dark times we are living in, perhaps these stories of good triumphing over evil can comfort us.