Railway pioneer George Stephenson was born on June 9, 1781, in
Wylam, near Newcastle-on-Tyne. His father Robert worked in the
Wylam Colliery as a fireman, and the family's cottage was right
beside the Wylam Waggonway. This wooden track took wagons from the
colliery to the Tyne river for transport.
The cache is located on a riverside walk, adjacent to the
Stephenson cottage & the course of the old waggonway. Best
approach is via the footpath which begins by the nursery entrance
at (roughly) N54 58.606 W001 48 758 - the cache is a gentle
quarter-mile walk from here.
There's plenty of birdlife to be spotted on this stretch of the
river - goosander, cormorant and herons are frequent visitors.
If you walk a few hundred yards beyond the cache site, you'll
come to a picnic area in front of a small white cottage - this is
George Stephenson's birthplace. The cottage is now owned by the
National Trust, and open on a few afternoons each week - if you
fancy a peer inside you might want to check opening times at
the National Trust site. The riverside pathway is public land,
and open all year.
The area is popular with dog walkers, so please beware of
unwanted audiences when retrieving the cache!
NOTE: The undergrowth has thickened out a little in the 3 years
since this cache was planted - a pokey-stick would be advised!
(there's plenty of them to be found near the cache...)