Through the scenic heart of the Catskill Mountains, this
cache is a combination 35-mile road tour and 2 mile round trip hike
through, by and over back roads, forests, hills and brooks. You'll
visit four covered bridges. Get a clue at each bridge to determine
the coordinates for a conventional cache near the fourth - the
Friendship Covered Bridge. The container, a small Lock-n-Lock, is
actually located a few miles from Friendship. The container is
hidden outside the Blue Line boundary of Catskill Park so no rules
are broken about hiding caches within the park. But the bridges,
ahh, are right there in the middle of the Catskills!
Grants Mill Covered Bridge
SPECIAL for wheelchair confined or other limited cachers:
If you cannot do the hiking portion, send me an email and I'll give
you the answer for Camp 13 Bridge question. Without the hike, the
bridges and cache are wheelchair accessible (a few feet of grassy
incline at container location; a partner would be helpful) and
rated 2 for Difficulty and a 1 for Terrain.
If you enjoyed this tour, check out other companions Chestnut
Creek Covered Bridge GC6F4C and Covered Bridge Tour of Sullivan
County GC6F77. These are nearby and also in the pretty
Catskills.
If you enjoy tours like this one, check out similar
covered bridge caches.
 Dogs Allowed
Available year-round  More than Half a Mile from Trailhead
 Scenic View
 Ticks  Wear bug
repellant! |
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Start your tour at Grants Mills.
A. Grants Mills Covered Bridge N42 04.833 W74
38.172 On the National Register of Historic Places, Grants crosses
the Mill Brook. But it no longer takes traffic; that's left to an
adjacent regular bridge!
Grants Mills quiz- What is one of the names engraved on the
brass plate on the western side of the bridge?
1. Brian Sykes
2. Ted Kennedy
3. Edgar Marks
ENTER A answer (1, 2 or 3) = ________
B. Myers Covered Bridge N42 03.520 W74 32.410 This
bridge is actually a steel stringer bridge with a concrete
deck.
Myers quiz- What is the name on the street sign at the southwest
corner?
1. Eagle Lodge Rd.
2. Dry Brook Rd.
3. Brook Rd.
ENTER B answer (1, 2 or 3) = ________
C. Camp 13 Uncovered Bridge N42 02.933 W74 31.706
About 300 feet further south on Dry Brook Road is the parking area
and trail head for Camp 13 bridge. N42 03.487 W74 32.343 Now's the
time to park your car for a really great hike through some really
pretty woods. It's about a mile to the bridge. You'll be using
Seager-Big Indian Trail. The path is pretty level but you ought to
wear boots. You'll be hopping rocks across a couple of small
brooks. My coordinates might be off a little so any corrections
will be appreciated. It's a few hundred feet passed the pretty
waterfalls scenic view N42 02.967 W74 31.773 after you hop over
Flatiron Brook. Camp 13 bridge is all gone except for its roadbed,
which is usable to walk or drive over. There being no cover
surprised me. But it's such a pretty hike, I didn't want you to
miss it. By the way. I originaly called it the Unknown bridge is
because I found out later I was at the wrong bridge and didn't know
its name. But Gasman informed me it's called Camp 13 after the
group of hunters who built it. Maybe, someday they'll cover it.
Until then, enjoy the hike.
Camp 13 Bridge quiz- What does the sign say on the road barrier
adjacent to the eastern side of the bridge?
1. Vehicle Limit - 3 Ton Maximum
2. No Parking
3. Beware of Ticks and Naked Deer
ENTER C answer (1, 2 or 3) = ________
D. Friendship Manor Covered Bridge N42 7.581W74
28.239 spans Birch Creek and is the entrance to Pine Hill Day Use
park with a beach, picnicking, boating, etc. There's an entrance
fee during season, but you can get the clue viewing from the road
before the entrance.
Friendship quiz- What is the height posted at the front portal
of the bridge?
1. 8'6"
2. 9'6"
3. 10'6"
ENTER D answer (1, 2 or 3) = ________
Cache Container Coordinates:
Enter the number for each of your four answers and add them
up:
A______ + B _______ + C _______ + D_______
= Total ________
The coordinates for the cache are determined by your total (not
all possible totals are listed. Only one right one and four wrong
ones.)
If your total is 6, the cache coordinates are: N42 09.656 W74
32.879
If your total is 7, the cache coordinates are: N42 10.535 W74
30.599
If your total is 8, the cache coordinates are: N42 09.333 W74
32.381
If your total is 9, the cache coordinates are: N42 10.300 W74
28.212
If your total is 10, the cache coordinates are: N42 11.551 W74
32.849
The pictures are NOT spoilers.
Encrypted hint beneath poem.
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MEMORIES
I think I hear faint whispers
As I cross the abandoned bridge
And climb the mountain far ahead
To reach the topmost ridge.
I see the hills that lie beyond,
Then descend to the valley below,
Where sweethearts have a trysting place
As their parents long ago.
I pause to look at the tumbled bridge
With its old moss-covered rook,
And in fancy I hear again
The sound of plodding hoof.
I seem to hear the swallows
As back and forth they go,
Carrying mud to build their nests
Under the eaves so low.
Julia Alexander, Franklin, NY
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