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While searching for “The Narrows” in a place called “The Playground”, up in the mountains above the town of Goleta, I came across a curious painted object hidden in the rocks. What I found inside this object rocked my world of traditional thinking. After careful examination of this object and its unexplained contents, I found myself considering a notion that scared me. I realized that certain ideas I hold as truth, in my limited realm of understanding, were beginning to unravel.
At the end of that fateful day, I returned home to begin a journey on a quest that has changed my life forever. To solve the enigma of the puzzling object, I spent hours researching ancient texts and drawings to discover that the painting on the object resembled a Chumash Indian cave painting. See the photo of this cave painting from the images link below; the large “sun-wheel” in the lower left corner of the picture resembles the painting on the curious object I found.
Now, being a seasoned Geocacher, I realize the ramifications of what I am about to present is disturbing– I know I am coming dangerously close to pushing my reputation over the edge from being considered a simple enthusiast of this fine sport, to one who is ready for internment at the local Geocacher nut house. However, I must go forward, and let the truth be known. I now have a theory about these paintings that the so called “experts” of ancient Chumash culture, don’t like, and don’t want you to see. Read on….
Why were the paintings made?
(The so called “expert” theory)
Neither as art to be admired nor as simple graffiti – these paintings were probably made for religious reasons. Shamans, or Chumash priests, are thought to have made these paintings to influence supernatural beings and forces to intervene in human affairs. We can only guess what these mysterious symbols meant to their creators, but they may represent mythic figures, natural phenomena, or abstract concepts.
(Igbay Oobay’s not-so-expert theory)
Neither as art to be admired nor as simple graffiti – these paintings were made by a select group of Chumash who were ahead of their time. These diagrams give proof that the Chumash Indians are the forefathers of this concept called “Geocaching”. Little did we know, this sport was played hundreds of years ago, following the same guidelines that we use today with one small difference…instead of the internet and the GPS to communicate the location and to find their hidden caches, they used these fascinating petroglyphs as a map to and description of the cache.
You can decide for yourself which theory is true by finding the object on your own…Indian style. I believe the Chumash had to find their caches by these hand drawn maps which have been mistakenly thought of as religious paintings. Unfortunately, before I could complete my research, the “so-called-experts” sabotaged my work and left me with the one picture. For you to find the object (which I believe to be a cache), I have a series of photos for you to follow which will lead you to this hidden treasure.
To get to the location of my first photo you need to hike to The Playgrounds which is a beautiful area of large boulders which are fun to explore. Go to www.santabarbarahikes.com . Click on “Front Country” . On the next page, go down and type in the Find a Trail search box, “The Playgrounds”. Information about the hike to “The Playgrounds” will come up including directions to the trail head, difficulty ratings, etc. Note: The website will not tell you that the beginning of the trail head has been bull-dozed over. The coordinates I have provided above will help you locate the trail head. The coordinates are NOT for the location of the cache.
Once you make it to The Playgrounds,I have provided photos to help lead you along the route to the cache. The key, however, is finding the location of the first photo, or the beginning of the real adventure. To help you with this, I have provided two photos which give you a range, one in each picture, to help you find the right spot to begin. You'll find these at the images link below.
At the end of the route, the rock passage you will be traveling through opens abruptly. From this point, the cache is within 20 paces.
Please note the way the cache is hidden and re-hide the same.
Things you will need:
An Adventure Pass to park
A flash light
A short piece of rope (optional) for those who might need extra help climbing down boulders (20ft. would be plenty)
Finding this cache will hopefully be a fantastic journey for you! You will climb boulders, squeeze between rock passages, crawl on your hands and knees and at some places, you'll be pushing your pack ahead of you. Keep an eye out for the so-called-experts who want to keep these secrets hidden. Good Luck, Take Care, Have Fun, Be Safe, Adios, Sayonara, Don't Take Any Wooden Nickles,.....
Additional Hints
(No hints available.)