The Cradlewell was a trough,
which was placed at the top of Benton Bank (now gone) to
provide a drink for the carriage horses after their hard pull
up out of the Ouseburn valley. It has been moved three times
to my knowledge, most recently when the new Cradlewell Tunnel
was built. Before that is was beside the bus stop, which was
where the new traffic lights now stand, and was often full of
rubbish. Now the Council plant flowers in it and have happily
made much more of a feature of it.
Find the plaque on the wall and make a note of the date that the
Cradlewell Bypass was opened - Ath May BCDE
Next make your way along to the church at
N54° 59.276 W001° 35.605 You have to pass by a parade of
shops, which are well worth an explore including a gift shop,
several food shops, clothes shops, a pet grooming salon and
what I regard as the best corner shop in the UK! This church
is where the athlete Jonathan Edwards attends. From by the
church you get great views out over Jesmond Dene and
Armstrong Bridge, the latter housing a craft market on
Sundays, which is worth a visit.
There is an obvious number that can be derived from the name of
this church. This value is F. The church also has an
interesting weather vane on top of the spire, celebrating one of
the area’s main historical industries. What is this? How many
letters does this make? This is value G (for example, if it
were an arrow then G would be 5).
Use the numbers you have gathered to plug into the following
formula in the usual manner and then set off on your final leg into
Jesmond Vale, to find the cache.
N54° 59.(C-A)(G/2)(D-C)
W001° 35.(F-B)(E/3)A
Jesmond Vale used to look quite different from how you find it
today. Up to the 60’s there were close-packed terraces of houses
running down the hill to the river. The area used to contain a
factory, at least one mill and also coal mines! After the houses
were cleared the hillside was landscaped and trees were planted.
You can still find traces of dressed stonework down by the river as
evidence of the areas’s past. The Vale is an altogether quieter
part of Jesmond Dene than the busy stretch between Pets Corner and
the Waterfall further North. Up the other side you are into Heaton
Park, well worth an explore, and down the Ouseburn Valley, past
rows of well-tended allotments, you will find the Bluebell Pub,
which has live music (inc. Jazz on a Tuesday night).
You are looking for a 1L plastic container, inside a camo
bag.