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Located at summit of Brown Hill at northern end of Wachusett Meadow Wildlife Sanctuary in Princeton, MA. Terrain is alternating woods and pasture, and a 1300' hill. Audubon Sanctuary--please stay on the trails as much as possible, observe sanctuary hours (Dawn to Dusk, Tuesday to Sunday, CLOSED MONDAYS) and rules. There is an admission fee! $4 per adult and $3 per child. Take Goodnow Rd off Hubbardston Rd, follow Goodnow until you see sanctuary parking area on left. Cache is a green ammo box.
This cache is one of two located in Wachusett Meadow Wildlife Sanctuary, Princeton, MA. Tiarrel's Aerie is named after the lair of a dragon that appeared in a story I wrote once. Her name was "Tiarrell the Rime" and she was a secretive white dragon that lived in an ice cavern in a glacier on the side of a mountain the dwarves called Fraezzle Pyke. White dragons are typically nasty creatures that are feared and despised, but Tiarrel was a foundling infant drake raised by peaceful copper dragons. As a result she was good natured, but oft misunderstood and mistrusted by those she encountered in life. Thus she kept her home secret and few who lived near her mountain knew she was there. She was the mate of "Morrich the Claw" a copper dragon who lived in a barrow far to the south, and together they were the parents of the principle character in my story, Abacquer the Belch, the Plastered Dragon.
I chose to name this cache after Tiarrel's home because in my story Tiarrel's Aerie was located at the top of a low peak that overlooked a long downhill tract of land which was bedecked with thick pine forest and farming communities. To the south the land sloped down to Ainurk Barrow, the low mound where Morrich the Claw lived. The terrain of Wachusett Meadow reminds me of that mythical stretch of land.
Wachusett Meadow is my favorite Audubon sanctuary in Massachusetts. I discovered it in 1993 after moving to Fitchburg and I've been going back regularly ever since. The scenery is breathtaking and the wildlife rich and abundant. It was maintained as a farm from 1786 until 1956 when the owners donated the land to the Audubon Society. There are about 600 acres of land in the sanctuary and almost 13 miles of trails. I would come to this wonderful place even if there were no caches hidden here because there is so much to see.
The sanctuary has sensitive nesting areas so don't leave the trails until you get close to the cache. Be advised that the sanctuary is open dawn to dusk Tuesday through Sunday, and is closed Mondays. There is an admission fee that you must pay if you are not a member of the Massachusetts Audubon Society ($4 per adult, $3 per child). There are trailmaps at the office you can borrow, and I recommend you grab one.
The parking area for Wachusett Meadow is at 42° 27.327N 071° 54.305W. The hike to Tiarrel's Aerie is about a half mile, and there is more than one way to get there. Proceed to the sanctuary office, and pass through the covered walkway into the North Pasture. North Meadow Trail heads both left and right here (stay on the mowed trail).
Head right. Follow the trail to the tiny goldfish pond at 42 27.400N 071 54.299W, the trail will head east past the pond and then turn north at the pasture's edge. At the north end of the pasture a side trail will head through the treeline into a smaller more overgrown pasture and continue north up to the woods at the base of Brown Hill. When you get to these woods follow the trail to the left and ascend Brown Hill by means of a trail that follows a rock wall. This is Summit Trail and it will get you all the way to the top of Brown Hill where Tiarrel's Aerie is located. This hike is about 0.43 miles and the climb up Brown Hill is hard work but well within the capabilities of the average person.
Tiarrel's Aerie is visible from the trail, so watch out for muggles!
Note to FTF'ers and other early finders: Tiarrel's Aerie contains a handful of special finder's buttons for you folks, feel free to take one. I've stocked this cache with some very nice items (at hide time it contained a dragon-themed DVD, a computer game, a pewter dragon figurine and a bunch of other cool stuff.) Parents, the movies and software are probably best for teens or adults, but don't worry there's plenty of stuff in the cache for younger kids (both boys and girls).
After you find the cache, you can hike back out the way you went in, but there are some amazing sights to see if you go back a different way. Here's an alternate route back: from the top of Brown Hill continue along Summit Trail to Brown Hill Loop trail. Head left until you get to the turnoff for Glacial Boulder Trail. Turn right and follow that trail to the incredibly immense glacial boulder at 42 27.575N 071 54.449W. This thing is huge and from one particular angle looks remarkably like a dragon's head. Not long after passing the boulder, you will see a trail running both right and left. Head to the right and take your first left onto Chapman Trail through a rock wall. Continue south on Chapman and at the fork bear left. Eventually this will take you back to North Meadow. Follow the North Meadow Trail south to the resting area of the Crocker Maple, formerly the oldest living Maple in Massachusetts (42 27.390N 071 54.388W), sadly it toppled during a bad storm not long ago. From here follow North Meadow Trail back to the office.
The birds here are wonderful, look for and listen for Bobolinks, Towhees, Ovenbirds, and Yellow Warblers along the trails to Brown Hill and back.
This cache was placed with the permission of the sanctuary management, and they welcome geocachers to Wachusett Meadow, asking only that all visitors respect the property and the operating hours and rules thereof.
NOTE: Bring bug spray, the bugs are vicious. Watch for ticks and poison ivy. Along Summit Trail near the top of Brown Hill the brush encroaches on the trail... after a rainstorm or in the morning dew you will get very wet passing through here!
See you on the trails! :-)
Additional Hints
(Decrypt)
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