Where the Giant Land Beavers Roam Traditional Cache
drossdross: Unfortunately this cache is gone as best as I can determine. It had the habit of wandering, but never so far that I couldn’t find it. Considering my health, I’m going to close this cache. This is an interesting area - rather large/long - especially neat within a largely urban landscape. Hopefully another cacher will take up the challenge and put in a “replacement” cache, or even better a multi or series of interesting caches.
Where the Giant Land Beavers Roam
-
Difficulty:
-
-
Terrain:
-
Size: 
(regular)
Please note Use of geocaching.com services is subject to the terms and conditions
in our disclaimer.
This cache is a short distance down a nice valley (apart from some early illegal dumping) along a nice easy trail. Don’t stop at just this cache, continue on down the trail to the valley’s end and pick up the NHT Park Tour #6 and NHT Park Tour #7 caches.
The needed Trail Head is at 40 18.696 N 79 45.501 W.
The trail head starts off Spicher Hill Road, a shortcut between the main roads in the area: Ridge Road and Robbins Station Road. Parking is poor. Parking on a side road like nearby Northwest Drive is probably as good as you’ll find. You want to drop south into the valley that runs east/west parallel to the southern end of Spicher Hill Road. The trail starts subtle (but still far more than a game trail). Within a few 10s of feet, it quickly becomes a solid path clearly used for foot, quad, and dirt bike traffic. There are a couple of easy creek crossings along the way.
Don’t stop at just finding this cache, continue on down the trail for a pleasant walk to the valley’s end (where the valley borders Braddock Trails Park) and pick up the NHT Park Tour #6 and NHT Park Tour #7 caches along the way. The valley and trail end a short distance further at a small parking area at 40 18.356 N 79 46.823 W along Turner Valley Road (which branches off Coulterville Road that in turn is a branch off of Lincoln Way – note that Ridge Road comes into the same 5-way intersection where Turner Valley Road branches off Coulterville Road). If possible, drop off a pickup car at this small parking area and make the whole hike a nice downhill one-way hike (downhill, except for the actual NHT cache hunting).
The valley is a utility right of way. Please note that there are No Trespassing signs along various stretches of this trail, frequently on one side and occasionally on the other side. Please respect the adjacent landowners and stay close to the trail, and off the marked property.
Be mindful of the local muggle traffic when rehiding this cache. A good re-hide will be critical to this cache’s survival.
So what’s up with this cache’s name? When we visited Yellowstone NP some years back they were clearing the woods of downed trees, branches, and ground brush as a fire control program (reduce the total BTUs/acre on the ground). This left hundreds of large, and prominent, brush piles scattered through the otherwise untouched woods waiting to be picked up in a second phase of the program and transported to a controlled burning area. Overhearing some clueless urbanites pondering these piles, and with a wide streak of orneriness, I offered very knowledgably that these were the dens of the Common Giant Land Beaver. Thinking that I could stretch this spontaneous tale until nobody could possibly believe it, I embellished the tale with made up detail after made up detail. I even pointed out some trees (obviously blown down in a windstorm) as having been felled by the Giant Land Beaver. No matter how outlandish, they ate it up. Eventually I felt guilty and tried to confess the whole tale – every detail. They assumed I was just trying to escape the conversation and refused to believe the truth. And so was born this new species. Close examination of most woods will turn up some evidence (logs, felled trees, even a “den”) of this rarely seen critter (I reason that they are mostly nocturnal or there would be more sightings).
Additional Hints
(Decrypt)
[Small Hint] PNERSHYYL RKNZVAR YBPNY RIVQRAPR BS TVNAG ORNIRE NPGVIVGL?
[Large Hint] UNIR LBH YBBXRQ VAFVQR GUR GUVAT GUNG SRYY BSS GUR GNYY FGHZC?