Hell or Highwater Traditional Cache
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Difficulty:
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Terrain:
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Size: 
(regular)
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Hidden along the banks of Hellfire Creek. The cache is located near
where the creek crosses the Florida National
Scenic Trail (FNST). The FNST is a national treasure in our
backyard. There are only 8 national scenic trails in the USA.
This cache commemorates my 15 mile hike on the Alaqua Section of the Florida Trail with
Orillious. We started at HW331, camped at the Alaqua backwoods
campsite, and ended at Bob Sikes Road. It was a great time with
a good friend; every log of this cache will remind me of the
experience.
The cache is hidden near the Alaqua campsite, on the bank of nearby
Hellfire Creek. I enjoyed the effort of the 12 mile hike required
to hide this cache. Even if you choose a shorter route, please make
all appropriate preparations for a lengthy hike in the woods (lots
of water, sunscreen, bug spray, plan and route with a reliable
friend, etc). The water of Hellfire Creek is very clear and good
for drinking if you treat it. You can use inexpensive iodine water
treatment tablets (or another water purifying system), and have
water for your hike out.
I recommend parking at the Bob Sikes Road (Range Road 213)
trailhead at N30 42.379 W86 14.008 and enjoying the 6.4 mile
roundtrip hike. This can be done leisurely in a morning or
afternoon, and offers a scenic crossing of Alaqua Creek and other
smaller creeks. A shorter hike would be from Pleasant Ridge Road
(Range Road 208) at N30 39.907 W86 11.613, which is about 3.8 miles
roundtrip. Follow the orange blazes on the trees.
Container is a 7.62mm ammo can (10"L x 3.5"W x 6.5"D). Initial
contents (All new in package):
- Flashlight powered by shaking (no batteries required)
- First Aid Kit
- Multi-purpose Army knife
- Sunglasses
- poncho
- laser pointer
- "Magic" towel (expands when wet)
- 2 sets of 2-pack glowsticks
This cache is within the Eglin air force base reservation. A pass
is required to be on the reservation. It cost $7 (2005) for October
- September and comes with a great map. Camping requires an
additional $5 permit, which is good for 5 days for up to 10 people.
Pass/permit can be obtained from Eglin AFB Natural Resources Branch
(Jackson Guard Office), located at 107 Highway 85 North, Niceville
FL 32578. See GCKC1A or coordinates N 30° 31.480 W 086°
29.585.
Office hours are: Monday-Thursday 7:00-4:30pm; Friday
7:00am-6:00pm; Saturday 7:00am-12:30pm; Closed on Sunday and
Federal Holidays.
A pass can be obtained by going to Jackson Guard or by mail. (See
above address). Mail a copy of your most recent pass to Jackson
Guard at above address with any changes in address noted. It takes
1 to 2 weeks to process. If you do not have a pass, mail a copy of
your driver’s license with your phone number. Payment by mail must
be by check. They will accept it made out to Jackson Guard. Phone #
is (850)882-4164. A pass can also be obtained immediately by going
to Jackson Guard in person during office hours.
Congrats to JohnnyBravo for the FTF on this one. He put some
coordinates in his log that might be helpful to you.
Additional Note:
It seems many geocachers have been going on Eglin AFB Property
without the required range pass. See this log and this log. PLEASE get a pass if you intend on
doing this geocache. It is less than the cost of a movie, and
provides many more hours of entertainment. If you don't intend
on getting a pass, I respectfully ask that you not find this
geocache. It could ruin the geocaching on Eglin AFB property for
everyone.
Additional Hints
(Decrypt)
Angheny cebgrpgvba sebz eha-bss ba gur fybcr fvqr.