Smoke Rises East Traditional Cache
Without Wax: My ammo box containing all the contents of my cache was stolen. Apparently someone wanted the ammo box.
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Third in the Smoke Rises series, the cache is located on the Sherburne Property in the town of Tyngsboro, on the east side of the Merrimack River. Parking is behind the Sherburne Nature Center & Trails - a blue house on 46 Coburn Road - at N42°40.678' W071°24.251'. A colorful sign is out front on the road. This 80 acre gem was donated to the town by the Sherburne family in 1999 in memory of Maxwell and Bernice Sherburne who lived there for years. In the late 1960's, I bought lumber from Max Sherburne when his lumber company - located next door to this property - operated a water-powered sawmill. Lawrence Brook ran out of Lake Mascuppic and through Max's property. It was as classic an example of yankee ingenuity as you could find at the time. You will cross over Lawrence Brook on a neat wooden bridge on your way to the cache. The brook is usually flowing fast in the spring but dried out in the fall.
The property is beautifully maintained as town conservation land and consists of a combination of dry uplands, marshy areas, a beaver pond, and a field managed to support birds and wildlife. Two benches were provided and placed in scenic spots by an Eagle Scout. Remains of an old barn fire can be seen to the right of the first beaver pond bench - at the end of the long field - where huge pine trees were destroyed. Two nicely constructed viewing platforms with benches have been constructed at the end of the Meadows Trail one extending out into the beaver pond and the other circling the edge of the pond on the Wetlands Trail and heading back to the incoming brook and foot bridge.
Informative trail maps are available at the parking area kiosk that show the named and color coded trails. The trails are nicely maintained by the Tyngsboro Trails Committee. On my first visit to explore this area in 2003, I found an Indian arrowhead, not surprising, since the property is close to the Merrimack River where many Indian settlements were present.
The cache is located off the Woodlands Trail. After you locate the cache, you can continue the longer loop on the Woodlands Trail to return to the bridge area or return via the shorter Hemlock Trail.
The cache is a large ammo box.
A FRENDLY REMINDER FROM THE RULES OF GEOCACHING: "1. If you take something from the geocache (or "cache"), leave something of equal or greater value".
Keep to the trails to avoid trespassing on private property. The cache is located close to the trail so very little bushwacking is required. Remember to mark a waypoint when you park as the meandering trails can get you turned around.
Additional Hints
(Decrypt)
[25 yards northeast of the trail - by large "graffiti" beech trees - under a large rotted log.]