DOT Trailhead Multi-Cache
Hidden : 3/10/2011
Difficulty:
2 out of 5
Terrain:
3 out of 5

Size: Size: micro (micro)

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Geocache Description:

The DOT Trailhead is one of the least known and least used trailheads on Tiger Mountain. DOT is an acronym that stands for Department of Transportation which is itself a shortened version of the full name Washington State Department of Transportation or WSDOT (“wash dot”). The name comes from the WSDOT maintenance yard adjoining the trailhead and initial section of trail.

The DOT Trailhead is a very basic trailhead providing only an access corridor to the northeast end of the park; there are no bathrooms or other facilities and parking is simply along the street.

Topo and Trail Map
TOPO and Trail Map


Driving Directions
To get here take Exit 22 on I90 to the southwest side of the interstate (if you’re eastbound from Seattle then turn right at the end of the off-ramp, if you’re westbound to Seattle then turn left at the end of the off-ramp and go over the freeway) then turn northwest (right) onto SE Preston Way (parallel to I90) and the trailhead is about ½ mile up and on the left just after the road curves due west and just before the WSDOT maintenance yard.

The Cache
The cache consists of two simple waypoints and the final. And when I say simple, I do mean simple: you could probably very easily brute force the final with the information I've provided below under the section 'Final Location: Letterbox Style.'

With all my trailhead caches I like to have the posted coordinates listed as, and cache icon shown at, the actual trailhead. I much prefer placing traditional caches but the multicache set up is necessary in this case since other caches block out placement of a physical container or waypoint here.

The final is located about 0.7 miles from the trailhead in the first nice location after entering the trail system proper. The walk-in starts with a short trail through a corridor between the maintenance yard and a private residence. This short trail connects the parking area to a powerline corridor / road and from there it about 0.5 miles along the powerline road to WP2 and the trail that heads into the forest and starts up the mountain.

Unfortunately, the first part of the powerline road is very tedious and rough going over larger then normal road rocks and requires extra care in order to not twist an ankle or otherwise get injured. Luckily, the road gets better further along and is also interesting it is own way, particularly the nearby homes and a coop full of chickens. Note that when returning it can be very hard to notice the start of the connecting trail so it is advised to make a mental note of the area while on the way through the first time.

The First Section of the Road is Very Rough, Be Careful
Picture of Rough Road

The second waypoint is not at all meant to complicate the matter but rather to add a little more fun and more importantly point out the location of what I might consider a second trailhead: the first trailhead being the parking area at the start of the walk-in and this one being the end of the walk-in and where the Tiger Mountain trail system truly begins. It can also be considered the end of the not-so-pretty/have-to-do-this-to-get-to-the-good-part section and the start of the this-is-what-I-expect-when-I’m-hiking/we’re-in-the-forest-now section.

From the final location and beyond is the typical beautiful Tiger Mountain forest and trails with the added bonus that in this area they are much less traveled due to the extra work involved in getting to them. If you're looking for more solitude on Tiger, then this is the place to go.

Here are the multicache tasks:

Waypoint #1:

The First Waypoint is This Sign
Picture of Sign at Waypoint 1

At the first waypoint, which is located at the posted coordinates, is a sign that reads the following except I’ve replaced the miles with A and B (note that M stands for miles and is not part of the multicache math):

                Preston Trail
                West Tiger #1
                View Point A.BM

Note the distance in miles to View Point as A and B

Waypoint #2:

 Find your way to the second waypoint which is located at the additional waypoint coordinates. Once there look uphill in the direction of the trail leading into the forest and near the powerlines you will see a wooden gate that looks much like a fence. This gate has C number of posts and DE total number of rails.

                C = number of posts
                DE = total number of rails

Final Location: Coordinates from Formula

The final is located at:

                N47 31.(B-D)(A-D-E)(B)
                W121 57.(A+D)(A+D)(B)

Final Location: Letterbox Style

Now here’s the really easy part: I will tell you how to get to the final and where to look so you don’t even need to do the math. From WP2 head up the trail and into the forest. About 150 feet past the edge of the forest is a short side trail to the left that ends after about 20 feet at the edge of a stream. While standing on the edge of and facing the stream you will find to your right a log and a cedar tree. At the base of the cedar tree is some cubbyholes and over one of them is a very out-of-place rock. And yep, under the rock is the cache. Two spoiler pictures are provided to make it even easier.

The final is a red scuba sized bison and only has room for a log sheet so be sure to bring a pen to sign your sig.

More Information About Tiger Mountain:
Tiger Mountain (summitpost.org)
Tiger Mountain (Issaquah Alps Trails Club)
Green Trails Map No 204S: Tiger Mountain (requires purchase)
Weather

Additional Hints ()

Va gur qrfpevcgvba naq fcbvyre cvpgherf

Decryption Key

A|B|C|D|E|F|G|H|I|J|K|L|M
-------------------------
N|O|P|Q|R|S|T|U|V|W|X|Y|Z

(letter above equals below, and vice versa)

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