BEFORE YOU START THIS CACHE PLEASE BE AWARE THAT IT REQUIRES YOU TO VISIT 8 DIFFERENT LOCATIONS AND DOES HAVE A FIELD PUZZLE AT THE END OF IT
Life’s A Beach #19 - Plymouth
Plymouth known as the Ocean City according to the boards as you enter the city limits is situated on the South coast of Devon approximately 37 miles South-West of Exeter and 190 miles West-South-West of London (as the crow flies). The city sits between the mouth of the River Plym to the East and the River Tamar to the West with both rivers meeting up in Plymouth Sound. The Tamar also helps to form part of the border boundary with Cornwall and extends nearly all the way to the north of Devon.
During the Bronze Age a settlement emerged at what is not known as Mount Batten and this went on to become Plymouth’s first established settlement. The settlement continued throughout the Roman Empire, until the more prosperous village of Sutton (one of the three towns that merged to form the original town of Plymouth.)
One of Plymouth’s most famous claims to fame is that it was the departure point for the Pilgrim Fathers in the 17th Century as they headed for the New World and established Plymouth Colony in the state of Massachusetts and was the second English settlement to be established in what we know regard as the United States of America.
During the English Civil War, Plymouth was held by the Parliamentarians and was besieged between 1642 & 1646. The Royal Citadel was still in the Royalists so to try and quell the riots it’s guns were turned in on the city and fired on the populace. Some of the guns remain pointing towards the city centre to this day – more these days as a poignant reminder of the drastic action of the time.
During the Industrial Revolution, Plymouth grew as a commercial shipping port, handling imports and passengers from the Americas as well as exporting local minerals such as tin, copper, lime, china clay and arsenic. The neighbouring town of Devonport became a strategic Royal Naval shipbuilding and dockyard town. In 1914 the three neighbouring independent towns of the County borough of Plymouth (the former town of Sutton), the County borough of Devonport and the urban district of East Stonehouse merged to form a single County borough town which subsequently took the name of Plymouth and was awarded city status in 1928. The city realised it’s importance as a major Naval port when it was targeted and partially destroyed partial destruction during World War II, in an act that is now known as the Plymouth Blitz. Two of the biggest casualties of the Plymouth Blitz were the Church of St Andrew’s on Royal Parade and Charles Church on what is now Charles Cross roundabout. Both churches had incendiary bombs land on them and were both subsequently burnt out. St Andrew’s was rebuilt during the regeneration of the city in the Post-War years but Charles Church has remained in its burnt out state as a poignant reminder of the terrible atrocities. After the war the city centre was completely rebuilt and remodelled and the subsequent expansion led to the incorporation of the towns of Plympton and Plymstock along with other outlying suburbs in 1967.
The city is home to approximately 260,000 (mid-2016 est.) people, making it the 35th most populous built up area in the United Kingdom and the second-largest city in the South West, after Bristol. It is governed locally by it’s own independent Council - Plymouth City Council and is represented nationally by three elected Members of Parliament (MPs). Plymouth's economy remains strongly influenced by shipbuilding and seafaring including ferry links to Brittany, France (Roscoff and St Malo) and Spain (Santander), but has tended toward a service-based economy since the 1990s. It has the largest operational naval base in Western Europe – HMNB Devonport and is also home to Plymouth University.
The headline coordinates will take you to the start of a small trail around Plymouth Hoe and the Waterfront gathering information as you go which will be needed to find the final location and ultimately the cache.
Headline Coordinates – How many wreaths are on the pillars A
Plymouth Cenotaph – In what year did G. Mainprize die BCBD
Lighthouse – What date did HRH the Duke of Edinburgh KG lay the stone E0th October 1FF2
Spanish Armada – How many years is the stone commemorating GHJ
Tinside Pool – How many feet across is the pool K80
Information Board – In what year did the Mayflower set sail from Plymouth for the New World 1L20
Marine Laboratory – In what year was the building struck by a series of bombs 19M1
The cache can be found at
N DH (C+F+M).(L+A-E)(D-G)(H-J) W HJA (K+L+B).(((F/E)-E)(C-D+K+B)(F+L-D))
You will now need to add 4 to your Northings and add 3 to the Eastings
PLEASE BE CAREFUL WITH THE CACHE. THERE IS ONLY WAY TO OPEN IT. PLEASE DO NOT FORCE IT OPEN AND NO TOOLS WILL BE REQUIRED. PLEASE CONTACT US FOR MORE ASSISTANCE IF NEEDED TO GET INTO THE PUZZLE
Please replace the cache as you found it and watch out for muggles
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