Still Water of Thornton Creek
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Difficulty:
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Terrain:
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Size: 
(micro)
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This is a typical NW hide in an urban park. The container is a 4x4x4 Lock 'n Lock with room for the log and a few small items. There is an unactivated coin for FTF and an unactivated travel bug for STF. Also a few toys for the kids.
Update: in the interest of habitat preservation, don't bother with the south side of the creeklet. Ground is super soft on that side and the north side has a nice trail. Thanks to Velma for doing the recon:)
Update 2/13/14: the hide is now a camo-ed short plastic jar with the original log book but less room for swag. I did leave a few items of swag but please don't jam this up with cheap junk. It is now about ten feet west of the original but should not be hard to find. Use geosense!
Update 10/26/15: the site has been changed due to massive "pruning" of a five-trunked mature alder tree down to just two trunks with the resulting debris and chunks of tree distributed all over the GZ. The container has vanished. New container is a camo-ed plastic container slightly bigger than a film canister. It should not be hard to find and is adjacent to the trail. The hint will be modified accordingly.
This cache has been placed in a spot near a “creeklet” that has been substantially modified to contribute to watershed improvement in the Thornton Creek drainage system. The GZ is next to a calm spot where the water flow is slow and peaceful and is a very restful place to savor the tiny bit of wildness in the otherwise urban environment. I have always been fascinated with the many and varied places of slightly wild environment associated with the Thornton Creek drainage in Shoreline and the northern parts of Seattle. Sometimes, walking from the busy street life into these woodsy, brushy, and yes, often muddy, places, you can be transported into a different world of natural vegetation, birds, and wildlife of all kinds. It is always a pleasure to be able to place a cache in a place like this and bring others in to share the experience. I hope you enjoy this.
If you come in from the east, it is a very pleasant walk alongside the creeklet. Near the Meadowbrook swimming pool, the creeklet forms a peculiar (apparently man-made) shape. It takes a couple of u-turns to run alongside itself in an obvious effort to enhance the ground-absorption effect and further improve the flood control features of the system, they call this a “meander”. Downstream from here and across 35th Ave NE, the stream flows into the Meadowbrook Pond, a seriously man-made part of the flood control system here. Oddly enough, this man-made facility is one of the most wonderful little nature preserves in the Seattle area. It is a masterpiece of man-nature collaborations and a true pleasure to experience. I encourage you to check it out. There is also a nice cache there; “Reflective Refuge” GCNQKR.
The following is from the Thornton Creek Alliance site:
“Adjacent to the Meadowbrook playfield, close to the South Fork of Thornton Creek, are a hillside and a wetland that have undergone considerable restoration. Thornton Creek Alliance members, students, and others from the community have been working with the Seattle Department of Parks and Recreation to bring back Meadowbrook's character and natural value.
The hillside has been planted with native trees and shrubs. The area adjacent to the wetland also has been replanted with native vegetation. The creeklet flowing out of the wetland is being restored, and the part of it that was underground is now back on the surface. It has meanders, and it flows between the new community center and the adjacent baseball field. Community cooperation has allowed room for the creeklet between the community center and the outfield fence on the ballfield. One benefit is that the ballfield, which had been perennially soggy, now has better drainage with the creeklet functioning more normally. The creeklet's banks have been mulched and planted, and rocks and logs were added for gradient and habitat value.
As the planted areas mature, they serve as habitat for birds and other wildlife. It is hoped that the creeklet, which flows into Thornton Creek's south fork, will serve as rearing habitat for juvenile salmon--and there is evidence that they have already found the creeklet. Hatchery salmon will be released each spring by children from nearby schools, but if the various Thornton Creek restoration efforts succeed, wild salmon juveniles may also use it. Young coho salmon, especially, need such habitat off of main creek channels as shelter in the wintertime.
In addition, Pacific chorus frogs have been reintroduced here, and on warm summer evenings, you may hear their loud trilling along the creeklet!”
This park is available legally from 0400 (4:00am) to 2300 (11:00pm) but the cache is best found in daylight hours.
Congrats to Velma (Shaggy, Scooby & Velma) for the FTF! Also, thanks for leaving a pen. I knew I forgot something:)
Additional Hints
(Decrypt)
Va gur onfr bs n pyhzc bs oehfu arkg gb gur tynpvny reengvp ol gur genvy.