Learn More
Yes, it is Earthcache Day and I need to find an EC to be “awarded” the official souvenir that is the reward for this task. I decided to go up to Chelmsford just twenty minutes away to get the WM - Chelmsford Civic which is based around Portland Stone, a type of limestone quarried in Dorset.
I parked up near The Woolpack in Mildmay Street close to where the Essex Geocaching meets were held. I wonder if we will ever be able to attend another. My plan for the morning was to walk through the city relying on street lighting whilst doing the City of Chelmsford Adventure Labs Series recently set by PeCeH. There were no problems finding the necessary info and I also learnt some more facts about our county city.
At the WM, I gathered the information which I hoped would satisfy the CO and thankfilly, I received the green light to proceed by WimpyKid1 later in the day.
Just around the corner was a FYI (for your information) multi which are starting to appear. Using the information board on the former Ridley’s Mill, I worked out the coords for a quick find at the final. I did notice the former signal box high up at Chelmsford Station which I‘m amazed hasn’t been demolished. It‘s probably the last of the station’s steam age relics apart from the bridges.
I had hoped to look for the ST Chelmsford mystery this morning but it has had a couple of DNFs and the COs had disabled it due to lack of access due to roadworks. Being me, I just had to have a look and although there is pedestrian access, there was no sign of a cache.🙁
NB. The cache was missing and the COs, The Avenue Two have kindly given me permission to log the cache.😀👍🏻
I walked south through the deserted streets, apart from the market traders setting up, and made my way down to the site of the old gasworks. Helenntribe had recently set up an FYI multi based on the Gasholders Information board. I worked out the coords but once I’d clocked where it was, I decided to walk down past the Essex Record Centre to the canal to pick up the Lockside Bridge trad. I retraced my steps back to amother bridge and crossed to the multi search area. I couldn’t find the cache so checked the recent logs. It was all DNFs plus a message from Helen saying that she’d broken her ankle so couldn’t get out here for six weeks.🥴
I made my way down to the old Marriage’s Mill as Kris&Co had recently set up a Virtual cache based on a WW2 Home Guard Spigot Mortar emplacement. Now I’m pretty well clued up on WW2 military architecture but I didn’t know that this was here. After I’d sent the answers off to Kris, I had to award this one a fave.👍🏻
I was on my way down to the 1/1 “Get Here If You Can” multi. I had walked past the spot many times before but always in the dark on my way to the Essex Meet. So imagine my surprise when I saw what it was all about. In the brick wall around the house on the corner were nine unique sculpted metal panels depicting ages of transport. Once I had sorted out the coords, the cache was just across the road.😀
I was now on the road home but with a few more caches to find. I quickly found a 1/1 trad in Great Baddow before picking up another trad at the other end of Beehive Lane. I had Dub 1, a 3/1 trad on my list and it was just down the road. I had to have a look but as I had failed here at least six times, I didn’t hold up much hope.🤔 The previous cacher had left it in plain view which was great for me but it should really have been put back much better.
I took the back lanes out through farmland to Great Baddow to pick up another 1/1 trad. After this one, I was thwarted at my last port of call as the car in front pulled into the lay-by where I needed to be so I literally gave it a swerve.
1 Earthcache 1 Mystery 1 Virtual 2 Multi 5 Adventure 5 Traditional
##11376