Jerry Lee Lewisham

Thursday 20th April 2023

The plan today was to travel to Lewisham and then visit a few areas nearby for a Challenge Cache. The idea is to find a cache in 161 1km grids of the Ordnance Survey 161 map.🥴 I had spotted a few gaps around Lewisham and would try to fill them. However it soon became evident that not every grid was graced with a cache.☹️

I'm on an early train again and would get off at Stepney East or Limehouse as they now insist in calling it and get the DLR down to Lewisham. I alighted and thought that rather than jump the DLR straight away, I'd try for the ST DLR Limehouse trad and one stage of the Call the Midwife AdLab series. The trad was an easy find and then I sauntered down the Commercial Road to one of the few remaining Seaman's Mission buildings that used to give temporary accomodation for all the seafarers caught between ships when the local docks were in their prime.

Once on the DLR, I decided to get off at Deptford Bridge Station for the ST trad, then walk down to the next station Elverson Street for another ST trad and get back on the DLR to the terminus, Lewisham. The plan was executed perfectly but Lewisham was teeming with commuters as well as kids getting to school so I had difficulty getting on a bus over to Blackheath. After two packed buses failed to stop, I reverted to my bus plan perfected over many years; if you can't see a bus, walk!😀

I strode up Belmont Hill towards St Margaret's Church. I stride in the mornings and shuffle in the afternoons.🤔 I found the Zero in on Halley 2006 golden oldie but struggled at the CM Lee multi. The info was easy to find but one question was the hue of the lych gate. I made my guess and worked out the coords. I confirmed the hue with the CO but didn't ask for confirmation of the coords. I went down the dead end street to the search area and started to delve. I was soon told by a lady putting out her rubbish that where I was standing was on private property. 

I explained what I doing but she was adamant that where I was looking was on private property. There had also been a burglary a couple of nights ago so they were understandably a bit twitchy. She tried to be helpful and looked in a couple of places for me but no joy. I called it a day and said my goodbyes and headed off, looking in any possible hiding spot on the way. I quickly contacted the CO again to confirm the coords and relating the incident but they haven't responded.🥴

I walked up to Blackheath Park and visited one of the bases of the Past and Past Blackheath AdLab series. An environmentally concious Jerry Lee would have been proud to play the piano in front of the Conservatoire of Music. However would the Conservatoire welcome his rendition of Green, Green Grass of Home.😀

I found two CM multis nearby and sorted out the coords of the ST Blackheath multi. However, it was time for breakfast and I found a welcoming Mr Costa.🤫 After my usual, I took the long trek down to the ST final and then took the same route back. When I reached the station, I saw a bus going in the general direction that I wanted to go. A quick "does this bus go to Lee?" and a thumbs up from the driver and I was on my way.

I got off opposite the unfortunately disabled CM Lee ~ URC but made do with the 161 Micheldever Corner trad. I set off for the nearby ST Lee trad and then headed north to the CM Lee ~ St Peter multi. I was a bit confused here and had a couple of sets of coords. Neither put me in the right place but more by luck than judgement, I managed to find the well concealed cache.

I headed up towards Manor House Gardens, picking up a trad on the way, up to the Lee Manor multi. This was another 161 grid cache which took me around the park. It was a bit fortuitous that part of the River Quaggy Parks AdLab series started here.😀 I finished up the multi and set off towards Manor Park for the rest of the AdLab series. I was pleased to find that the bonus was in this park and not the other.

I dropped down to Hither Green Station. I eventually found the 3/1.5 ? well hidden in the ivy but it was so dusty, I'm still clearing the stuff out of my eyes.🥴 I wandered down to the trad at the Hither Green Water Tower and the nearby Where sport happens! trad in Mountfield Park for more 161s. I made the decision to go north instead of south and found a few more trads in Lewisham Park. I found that I was near the hospital and plenty of buses so I jumped one that would take back to Lewisham DLR.

By now I was planning to try for some of the golden oldies around Limehouse so I caught the train to Westferry, ignoring the chance to cache at Canada Water. I walked down the Limehouse Link to the first of the From a Swan to the Canary series of trads from 2007. I cut through to Three Colts Street which I'm sure had something to do with the Kray Twins. Certainly The Grapes in Narrow Street was more familiar. One of my nan's aunties, Emma Pitts was a regular in there. This was near to Ropemakers Fields where I found the second of the series.

I followed the path through to Limehouse Basin wher I picked up the 2010 River Lee: Limehouse Basin trad. I walked down to the bridge across the entrance to the basin and then headed up to my final cache of the day. I had failed to find the : Eastern Troll cache in the series some time ago but there were no problems today. Luckily there was enough room to deposit a couple of travel bugs that I had, wishing them bon voyage. All I had to do now was find my way back to Stepney East Station.😀

2 Mystery 5 Multi 8 AdLab 16 Traditional

#16895

PS I found eight 161s which brought me up to 146/161.😀