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I like it when a plan comes together! This cache, a tiny nano, is attached to a navigational buoy in Lawling Creek, off Mundon Point in the River Blackwater on the Dengie Peninsula. I had asked a local cacher, NathanJHunt if he knew anyone with a boat who could get us out there. He hadn't had much luck so I had a try. I contacted a local boatyard and they could help for a reasonable price on a Saturday with a suitable tide. The boat could only take four people. Nathan had a mate, HHT&TS, who was interested and I'm sure that I could have filled the other place, ten times over but I offered it to Izybuzyfingers who was organising a tree climbing event for a cache that would clear a D/T place for me.
At the arranged time, Izy and I were at the boatyard but the two locals got lost getting there😂 When we were all present, we made our way to the boat and following our GPS wound our way on the rising tide out into the creek. As we approached the buoys, we were looking for number 3 and soon we spotted it. Grabbing hold of the large green buoy, the nano was quickly undone and the log extracted amid much jubilation. After the signing ceremony and many photo, it was time to put the cache back together.
However, the buoy had drifted 100 yards so the boatman manoeuvred the boat into position, we again captured the buoy but in trying to reconnect, the cable tie snapped but at least we had the cache in hand. We found some nylon cord on the boat floor so we tied the cord to the nano turned to the buoy and guess what?
Once we got the boat back in position, we held onto the buoy for dear life whilst Izy made knot after knot until she'd run out of cord to tie. So it was a happy journey back to harbour where we discovered that the cafe was closed. As a sop, we decided to pick up some new caches on the Dengie and I added another two trads and a puzzle to my list. However the highlight and perhaps my favourite ever cache was the buoy. It was a 1/5 cache, filling an empty D/T grid but it as so much fun. I also came away with a plan for a 3/5 cache in a much more perilous environment.