Extreme Geocaching

I have got the bug for extreme caching at the moment, Lumi  is hoping it will pass soon after having to fill in for me on the latest supermarket sweep 11.

As it had her down an undergrouond tunnel in a river bed.

SS #11

So anyway on to todays adventure, by early this morning I had a call about a new cache that had been placed, but not through the usual channels and here were the coordinates.

Out the door I rolled at 0214 to meet up with two other cachers that share the madness and off into the night we drove. It took about three hours to get to GZ, we overtook two “cut it squirt it” trucks on the way, both on a blue light but hey ho!!

At the intersection

At GZ we jimmied open the outer shell so to speak and found our selves in a long tunnel heading west for a quater mile. We came to a cross section, looking to the left it was a small corridor that had a cave in at some point, turning right looped all the way back to the start, but came out five foot to the left, over the river.

Starting back to the cross section we went straight over. ‘By now it must be getting light’ I thought, as I could see the occasional air vent on our route. After about 400 yards the tunnel took an upright turn linking in with an underground rail track.

We could hear the occasional rumble of a tube train; but it seemed safe so we continued on our way. Ten minutes later we overheard voices in the

We'll go this way then

distance! ‘It must be someone else’ we thought, looking for our award. But no! Turns out it was the boys in blue securitiy checking the new olympic tunnel structure. After getting chased down one of the tubes we made it safely into a side room, about 4×8 feet and it had a small ladder leading up, so we followed it, up and out into what was fast becoming the worst caching experience ever. As we broke into the light it was only then we realised we had just been caught in an april fools blog.

Happy caching and keep out of strange holes in the ground!

FORT MICRO #13 – FORT DARNETT

Fort Micro #13 – Fort Darnett

The trip out here started several weeks ago when LA:RS said he had a mate with access to a boat. Of course smif247 and & I jumped at the chance to join him. Little did we know of the trials and tribulations that were to follow.

Fort Darnett

Today was the day, Sunday 11th March 2012. We started out at Brompton Barracks, at 09:30 to meet LA:RS and Mug L. Guy for a brew before heading out to Borstal Marina, arrival time 10:30.

Seriously?

We are not seriously going in that?

Upon arriving at the marina I began admiring the vessels wondering just which one we would be using. The thought of traveling out on a 30 foot yacht was quite overwhelming as we walked the jetty’s trying to find our mode of transport for the day. Mug L. Guy lead the way trying to tell us he knew where he was headed, when he decided to double back towards a small(ish) boat with a life raft tied to it. He proudly announced that here was our ride for the day! Needless to say my nerves started to jiggle a little.

Smif247 sunbathing while we wait for the engine to start

Now we had to play a waiting game on the jetty for the tide to start coming in, this was because the boat was still on the mud and was obviously not going anywhere. Half an hour later and Mug L. Guy with the help of LA:RS decided it was time to start firing up the outboard motor. And not with much success. The engine coughed, spluttered, fired up and then stopped. This happened many times, until…

Even the swan felt sorry for me

Captain LA:RS & Skipper Mug L. Guy

…It finally started!

After an hour or so of false starts all because Mug L. Guy forgot to flick the switch on the motor, we finally headed out off up the Medway at Midday, doing nothing more than 4 knots an hour on a two stroke/4hp engine boat. Better than a canoe but a speed boat would have been faster!

Our pride at finally gliding across the river was soon short lived! Soon after we had steered round the second jetty the engine decided to cut out once again. We coasted in towards the jetty, Smif247 and I hanging onto a cleat while LA:RS and Mug L. Guy had a few more attempts at firing up the motor. Which they did! With the throttle fully open and without warning to Smif247 and I we sped full pelt towards a moored 60 foot house boat (with residents still on board). Smif247 grabbed the nearest rope as I fell backwards on to the battery to power the bilge system.

Why does LA:RS look miserable?

Grinning like an idiot!

Trying to look innocent!

Heart attack over and the motor finally still running we managed to get ourselves out of the predicament fairly quickly and without the residents of said boat being alerted to our little bump (thank goodness).

We enjoyed a gentle slog around the curves of Rochester, Chatham, St Marys Island and Hoo Fort. Traveling against the incoming tide, bouncing across a few swells here and there, when Smif247 announced he needed to relieve himself. Oh dear me! There goes my half bottle of water!

Gun Wharf

Rochester Bridge

Rochester Castle

Not too long after, in the distance we spotted Fort Darnett. Excitement and adrenalin began pumping. The motor was still running. We really were going to make it there! It felt like the boat had started to speed up now or was that just our anticipation.

Fort Darnett just visible in the distance, only about 10 minutes journey time left

We moored up just behind a couple of rusty looking sunken barges, finding what was the metal remains of a jetty, I believe, (just a note, don’t use it to tie your boat too, because as the water reached high tide the metal bars lifted out of the water and LA:RS had to wade in to rescue the boat [:)])Arriving at approximately 13:40.

The sunken barges

Soon after a long and well deserved comfort break, we quickly found the entry point to the fort, a solid plank of wood (maybe a sleeper) perched from a curved tunnel onto solid ground. This did not look particularly safe to me, just as LA:RS informed me that I was going first. I am not sure if this was because I am a female or because I was the lightest! Needless to say after taking 2 or 3 shuffled steps I decided to crawl across as my legs were still shaking from the immense vibration of the boat journey.

The only way in

Once on solid ground the awe factor really began. new had finally made it to Fort Darnett in a boat that reminded me of my Mum’s old Austin Allegro )Sorry Mum)! What an amazingly well preserved Fort! You can see why the hippies camped out here during the Kingsnorth Power Station protests.

LA:RS makes the crossing

And Smif247's turn doing the smif shuffle

Now Mug L. Guy's turn

The four us soon had our varying gps units in hand (smart phones and Garmins) and started creeping around the inside of the fort looking for the geocache hiding place. Watching our step as we all kept going round in circles

 

“4ft this way”

 

“NO, 50ft this way”

 

“I’m sure it’s over here”

 

 

 

 

We eventually gave up trying to use gps signals as they were bouncing all over the place, when smif247 remembered one of the logs that Henly had written in the past about a “place holder” and went straight to that GZ and after a quick rummage around he had the cache in hand.

WE FOUND IT!

We dutifully photographed evidence of Ginger4x4’s visit from 2009 before

Ginger's phone is somewhere down there

writing our own names on the log sheet and again photographing it as evidence that the “place holder” really does exist. Oh and we did consider looking for Ginger’s phone that he lost in the flooded lower floors, but well, we just thought better of it as none of us had a spare set of dry clothes. So I imagine it is still down there. Don’t think it will be of much use now though!

After replacing the container to its resting place, the

Mug L. Guy on the roof

exploration of the site really began. With smif247 climbing

Smif investigating a hole but needed help to get out

down holes, Mug L Guy climbing on the roof for a better view and LA:RS still determined to find the original cache container, while I enjoyed walking around the site (safely, unlike the others) taking as many photo’s as possible before settling just inside the fort near a strange looking contraption for a bag of crisps and a flask of tea.

Then at 15:00 we all headed back to the shore line to our rescued boat to start the long journey back to Borstal Marina (the boys couldn’t have picked a further starting point really)! Gingerly creeping back out in to the wash round bits of wood that now couldn’t be seen as the tide was now high and trying desperately to steer clear of the ship wrecked barges, home was only a couple of hours away.

Feeling smug & Happy

Basking in our success at reviving this cache so that others know that it is still out there, we began to calm and feel the adrenalin leave us, I even dozed off on the way! Not sure how as that engine was mighty loud. We touched down on solid ground just after 17:00, very happy cachers in deed. We not only found the 4/4 micro container but had actually managed to arrive back at the marina in one piece, dry and with the boat engine still running.

Stop hanging about and look for the cache

Magazine lift

Today has definitely been my most amazing day as a

Casemate

geocacher and I would love to be able to thank Henly in person for dreaming up, setting up and maintaining the geocache on this site. Instead my thanks will have to go to Dave-Harris for adopting this geocache so it can remain alive and have many, many other total nut cases out to it in the future.

Truly from the bottom of my heart, TFTC [:D]

By Luminesence

The "real" log

 

Snow, My Spartan and an FTF.

This blog starts a few days back with a local trip out to some local cache’s. Armed with my trusty phone off I went solo into the snow to try for four of the Cooling Crawl series.

The snow was crisp and very white, so very peaceful and beautiful. It wasn’t long before I was headed into Narnia searching for the elusive micro; wondering how long it would take digging around trying desperately not to leave a cachers trail.

After 2 hours walking, running and caching I was more than ready for a hot coffee, so turned for home. It’s funny how much more friendly people are in the snow, loads of people wanted to stop and chat on my way back.

Highly recommended if you need to get a clear head, and peace and solitude is your way of doing it.

Then on to Grain Battery Tower! Up at 6 am meeting up with a few geocachers to attack Grain battery tower and the Fort Micro that had been placed there.

It’s an old disused fort (one of Palmerston’s Follies) in the middle of where the Thames and Medway river’s meet the North Sea.

LA:RS has fast become a good friend and fellow geocacher, he does however come up with some interesting schemes.

On this occasion we ended up in an old fort with nine geocachers & one muggle in a little room at the very top of the fort. We had to climb an old ladder to get in, but well worth it, as the views were great and exploring all the little rooms was very exciting.

On we went to do another series. That day there was still snow on the ground and it was below freezing point, so we went with the name team ice cube for our log signing, as there were so many of us out.

Now I do like a bit of a challenge and have a habit of taking on a little more than I should at times! Caching seems to bring out the madness in me. As I was fast approaching 300 finds I wanted something out of the ordinary to do as my “Spartan” 300th cache. Now, we have a few 5/5 in the area and what better way to man up to the warrior challenge than a hardcore cache.

Six Foot Under was chosen and so was a caching partner; DDRM is up for a laugh! So help enlisted we set off.

It’s a three part cache. Part one a puzzle: this was relatively easy in comparison to the rest. So with part one complete we arranged to meet at the parking coords and set our time and date.

We met at 3 pm and headed out to part two: to find a game piece and the second set of coords. Well after a longer walk than necessary we found ourselves face to face with an eight foot fenced building sight between us and the game piece; so all the way round the outside we went, finally dropping down a six foot wall to secure the game piece needed for the third and final part.

As we punched in the coords to our phones the final resting place was as suspected – a good six foot under! But not ground! Oh No! It was underwater, and not the nice heated pool type either, more your freezing sea type! Avoiding security patrols that guard the area and cctv cameras that also guard this lovely little spot, we were soon at the final GZ, and low and behold at 5 degrees on shore in I went using the game piece to release the cache from its resting place and bringing it up to the surface to sign. Now it was DDMR’s turn as we had already decided one to retrieve and one to replace so we could both log it.

Unfortunately due to not wanting to give away the GZ photo’s won’t be added.

In he went and re-attachment commenced. He was soaked! And as his head nearly disappeared I was glad I was at least not having to replace as well. The adrenaline was keeping me warm for now.

Task completed and cache safely back in place we had a nice little walk (about 1/2 a mile) to replace the game piece for the next cacher to go after six foot under. It was nearly dark as we got back to the cars. Hot shower, hot coffee and a happy dance for the spartan.

After a late night I thought I’d be safe for a lay in, but no my email alerted me to a new cache at 7 am the following morning! So with a gentle shake to let the good lady know I was off out into the freezing cold for my 301st cache, off I went again. This time it was one of the supermarket sweep series that I have been following closely, as I have 8 FTF’s out of the 9 published (I missed number 3 as it was hijacked by another cacher), so the original series by LA:RS I have a full score sheet so far of First to Find.

After a shuffle around and some repeated shoe lace tying I soon had the cache in my hand and FTF signed at 7:20 time for another happy dance as rosieb123 calls it.

Just a few of the views we saw on the day

by smif247