8 x traditional geocaches...
The Twins
Great Orme Summit
Cornerstone View
Dawn Recon 1
Great Orme Headland
Dawn Recon 2
The Flying Michelin
Crocodile Hill (Tortoiseshell's 50th Find!)
Helgoland travelbug
Ostensibly in Llandudno for the pre-election Labour Wales conference, Llandudno also offered a chance of no less than 8 geocaches and an opportunity for me to log my 50th find. So it was up to the Great Orme - a limestone peninsula jutting northwestwards out of Llandudno - for the real business of the weekend. After a steep climb up I was rewarded with a pleasant, flat walk on the coastal footpaths.
Pic 1: The playing field...
Most of the caches made use of the many piles of stones which characterise the Great Orme, which was previously an important site of mining and quarrying. The two "Dawn Recon" caches were in fact hidden on former quarry sites.
There were two exceptions. "Great Orme Summit" was well hidden by a clod of earth, and "The Flying Michelin" was hidden on the edge of a graveyard!
I whittled off the first four caches easily enough, on the eastern side of the Orme. I then made the mistake of dropping steeply down the western side to get "Great Orme headland" and "Dawn Recon 2." I polished these two caches easily enough, brining me to 6 aches within about 2 hours. But then I was faced with a long, steep trek back up the western face of the Orme to get back to the two remaining caches on the eastern side - which I could have done earlier if I'd known the place better.
Pic 2: Puzzled sheep
Anyway, I hauled my wauy back up to the top, near to the monstrous carbuncle of the summit complex. Tired, I took a picture of some puzzled sheep.
I then retraced my way back to the eastern side, down to the graveyard where the Flying Michelin cache was hidden.
I had started in the light of day at 3pm. But my circuitous route now meant that my 8th and final cache would be found at 6pm, in the impending gloom.
The pressure was on as I was now on 49 cache finds for my caching career. There then followed an almighty scramble across trail and heathland to find the spot where the 'Crocodile Hill' cache was located. I eventually found the heavy ammo box and scribbled in the logbook that this was indeed my 50th find!
Pic. 3 Gravestone to commemorate "The Flying Michelin", nickname of a pioneering Welsh female motorcyclist.
The cache was hidden about 50ft from here. Note the impending gloom.
I now faced a scramble back across the Orme in darkness to get back to the relative safety of my B&B. At several stages I cursed my utter disorganisation. The thought that helped sustain me through mud, bracken and brambles was the thought that "I'm sure Maalie has been in worse scrapes than this!". Eventually got back tired and hungry - but happy with my 50th cache find - at around 7pm. Then went back to another meeting and wrapped up my work for the weekend!
The Twins
Great Orme Summit
Cornerstone View
Dawn Recon 1
Great Orme Headland
Dawn Recon 2
The Flying Michelin
Crocodile Hill (Tortoiseshell's 50th Find!)
Helgoland travelbug
Ostensibly in Llandudno for the pre-election Labour Wales conference, Llandudno also offered a chance of no less than 8 geocaches and an opportunity for me to log my 50th find. So it was up to the Great Orme - a limestone peninsula jutting northwestwards out of Llandudno - for the real business of the weekend. After a steep climb up I was rewarded with a pleasant, flat walk on the coastal footpaths.
Pic 1: The playing field...Most of the caches made use of the many piles of stones which characterise the Great Orme, which was previously an important site of mining and quarrying. The two "Dawn Recon" caches were in fact hidden on former quarry sites.
There were two exceptions. "Great Orme Summit" was well hidden by a clod of earth, and "The Flying Michelin" was hidden on the edge of a graveyard!
I whittled off the first four caches easily enough, on the eastern side of the Orme. I then made the mistake of dropping steeply down the western side to get "Great Orme headland" and "Dawn Recon 2." I polished these two caches easily enough, brining me to 6 aches within about 2 hours. But then I was faced with a long, steep trek back up the western face of the Orme to get back to the two remaining caches on the eastern side - which I could have done earlier if I'd known the place better.
Pic 2: Puzzled sheepAnyway, I hauled my wauy back up to the top, near to the monstrous carbuncle of the summit complex. Tired, I took a picture of some puzzled sheep.
I then retraced my way back to the eastern side, down to the graveyard where the Flying Michelin cache was hidden.
I had started in the light of day at 3pm. But my circuitous route now meant that my 8th and final cache would be found at 6pm, in the impending gloom.
The pressure was on as I was now on 49 cache finds for my caching career. There then followed an almighty scramble across trail and heathland to find the spot where the 'Crocodile Hill' cache was located. I eventually found the heavy ammo box and scribbled in the logbook that this was indeed my 50th find!
Pic. 3 Gravestone to commemorate "The Flying Michelin", nickname of a pioneering Welsh female motorcyclist. The cache was hidden about 50ft from here. Note the impending gloom.
I now faced a scramble back across the Orme in darkness to get back to the relative safety of my B&B. At several stages I cursed my utter disorganisation. The thought that helped sustain me through mud, bracken and brambles was the thought that "I'm sure Maalie has been in worse scrapes than this!". Eventually got back tired and hungry - but happy with my 50th cache find - at around 7pm. Then went back to another meeting and wrapped up my work for the weekend!
