Dan Q found GC9DV9P GST 64 – Lift me up buttercup

This checkin to GC9DV9P GST 64 - Lift me up buttercup reflects a geocaching.com log entry. See more of Dan's cache logs.

We almost gave up trying to find the hint object before spotting something that once had the colour of a buttercup but has since enjoyed some extra camouflage! Retrieving the cache was a bit challenging for my fat hands but my mum managed to help. FP awarded for this more-imaginative hiding place! TFTC.

Dan leans against the post of an open metal gate.

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Dan Q found GC9DV6A GST 60 – Squeezed into fence

This checkin to GC9DV6A GST 60 - Squeezed into fence reflects a geocaching.com log entry. See more of Dan's cache logs.

Very quick find. Spent some time trying to retreive the cache container before deciding that it’s probably supposed to live in its hiding place and instead we just retrieved the logbook! Good hiding place! TFTC.

Dan standing by a gate, reading a geocaching logbook.

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Dan Q found GC9DV69 GST 58 – Bison behind the block

This checkin to GC9DV69 GST 58 - Bison behind the block reflects a geocaching.com log entry. See more of Dan's cache logs.

Second place we looked. Nice easy find. Liking these slightly bigger tubes! TFTC.

Dan reaches behind a fence post.
A geocacher’s most-valuable skills include map reading, trail-finding, and rummaging around behind fence posts.
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Dan Q did not find GC9DV5M GST 53 – Newcastle West Station

This checkin to GC9DV5M GST 53 - Newcastle West Station reflects a geocaching.com log entry. See more of Dan's cache logs.

We were heading to the 2024-11-22 52 -8 geohashpoint as part of a geohashing holiday but floods breaking the banks of the River Arra blocked our way so we parked up in Newcastle West to attempt to find a few geocaches instead. Despite the hint and previous logs, our search found nothing. Maybe gone?

Geohashing expedition 2024-11-23 52 -8

This checkin to geohash 2024-11-23 52 -8 reflects a geohashing expedition. See more of Dan's hash logs.

Location

Field East of Newcastle West

Participants

Plans

On the second full day of our geohashing tour of Western Ireland, we’ll try to drive to somewhere close to this hashpoint (maybe up towards Knockaderry?) and see if we can walk to it (and if it’s accessible when we get there).

Expedition

This part of Ireland’s been under moderate snow cover for several days, but overnight that turned to rain and as it warmed up early in the morning, the snow rapidly melted and poured down into the valleys. The River Arra burst its banks in several places, and our first, second, and third attempts to find places to cross it to get closer to the hashpoint were foiled by floods (too deep and fast-flowing to safely ford) and closed roads.

A road through a field and towards a river bridge is deeply submerged under fast-flowing water.
Yeah… I don’t think I’m gonna chance that (especially in a rental car!).

After seeing several fields of about the altitude of our target also deeply flooded, we opted to give up on this expedition for our own safety! Instead, we went geocaching in Newcastle West and then went up to Foyle where we visited the museum of maritime history and learned about the history of the flying boats that were stationed there in the inter-war years.

Dan reaches behind a fence post.
A geocacher’s most-valuable skills include map reading, trail-finding, and rummaging around behind fence posts.
Dan alongside a replica of a flying boat called Yankee Clipper.
Hey look, I found a flying boat.
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Dan Q found GC2BY40 Pallas Castle

This checkin to GC2BY40 Pallas Castle reflects a geocaching.com log entry. See more of Dan's cache logs.

My mother and I are visiting the area in search of virgin graticules for geohashing purposes. This morning we set out for the 2024-11-22 53 -8 geohashpoint and found it down in a disused pasture down in the valley, then we decided to celebrate by seeing if there were any nearby geocaches to find, too!

Bring the only cache in the area (!) and at a castle (who doesn’t love a castle?) we figured it’d be worth a go. By the time we’d found a bridge over the river and walked up the winding road up the hill, we were ready for our lunch, so we explored the castle grounds while we ate our sandwiches. Now, re-energised, we were ready to find the cache!

We quickly found the tree from the description, but 5 to 10 minutes hunting didn’t reveal the cache’s hiding place. We checked the hint, but it didn’t help: none of the things around here are what the hint describes, for a strict definition of the word! So we started checking the old logs. Somebody mentioned finding the cache around 7 metres from the coordinates, and that was helpful: we followed the nearby wall about that distance and quickly spotted a solid hiding place. We had to clear a bit of leaf litter to get to the cache, but soon we had it and were signing the logbook.

Thanks for bringing us to this excellent location. FP awarded. Greetings from Lancashire and Oxfordshire, UK!

Dan and his mother smiling in a field. Dan is holding a banana.

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