UPPER VAN STADENS FORTS Traditional Geocache
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Difficulty:
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Terrain:
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Size: 
(small)
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MOUNTAIN BIKE ACCESS ONLY - VEHICLE ACCESS TO LONGMORE PROHIBITED
The Upper Van Stadens Dam, filter beds and caretaker's cottage were completed in 1893. This provided water to Port Elizabeth.
Activity of Boer commandos in the Colony necessitated a presence at the dam. Volunteers were called for to form a battalion, to raise a mounted company and to guard the waterworks at Van Stadens. 3 officers, 8 non-commissioned officers, 86 privates, and 2 buglers volunteered. Four days later, the wagon convoy taking ammunition and baggage left Market Square with an escort of two NCOs and ten troopers. The main body of the Guard was transported by rail to Uitenhage and then marched 24 km to the Upper Van Stadens Dam before splitting. The men remained at the dam for three months, building two small forts in the hills to the west and south-west. They returned to Port Elizabeth on 14 April, with the exception of 15 men who had volunteered to stay behind.
The two upper Van Stadens forts have unmortared stone walls about 2 m high, with tapered loopholes at one level.
The Upper Fort is circular with a diameter of about 10 metres. In addition to an internal wall offset beneath the loopholes, it has an external batter (or slope) to the wall.
The Lower Fort is in the shape of a parallelogram with rounded ends and measures about 7,5 x 17 metres. The walls are 700 mm thick and also have an external batter.
A 1 m wide trench, extends 22 metres down the hill to the east to join another, U-shaped, trench at right angles which provided hidden access to the fort.
Permits are required for mountain bike access to Longmore forest which is managed be Mountain to Oceans ( MTO ) CLOSED SUNDAYS - VEHICLE ACCESS IS PROHIBITED
Permits must be obtained from the office at Longmore plantation.(Closed Sundays) To get to the cache you need to go along the N2 , Turn at Loerie off ramp and shortly thereafter turn towards Longmore plantation . Park your vehicle at the office and purchase a permit at R10 per person. CYCLE through the plantation and return the same way. Allow at least 6 hours to get to the cache and back on your bicycle.
The cache is situated close to the top Fort in a 1.1 L L&L.
Download or view the first part of the track (visit link)
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