Santa Rita No. 1 Traditional Geocache
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(micro)
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Small cache located near an old oil rig on the University of Texas campus. Be sure to look around and see the old bridge nearby, the "chilling station" and other neat UT sights. Parking can be tricky when school is in session, so be aware and plan accordingly.
A quick history: The Santa Rita No. 1 oil well was originally located on university property in Reagan County (click here to visit the Virtual Cache page at that location, and here for the micro). After 646 days of digging a well at just under 5 feet per day, late on May 27, 1923 the bit drilled into the dolomitic sands, just above the 3,050-foot level. The very next day, the Santa Rita roared to life and sprayed oil over the top of the derrick, covering a 250-yard area around the site. This proved the existence of oil in the area and was just the beginning of drilling in the Permian Basin area of West Texas. In 1940, the Santa Rita rig was moved from its original site to the University of Texas campus in Austin, and, in 1990, after almost sixty-seven years of production, the Santa Rita No. 1 well was finally plugged.
Additional Hints
(Decrypt)
Ybj. Oynpx. Pvgratnz.