We thought it would be nice to commemorate the 15th anniversary of the SideTracked series by holding an outdoor event at Ryde Esplanade. Despite ongoing works nearby we hope it will still be a convenient location for islanders, holidaymakers and day visitors from Portsmouth. The actual anniversary of the first SideTracked cache placed is 10th August, but if you attend an event or find a SideTracked cache during week of 7th - 13th August you can claim a SideTracked badge for your profile.
Everyone is very welcome and if you are new to geocaching this is a good opportunity to meet and chat with other friendly geocachers.
From the seafront at Western Gardens you can see the trains running between the stations at Ryde Pier Head and Ryde Esplanade.
Information for pedestrians accessing Western Gardens and traffic disruption in the area is shown below.
St Thomas Street
From 11 July until September, the lower section of St Thomas’ Street between the car park and the Esplanade will be one-way. Traffic will be able to travel up St Thomas’ Street as normal but traffic coming down the hill will only be able to go as far as (and including) the lower St Thomas’ Street car park. Therefore, cars wanting to access Ryde Pier and the Esplanade will have to use Union Street.
Western Gardens pedestrian access
There will be a short diversion in place for people wishing to access Western Garden from the east (pier, bus station, Hovertravel etc). While work is ongoing, pedestrians will not be able to access the garden by walking along the current footway on the northern (seaside) section of the Esplanade. Instead, they will have to cross the road at the existing pedestrian crossing outside The King Lud and then cross again at the foot of Union Street to get to Western Gardens, which is also where the temporary toilets are located. The gardens will still be accessible from the usual approaches to the west. These arrangements will also be in place until September.