About Lancaster
Lancaster is the county town of Lancashire and is situated on the River Lune, from which it gets its name (Loncastre -> 'Roman fort on the River Lune').
This railway station, now known as Lancaster but previously as 'Castle' was once one of three stations in the city which all opened in the 1840s:
The first station in Lancaster ('Lancaster Greaves') was opened for passengers and goods in 1840 on the present South Road and was also the headquarters of the Lancaster & Preston Junction Railway. The station closed in the late 1960s (having been used for goods only since 1849) but the a subset of the buildings remain as a section of the nearby Lancaster Infirmary - a plaque marking the old station's location can still be seen.
Lancaster 'Castle' station then opened in 1846, initially as the Souther terminus of the Lancaster and Carlisle Railway (now part of the West Coast Main Line route between Glasgow and London). This station was remodelled in 1902 for the addition of new lines and platforms and was renamed to 'Lancaster' station in 1969. The West Coast Main Line through Lancaster was electrified in 1974, the second time electrification had been added to the station (in 1908 platforms 5 and 6 were electrified to serve the Midland Railway route to Morecambe and Heysham, which also featured the third Lancaster station, Lancaster Green Ayre. The line was closed in 1966 and the overhead electrical lines were removed.)
The third station in Lancaster opened in 1848. This station was initially named 'Lancaster' but was renamed to Lancaster Green Ayre shortly after opening. The station was located on the southern bank of the River Lune to the north of the city centre. The operating railway company (originally Morecambe Harbour and Railway and then later the "little" North Western Railway) was taken over by the Midland Railway in 1874 who oversaw the electrification of the Lancaster to Morecambe line in 1908. This was the first high voltage overhead electrification in the United Kingdom. Green Ayre station and closed to passengers in 1966 and was demolished in 1976. The site of Green Ayre station is now a public park which features a goods crane from Hornby goods shed - nothing remains of the station.
About the Cache
This is a replacement for GC1CGEH, one of the first caches I ever found. I was impressed at how close the original cache was to the station - this one is just very slightly closer!
The cache is very close to platforms 1 and 2 of the station and is a small micro/larger-than-average nano. Stealth is definitely required for retrieval/replacement as the cache is within an area frequently used by dog walkers. Access to the cache should be possible in a wheelchair - assistance may be required for retrieval itself but the cache is not particularly high or low. Bring your own pen/pencil and please take care when removing/replacing - in particular, please reattach as found to ensure the cache cannot blow away.
