6 National Trust Divis and the Black Mountain Traditional Geocache
6 National Trust Divis and the Black Mountain
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The cache is a traditional cache in an historical location with stunning views a little off the beaten track at the National Trust Divis and the Black Mountain.
Divis and the Black Mountain rest in the heart of the Belfast Hills which provide the backdrop to the city’s skyline. They are rich in wildlife, archaeology and history, with spectacular views across Northern Ireland and beyond.
See rare species in their natural habitat
Our property is significant for biodiversity with red grouse, stonechats, skylark, snipe and other upland breeding birds, while kestrels, peregrine falcons and ravens feed in the area. There are several occupied badger setts and on a walk through this habitat you may encounter a hiding Irish Hare or see a Marsh Fritillary butterfly flitting about. The mountains comprise a mosaic of grassland heath and bog. The heath is made up mainly of heather species but a closer look reveals some interesting flora such as the heath spotted orchid. Along the short grasses on the river banks you may unearth the many colours of waxcaps during the autumn and winter months. Thirteen species of waxcap fungi have already been identified on the site; one of them is a new record for Northern Ireland. A number of species found here in the mountains are identified as Northern Ireland Priority Species.
Divis and the Black Mountain came into the care of the National Trust in November 2004 and opened to the public in June 2005. There are walking trails along a variety of terrain – through heath, on stone tracks, along boardwalk and road surface, including the start of the 10km Divis Mountain to Sir Thomas and Lady Dixon Park Trail.
The property is a working farm with free roaming cattle between April and November.
Please wear suitable footwear and clothing for walking in the area. The mountain environment can change rapidly. Please keep dogs under close control at all times.
Parking and entrance is free, but please note that the car park closes at 8pm - car park co-ordinates are N54' 35.950 W006' 02.530.
All of the caches can be done as part of the Divis and Black Mountain Series. The whole series will take approximately 7 hours to complete so ensure you have adequate snacks and water to sustain you.
This cache is also not far off the 10 mile Divis to Dixon Walk, so can be incorporated into that route.
Allow yourself approximately 2 hours to find this cache and return to car park if travelling along the tarmac road to Divis summit - but why not include caches 8 and 9 in the series on the way to (or from) this cache?
The Cache
This is a great place for a walk with older children and goes off the beaten track towards the end. The route to this cache can be travelled along a tarmac road for most of the way as far as the summit of Divis Mountain. Alternatively, you may wish to approach (or return from) the cache along the Tipperary Road by following the right fork to the famine wall which you can then follow to the summit. This route can be boggy and wet underfoot, so come prepared. To find the cache, head down from the summit in the direction of Lough Neagh and the Sperrins.
The cache is a large sized camouflaged lockable lunchbox with geocache label on the lid. A small selection of usual swaps were available at the time of placing the cache as well as a National Trust Divis and the Black Mountain marker - if you're going to visit a geocache anywhere else in the world why not take it with you? There are also some information pamphlets included - feel free to take one with you.
The cache is at an aeroplane crash site, one of many in the same vicinity. At this time we cannot be certain which specific aeroplane crashed here, but there were 18 military crashes which happened in the Belfast Hills between 1937 and 1948 as follows:
RAF Hawker Fury at Ballygomartin - 12th June 1937
RAF Consolidated B-24 Liberator on Divis – 4th May 1942
RAF Bristol Beaufort on Collin Mountain – 20th January 1943
RAF Westland Lysander on Carnmoney Hill – 17th March 1943
RAF Bristol Beaufort on Aughrim Hill – 29th March 1943
RAF Bristol Beaufort at Ballyutoag – 18th June 1943
RAF Supermarine Spitfire near Clady Corner – 11th September 1943
RAF Supermarine Spitfire at Ballyutoag – 11th September 1943
USAAF Consolidated B-24 Liberator on Divis – 10th October 1943
RAF Vickers Wellington on Divis – 24th November 1943
RAF Airspeed Oxford on Squire's Hill – 5th December 1943
RAF Vickers Wellington on Rushey Hill, Dundrod – 31st December 1943
RAF Avro Anson at Bo Hill – 27th March 1944
USAAF Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress on Cave Hill – 1st June 1944
RAF Consolidated B-24 Liberator on Standing Stones Hill – 30th January 1945
RAF Consolidated B-24 Liberator at Hannahstown – 19th March 1945
RN Supermarine Seafire on Aughrim Hill – 5th November 1945
RN Grumman Avenger on Divis – 3rd November 1948
You will note the debris from the crash at this location – please do not remove any of it. There is a display of some of the debris in the Long Barn visitors centre. The views from the cache site, like most on the property, are absolutely stunning.
Please be careful when uncovering the cache, muggles are frequent near this cache site so please be discreet when taking out the cache and hiding it again. If you see anything you like in the cache box, please trade up or even so everyone can enjoy the contents.
At the Long Barn there are toilet facilities, hot drinks and a picnic area for you to stop at as you head out on your journey. You can also borrow one of our GPS navigators from the Long Barn with all of our geocaches pre-loaded for your convenience.
Good Luck and enjoy your trip to this interesting location!
Additional Hints
(Decrypt)
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