Lieve mensen, Frank van Hoof*, maker van deze cache, is helaas niet meer onder ons. Als geocacher van het eerste uur droeg hij het cachen een zeer warm hart toe. Wij zullen hem, en zijn mooie "Geowolf" Bora, nooit vergeten!
Station 1: the parking lot (N 51°28.467' E005°33.135'). It's large, free and close to the centre of Nuenen. From there its only a short walk to the historical sites in Nuenen where you can find clues to the coordinates of the GeoWolf cache. The cache itself is hidden in a forest just outside the village. First you're going to visit Vincent.
Station 2 : Vincent's statue in the park (N 51°28.480' E005°32.957'). The statue, created by Klaas van Rosmalen, was erected in March 1984. It shows Vincent wandering around in Nuenen looking for suitable subjects to draw. Vincent is heading straight for the other stations in Nuenen.
Clue: the A in the coordinates of the GeoWolf cache equals the number of drawing utensils Vincent is carrying. A = ...
Station 3: the Van Gogh house (N 51°28.596' E005°33.048'). Vincent lived with his parents in what is still the Dutch Reformed Parsonage (Berg 26). From the alley on the left of the building you can see the garden and the shed that served Vincent for a studio.
Clue: B is the second digit of the year the parsonage was completed. B = ...
Station 4: the Van Gogh monument (N 51°28.642' E005°33.096'). In the old centre of Nuenen, near the impressive lime tree, stands a monument created by Hildo Krop. It was erected 1932 in memory of Vincent's stay in Nuenen.
Clue: C is the digit that occurs the most on the plate with the poem titled 'Een geknotte linde vertelt...' under the old lime tree. C = ...
Clue: D equals the number of LONG rays surrounding the sun on the Van Gogh monument. D = ...
Clue E: close to the Van Gogh monument there is another, more recent monument situated round a young tree. The birthdays of the first and the last citizen of Nuenen born in 2000 have one digit in common. E is the total number of times that particular digit can be found on the stones of both Jesse and Nienke. E = ...
Check: the digits D and C make the house number on the small weavers cottage.
Station 5: the Dutch Reformed Church (N 51°28.678' E005°33.173'). Vincent's father was vicar of this protestant church (built in 1824) from August 1882 till his death in March 1885. Vincent sketched and painted the small church many times.
No further clues to be found here, but please make a final check:
A=D-A
B=D+E
C=A-A
D=A+A
E=B-D
Return to station 1 where you left your car. You can almost walk in a straight line, past the rear of the Dutch Reformed Church. Then turn left. The first road to the right is named after Vincent's love and will take you back to the parking lot, past the backgarden of the Van Gogh house.
Head for the parking area mentioned below. There you will embark on your search for the GeoWolf cache.
Parking
-> N 51°27.550' E005°33.540'
Your destination: the GeoWolf cache at N 51°AB.ACD' E005°EE.EDB' Well, this WAS the location of the GeoWolf cache for over 8 years, but after it was vandalized for the fourth time I decided to relocate the box. This spot was chosen because it was told, Vincent often passed here when he was on his way to buying himself some new painters supplies... Sit down on the wall and look to the North for a tree with multiple stems, about a stones throw away...(15-20 metres)
Though the area where the cache is hidden is open to the public, the forest is enclosed by a fence. There are gates at regular intervals on all sides and the fence is cut in several places.
Happy hunting!