This cache is in the Taylorsville Reserve metropark. The cache is registered with Five Rivers Metroparks. They were easy to work with so please respect their regulations. The parking lot is at the west end of Taylorsville Dam North of the dam. The parking lot is at N 39 52.623 / W 84 10.145. The cache is 1.3 miles from the parking area. It can be reached by foot trail or by paved bikeway. Except for the last few feet to the cache it is handicap accessible. Both the trail and the bikeway parallel the Miami-Erie Canal and lead to a town site that was abandoned as a result of the construction of the Taylorsville dam. There are only a few foundations left but the park service has placed markers at the sites of the major structures. Nature reclaims what is her’s quickly in Ohio. There is a message board in the parking area describing the history of the town. You will need two dates mentioned there to use with the clues.
To calculate the coordinates for the clue, read about the abandoned town at the message board and find the year the town reached its peak. Subtract 1146 from the year the town reached its peak. The answer should be 3 digits. Use them as the three digits to the right of the minute decimal place for the latitude of the clue.
N 39 53.xxx
Next, what year was the flood that marked the decline of the abandoned town? Subtract 995 from that year. Use the three digits from the answer as the three digits to the right of the minute decimal place for the longitude of the clue.
W 84 09.xxx
Head north from the parking area following either the paved bikeway or the foot trail. The foot trail is marked with a sign and blue blazes. The low area between the bikeway and the foot trail is the remains of the Miami-Erie Canal. The clue is 1.3 miles North of the parking lot. The clue is a number written in cast iron about 40 feet South of the “Welcome to the town ” sign nearest the bikeway. Look down.
To calculate the coordinates of the cache subtract 7554 from the number and use those three digits as the three digits to the right of the minute decimal place for the latitude of the cache.
N 39 53.xxx
Subtract 7348 from the number in cast iron and use those three digits as the three digits to the right of the minute decimal place for the longitude of the cache.
W 84 09.xxx
You are really close now. Head east down the gravel roadway. The cache is just off the roadway to the south. Watch for poison ivy!