#30 Chillingham Mystery Cache

About this series:

This series of caches is based upon the life and work of dairy farmers Mark & Pen DeLogg on the Lincolnshire Fens. As well clues to solving the puzzle on each cache page will be a fact about cows and their behaviour, as well as information about particular breeds of cattle around the British Isles and the world.

• The cache is not hidden at the published coordinates.
• Steep drops and water may be encounted at some GZs, keep the little ones safe.
• No animals were encountered when the caches were placed.
• The cache size was made as large as possible according to the hiding place, varying from magnetic nanos to regular size boxes
• You may need to provide your own TOTT i.e tweezers
• Please park sensibly, safely, and considerably.
• The D/T ratings concern the difficulty to both the puzzle and hides.

Other caches in this series:

Cow Fact:

A Holstein’s spots are like a fingerprint. No two cows have exactly the same pattern of black and white spots. They are all different.

About Chillingham Wild Cattle:
Chillingham wild cattle are a breed of cattle that live in a large enclosed park at Chillingham Castle, Northumberland, England. The are on the Critical list of breeds of Rare Breeds in Great Britain. In 2009 the cattle were described as "about 90 animals in Chillingham, which inhabit a very large park that has existed since the Middle Ages". The herd has remained remarkably genetically isolated for hundreds of years, surviving despite inbreeding depression due to the small population. The Chillingham cattle are related to White Park cattle, in the sense that the Chillingham herd has contributed to the White Park, though there has been no gene flow the other way. Chillingham cattle are small, with upright horns in both males and females. Bulls weigh around 300 kg, cows about 280 kg. They are white with coloured ears (they may also have some colour on feet, nose and around the eyes). In the case of Chillingham cattle, the ear-colour is red – in most White Park animals the ears are black (which is genetically dominant over red in cattle). Chillingham cattle are of generally primitive conformation while White Parks are of classical British beef conformation.

Now for the puzzle:

Milking at Mark DeLogg's farm is usually done by a young agricultural student from Italy, Nora Dolomite.

Nora was a fashion guru, especially in the clothes she wore at work. She was particularly keen on her footwear and was constantly buying new wellies.

Wellies were first worn and popularised by Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington. The Duke of Wellington instructed his shoemaker, Hoby of St. James's Street, London, to modify the 18th-century Hessian boot. The resulting new boot was fabricated in soft calfskin leather, had the trim removed and was cut to fit more closely around the leg. The heels were low cut, stacked around an inch (2.5 centimetres), and the boot stopped at mid-calf. It was suitably hard-wearing for riding, yet smart enough for informal evening wear. The boot was dubbed the Wellington and the name has stuck in English ever since. 

It's not too long ago when wellies came in one colour - black. They were footwear that just came out when it was wet. Now they are as much as a fashion icon as Timberland or Berghaus.

They come in all shapes, prices and colours. Hunter, Le Chameau, Burberry, Joules, Binary,and Barbour. Prices range from £10- £400.

Check your Solution: