To find the main cache location you must first pay a visit to
the clue at St. James's Church which is on the Lancaut peninsula
(51°39.909'N, 2°40.249'W)
Suggested start point is on the gravel and grass verge
(51°39.982'N, 2°39.899'W) which is about 250 yards along Lancaut
Lane. This provides an off-road parking area for visitors to the
Nature Reserve, walkers and the army of cliff climbers. The field
behind this parking area is the site of "Spital Meend" Bronze Age
hill fort. Good place for hazel nut picking when in season.
An Ordnance Survey map for the suggest parking area is available
at this web site.
Continue down Lancaut lane on foot, and shortly you will arrive
at the footpath that leads off left down into the
Lancaut Woodland Nature Reserve. The path is very steep, rocky in
places and often muddy, please proceed with all due care and
caution. Official guidebooks state "the paths in this woodland are
not recommended for young children or frail adults and older
children should be closely supervised at all times. Stout footwear
is essential" With that said, take this footpath and enter into the
wild wood, going left again at the fork just beyond a pair of
limekilns.
Your descent continues beyond a metal stile to a wooden bench
which is dedicated to the life of Les Darbourn, a local warden.
Below, you will see the ruins of St.James’s church built in
the late 12th century. There is an information sign down and off to
the right that details the history of the church. Take a look at
the stone stiles; they are made from gravestones! People familiar
to the area who know the ruin as overgrown & unsafe to enter,
maybe pleasantly surprised to find the structure has in recent
years been made secure and is now safely accessible.
The church is above the banks of the River Wye in a part which
is known as Horseshoe bend. One of the cliff faces you can see
beyond the bend is ‘Wintour’s Leap’, named after
Sir John Wintour who supposedly jumped from this spot to escape the
Parliamentary forces in 1642! You may like to take the short walk
to Wintors Leap viewpoint after you return to the
car park. A place to sit and ponder.
To find location of the main cache take the last number (n) of
the year John Stephens died and use to complete the following
position:
Main Cache is located @ N 51°39.x, W 2°40.y
Where x = (n+1, n+2, n-7) and y = (n-4, n+2, n-2)
The cache is a ammo box which is not in the Lancaut Woodland or
Lancaut Salt Marsh Nature Reserves but is still on the
peninsula.
Please replace the cache in the same location and ensure it is
concealed from view in all directions.
Nearest family pub is "The Rising Sun" located at 51°39.579'N,
2°39.698'W
Hope you enjoy my first cache!
Original Contents of cache:
Log-book, pencil & pencil sharpener. Inflatable globe. Packet
of veg seeds x 2. Jar of small fossils found locally. Zen garden
kit in a box. Pair of Purple Pat Butcher ear rings (nice..honest).
Squeaky Frog. Toy folding Binoculars. Hippy bead bracelet. Larger
fossil picked up from another geocache. 50 pence coin. Roll of
unused 35mm film. Miniature Port. Pichacho yellow pokemon thing. An
official GEOCACHEUK.COM keyring / bottle opener. StoneFisk's Stone
Travel Bug.
www.stonefisk.com