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 Log entries Fort Darnet    {{found}} 4x {{not_found}} 0x {{log_note}} 1x Photo 10x Gallery   Show deletions Show deletions

6365 2022-05-11 23:12 Amberel (user activity610) - Maintenance performed

Cache was missing again, as I can't trust that hiding place I've had to move it elsewhere. Co-ords and hint updated.

Rgds, Andy

5339 2019-08-19 13:54 Amberel (user activity610) - Maintenance performed

My bi-annual checkup. A very rough crossing from The Strand!

Pleased to report that the cache was present this time and the log was dry :-)

Rgds, Andy

4115 2017-07-23 22:46 Amberel (user activity610) - Maintenance performed

Owner maintenance visit only to find the cache had disappeared again - that's twice now, from different locations.

Replaced again - the cache is now a bison container inside a pre-form.

Rgds, Andy

3179 2015-09-01 23:36 Amberel (user activity610) - Note

Visited for owner maintenance, to find that the cache and it's entire hiding place had gone!

Put out a replacement elsewhere, now a small cache, will update the co-ords and hint.

Rgds, Andy

3190 2015-09-01 15:10 MuzzaDazzler (user activity9) - Found it

A lovely day in the company of dizzygirl and the CO.  This cache was missing from its original location so a new one was found then off I went to find and sign.  All done.

A great fun trip out by boat. An amazing explore and a fun attempt to climb the rope all be it beaten by Amberel all of us.  This was a truly amazing day.  Fascinating.

2702 2013-07-20 13:15 Splendidz (user activity10) - Found it

It was a rather choppy paddle over here with The Buffs, Simon the Muggle and Ginger, we were fully loaded with kit, as we were camping for the night on the island!

We landed by the barges, unpacked the boats and the headed off to explore... I did a tentative "crawl the plank" to get to the fort (although I did get more confident on subsequent crossings!) It was such a cool location to visit I found this cache first, followed by the GC one and finally the Terracache.

After a bite of lunch, Jacky and I had a paddle on the kayaks inside the fort, which was an eerie but truly memorable experience. It was fantastic to camp the night here and we had fun crabbing and toasting marshmallows on the campfire.

I was quite sad to leave this amazing location the next morning but we had fun exploring Fort Hoo on the way back!

Fantastic location for a cache Thanks!

2487 2012-09-22 17:00 UrsusBear (user activity7) - Found it

We were very glad of Sandvika's invite of joining him to complete this cache for his 2000th.  We were unsure of what the river would be like for canoeing across to reach the Fort so were glad of the company and back up of a motor powered dingy.  

We set off paddling in our canoe while Roderick got the outboard started up on the dingy.  We were expecting him to catch us up pretty quick and give us tow , but we ended up reaching the island first.  Unfortunately weed had got caught in the propellor and so had reduced his speed.

After finding the nearby terracache Roderick was up his required caches to make for this one and claim it as his 2000th.  It was a nice straightfoward find.

After completing all three caches on the island we took a tour of the building by both foot and boat.  A very interesting location and very enjoyable trip.

As the light was begining to fade by the time we left the fort we decided to get a tow back.  

 

Pictures for this log entry:
Getting ready
Getting ready
The paddle across
The paddle across
Approaching the Fort
Approaching the Fort

2424 2012-09-22 00:19 sandvika (user activity105) - Found it

Finally to the main event and undoutedly the highlight of our day - Fort Darnet. Amberel had kindly allowed me to borrow his boat and outboard motor for this expedition, for which I was very grateful as I had reservations about attempting it in our inflatable canoe with my sons, in view of our relative inexperience with the craft. In the event, Ursus Bear and Team Postie Grum who came with us with their canoes paddled all the way to the fort. We followed but didn't actually catch up with them, towing just Sharky in our canoe. I mistakenly thought that the weight of the tow was slowing us down, but on arrival at the fort discovered that the propellor had become badly fouled with weed, despite not starting the engine until I thought we were well clear of them. Clearly they were lurking below the surface too and if only I'd stopped to check once a little further out, I'd have discovered why our rate of progress was so modest.
On arrival at the fort, we discovered a group with canoes of their own, who had set up camp on the island for the weekend. What a fantastic idea and great way to extend your time at the fort!
Fortunately, we were 1 cache short of our 2000: I wanted the OpenCache to be our 2000th as we've not had an OpenCache as a milestone yet. Thus, as Ursus Bear and Team Postie Grum made a beeline to the TC, I was not to be disappointed!
The hunt for the cache took a bit longer than we anticipated, largely due to the coordinates being uncharacteristically out for an Amberel cache - my waypoint average is above - and was found by Ursus Bear when widening the search area.
Neither of the other caches presented any difficulty, so we were soon paddling our canoes around the 'moat' and into the flooded bottom tier of the fort. This was a fantastic way to explore the building, adding a new dimension to the experience and I should add, the perfect approach to the OpenCache. I'll definitely be recommending the water borne approach to that cache.
Regrettably, due to the fairly late high tide, both car park locking and fading daylight meant we had to head back in a less than leisurely manner. This time, without a fouled propeller, the boat made much faster progress and we caught up with Ursus Bear and Team Postie Grum very quickly. We then towed all three canoes back to shore, which the engine coped with admirably, but with much of the weight aft of the propellor, it was a bit like the tail wagging the dog and the alignment of the tow caused the heading of the boat to be shifted quite dramatically. At first I was keeping one eye on the towed boats, to ensure all was well, but once it was clear that the towing was working fine, I concentrated on keeping the heading pin-point accurate with continuous course corrections, which in turn ensured that the tow behaved much better. 
It was quite amusing, however, in that the water being trapped in the V between adjacent canoes had nowhere to go, so proceeded to soak the occupants to a degree. Once I realised this, I eased off the throttle a little to reduce speed and allow the water to pass under, rather than over the canoes!
All in all, a totally fantastic experience and one I am determined to repeat in due course. To my chagrin, I cannot match Amberel's Top Cache awards, but this trio of caches is instantly my top caches and absolutely on a par with the best of the outstanding Below Above caches!
Many thanks indeed Sandvika #1999

Finally to the main event and undoutedly the highlight of our day - Fort Darnet. Amberel had kindly allowed me to borrow his boat and outboard motor for this expedition, for which I was very grateful as I had reservations about attempting it in our inflatable canoe with my sons, in view of our relative inexperience with the craft. In the event, Ursus Bear and Team Postie Grum who came with us with their canoes paddled all the way to the fort. We followed but didn't actually catch up with them, towing just Sharky in our canoe. I mistakenly thought that the weight of the tow was slowing us down, but on arrival at the fort discovered that the propellor had become badly fouled with weed, despite not starting the engine until I thought we were well clear of them. Clearly they were lurking below the surface too and if only I'd stopped to check once a little further out, I'd have discovered why our rate of progress was so modest.


On arrival at the fort, we discovered a group with canoes of their own, who had set up camp on the island for the weekend. What a fantastic idea and great way to extend your time at the fort!

We tackled the TerraCache first which became our 1999th find, then turned our attention to this one, the big one! Well, the cache is a micro, but 2000 is a big number for Team Sandvika, albeit a very modest achievement compared to many other cachers.

We wanted to be the ones to find this cache - in fact, I'm struggling to think of any cache that we did that we found on the day, other than this one - and it was Penuin who discovered GZ and made the intrepid descent to find the cache and retrieve it. Photographs had already been taken with our "Sandvika 2000" sign before launch and on arrival at the island, so of course there had to be a couple more to mark the exact occasion.

We'd barely finished photographs and returned the cache to its hiding place when Ursus Bear had found the Geocache, completing the trio.


Thereafter, so we were soon paddling our canoes around the 'moat' and into the flooded magazine level  of the fort. This was a fantastic way to explore the building, adding a new dimension to the experience and I should add, the perfect approach to this OpenCache. For the sheer drama of paddling across the moat, lying down flat in the canoe to pass through the mostly flooded out doorway and emerging into the lobby where the stairs rise impressively from the waters, I cannot help but suggest that this would be the most splendid way to retrieve the cache.


Regrettably, due to the fairly late high tide, both car park locking and fading daylight meant we had to head back in a less than leisurely manner. This time, without a fouled propeller, the boat made much faster progress and we caught up with Ursus Bear and Team Postie Grum very quickly. We then towed all three canoes back to shore, which the engine coped with admirably, but with much of the weight aft of the propellor, it was a bit like the tail wagging the dog and the alignment of the tow caused the heading of the boat to be shifted quite dramatically. At first I was keeping one eye on the towed boats, to ensure all was well, but once it was clear that the towing was working fine, I concentrated on keeping the heading pin-point accurate with continuous course corrections, which in turn ensured that the tow behaved much better.

 

All in all, a totally awesome and fantastic experience and one I am determined to repeat in due course. I cannot match Amberel's Top Cache awards, but this trio of caches is instantly in my top caches and absolutely on a par with the best of the outstanding Below Above caches!

Many thanks indeed Sandvika #2000

Many thanks also to Team Postie Grum for posting these videos which give an idea of the fun we had! Inside and Returning

Pictures for this log entry:
Launching
Launching
Arrival
Arrival
Found it, the big 2000!
Found it, the big 2000!
The triumphant pose!
The triumphant pose!
Sharky exploring
Sharky exploring
Team Postie Grum
Team Postie Grum
Celebratory cake - Thanks Ursus Bear!
Celebratory cake - Thanks Ursus Bear!

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