I had to smile when I read this DNF by WulfyGeo on Beneath the Waterfall:
On my last day staying near Okehampton I decided to head out and try and get some of this series of caches.
I stood on the trail for quite a while deciding whether to try for this one or head further up the path for some slightly easier caches. Given that I had knee surgery just a few months ago and am allergic to insect stings and quite a few plants as well as being honestly a bit fat and unfit, I haven’t looked for many 4T caches. I eventually decided to go for it.
I don’t know if the path I took was the worst one or not but it was very boggy and I was quickly soaked to my ankles and pretty muddy everywhere else. After stopping for a rest twice I made it to the GZ and the spot in the spoiler picture at which point I was swarmed by insects – I am calling them midgies now but what I called them then isn’t repeatable.
After making the epic (for me) climb to the top I wasn’t going to give up and I spent a good 30 mins looking for the cache without any luck, however there were a few spots that I knew I couldn’t get to with my dodgy knee. I had to leave then as I noticed the huge number of welts and hives from the insect bites on my arms.
I did learn a few things though:
1. My boots need re-waterproofing 🙂
2. Even superstrong anti-histamines wear off after being bitten by a million insects
3. ‘A bit boggy’ means something different on Dartmoor than on the chalklands of East Kent
But on the plus side, I have also learned that I can make it to a 4T cache so I will be trying for others.
By the time I got back to the trail I looked like I had a severe case of measles so had to head straight for a pharmacy so didn’t get a chance to look for the other caches either 🙁
Thanks for bringing me up here, despite everything I enjoyed the hunt.
