A MAGICAL, MYSTICAL GULLY

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Picture clues below!

Hidden On: 06 Jun 2003
Waypoint (Landmark): N00682
Open Cache:  Personal use only
Cache type:  Normal
Cache size:   Normal

Difficulty:  (moderate)
Terrain:  (hard)

Misc:

Comments:

I continued to hike beyond the cache location but did turn around at a waist deep pool. I believe there is another very nice falls beyond where I stopped. If you make the trek it would be nice if you posted a picture of that falls.

GPS reception was not great, I had an estimated position error of 100 feet. On the other hand the fact that you’re in a deep gully limits the size of the search area, it will not be necessary to climb up the banks.

Clues:    decode

• Where to start 
  Cnexvat pbbeqvangrf A$" #(>!@' J@'' "!>))!

Pictures:

 Beautiful Falls

Cayuga Crew (without my knowledge or sane “Are you crazy?” feedback), aspired to accomplish two goals today. Both of them were equally important because when it comes to great caches we would never discriminate. The first goal was to do The Spot (GC39). The second, which was of extreme interest to me personally (I love a good Rocky cache, what can I say ) was the Magical, Mystical Gully Cache. When we first conjured the notion to head 50-plus miles east last night, this cache thankfully caught Cayuga’s eye. I say thankfully because I must have missed it, and if it wasn’t for his keen perception (and his uncanny ability to pick up on phrases like “don’t wear your Sunday best” and “you will get wet”), it may have never dawned on us to experience this fantastic gully today.

With goal number one successfully completed, it was time to tackle the more daunting and daring of the two goals we set for ourselves this morning. As we pulled up to the parking area, I was extremely surprised to see the gully tucked away between two roads. If it wasn’t for this cache, I honestly believe that I never would have realized such a magnificent place existed. Since I wasn’t prepared for a long creek walk in 15-degree weather, Cayuga was a good sport and decided to forego wearing his rubber boots just so he could share in the cold fun I was having. As we hiked down into the creek bed, I momentarily though about trying to do whatever I could to avoid the cold water – but eventually decided it would be silly to prolong the inevitable, so in I splashed and the adventure began!

Although the water was cold, it was made completely worthwhile by the wintery beauty and splendor that Mother Nature had conjured up before us. The snow and ice that was displayed along our way was absolutely breathtaking and perfect – and each twist and turn we encountered inspired us again with a sight more spectacular than the last. It truly was a magical environment, and the waterfalls that we discovered along our journey added to the supernatural sensation we felt (which helped distract for the diminishing sensation I was feeling in my toes…haha). As we turned our last corner, we were blown away by the cascading waterfall near ground zero. There really is no more pristine place to seek a cache then here Rocky – I can’t express enough how awesome this location is. As good fortune would have it, Cayuga’s GPS led us towards the cache location and in minutes we had the prize in our mitts!

After Cayuga signed us in – he decided it was time to capture the moment (and suggested I stand in the middle of the whirlpool at the bottom of the cascade while he got the camera). Now fully caught up in the moment (and the entertainingly cold escapade I now found myself engrossed in), I obliged for several photos ops – including some triumphant geo-splashing for those watching at home. We thoroughly enjoyed our hike back out of this gully – although there were a couple of near icy cold splashdowns - but they all ended without incident (usually with someone reaching for their camera just incase there was an embarrassing moment to capture). As we arrived back at the truck, the shoes and socks came off and we fired up the floor heater! The drive from the gully only added to this great day – only it was more mystical then anything (see the pictures of me running around Naples with no shoes or socks to support my reasoning…haha). What can I say, this was one of the most entertaining caches I’ve ever done, and I would like to thank Cayuga for participating in today’s frivolities, and for listening to at least one thing I had to say today (woohoo, a green ceramic frog wearing a yellow bikini!!!)

Rocky, this was one of your absolute best caches ever – and certainly a place I would never get tired of revisiting. Thank you so much for always introducing me to wonderful locations!

~Szuchie

Headed into this gulley after climbing up one side. The creek was flowing and the water was high. We managed to stay dry until one of us fell. Then it didn't matter if the water was over the top of the boots. We got to the cache but couldn't go any higher. The water was running to fast. We know we went up at least one more level in the past, but not today. Thanks Rocky for getting us back to this area.

I knew I was in trouble when I read that the waypoints were within 100'. That's like looking for a needle in a haystack. I was within 1 mile doing another cache and decided to try it ! There are soooooo many hiding places..... This was a very cool hike ! The gully was spectacular. GPS was OK but did start to jump when I got to the site. Scoured the area for the better part of an hour before giving up to check out the rest of the scenery. Nice hike ! Will try and get back sometime soon ! Lots of green rocks...kinda got my hopes up ! Maybe another clue is in order !

After having talked with Country Boy Gary who had found this cache last weekend I was really looking forward to it. And the Gully didn’t disappoint me. The trip to this cache and beyond is really Magical. It is about .39 mile to the cache. I think I passed 3 real nice falls from the road to the cache. It took me about 15 minutes to find the cache. I was fortunate and had 4 to 5 satellites directly overhead all day so keeping sats. was no problem. The posted coordinates had me up the bank about 35 feet. At the cache I had 42 37.905-6-7 77 21.740-41-42 with 5 sats. and a EPA of about 26 feet. Signed log, took can holder left Magellen key chain and tape measure key chain. Then I continued on up the gully another 1.6 miles and that is where it is really breathtaking. And I mean that both literally and figuratively! Gary mentioned going about another .5 mile and being at what he thought was the top. Actually it does look that way and you can get out of the gully on the blue trail. But then the gully gets deeper again. It was at this point that I started marking falls as waypoints. I wish I had started doing that at the beginning. Then I would know exactly how many there are. About .6 mile above the cache there is a striking approximately 30-foot falls. But at .75 mile above the cache there is the real remarkable 75-foot falls. And then another 20 footer past that. And the sheer shale walls are straight up at numerous points along the way. The only problem is after you pass the cache, it is a real problem getting past the falls. The banks are so steep; it is really quite difficult to climb them. I took some really stupid chances that I shouldn’t have. So a word to the wise, know your limits and don’t try and push them. I did, and shouldn’t have. I went a total of 1.96 miles (straight line) from the car to where the gully just became a creek in the woods and turned around and came down the orange trail on the south side of the gully. It was over 900 feet change in elevation from the car to where I turned around and almost 7 miles of walking according to the GPS. It took about 5 hours. I took 17 pictures along the way. And as I write this 2 days later, I am still soar and lame. But Rocky, it really is a magical gully, thanks for getting me there.
Harv & Donna (without Donna)