News & New Caches 82

We have no new caches or events to report since our last post.

Wheel of Challenges: First Challenge

Monday 3rd April sees the end of Signal’s Labyrinth Challenge and the beginning of the latest challenge series, Wheels of Challenges.

Are you ready for this new set of challenges?

The Wheel of Challenges first challenge is all about quantity, see how many caches and Adventure Lab® Locations you can find in a month. There is three new souvenirs to collect, easy, medium, and hard.

Easy: Find and log 5 caches to earn the first souvenir.
Medium: Find and log 10 caches to earn the second souvenir.
Hard: Find and log 100 caches to earn the third souvenir.

This challenge runs from April 3rd–30th. The May challenge will be announced on Tuesday 25th April.

CITO 2023 Season 1 Message

Message of thanks from Norman Hughes from the council

“Great work once again.
I have not been informed as to the intentions for the park however I will ask and let you know once I receive an update.
Please pass on our appreciation to all the volunteers involved during the weekend.”

New Section of Coastal Path from Aberogwen to Porth Penrhyn

Currently there is no public right of way along the coast from Aberogwen to Porth Penrhyn but this is all about to change with the opening of a new 3km section of the Wales Coastal Path. The existing route of the Wales Coastal Path takes an inland detour to Tal-y-bont, through LLandygai and along the A5 to Porth Penrhyn where it once again joins the coast.

Map showing existing Coastal Path

Back in May 2021 Gwynedd Council issued a ‘Public Footpath Creation Order’ to establish a public footpath through the Spinnies Nature Reserve and the Penrhyn Estate. After successful negotiations between Gwynedd Council, Penrhyn Estate and North Wales Wildlife Trust the new route was agreed. The new path will be accessed through the Spinnies main gate, then follow the estate wall crossing over Afon Ogwen via the old estate bridge.

It will then follow the coast giving spectacular views over Traeth Lafan before joining the existing Coastal Path at Porth Penrhyn.

New Route

There is no date set for the opening of the path but all work is expected to be completed enabling the path to open spring 2023.

News & New Caches 81

One new traditional cache to report since our last post.

GCA6CFV Goedwig by Jacq123_1911 a jonboi Traditional D3/T3

New Event

And for once not hosted by 9 Usual Suspects!
GCA656C Nikoski and the Bee on Tour – North Wales 2023 by Nikoski D1/T1
When: Sunday 30th April
Where: Incredible Edible Garden, Conwy
Time: 11-11.30am
Suffolk cachers Nikoski and Bee of Good Cheer are back holidaying in North Wales and would love to meet up with local and not so local geocachers.

Event Reminder

GCA5YNK 9 Usual Suspects – Nosh & Natter 55 by 9 Usual Suspects D1/T1
When: Wednesday 29th March
Where: Anglesey Arms, Harbour Front, Caernarfon LL55 1SG
Time: 7pm to 9pm or when the last person leaves

Wheel of Challenges Souvenirs

We see no rest from souvenir challenges with this week Geocaching HQ launching its next souvenir challenge, Wheel of Challenges. Starting on Monday 3rd April 2023 this is the same day the current challenge and last labyrinth, The Dragon’s Lair, ends. Wheel of Challenges will run for 6 months, with a different challenge each month. This could be from finding a certain number of geocaches in a month, to testing how long you can keep up a daily streak. Each challenge will begin on the first Monday of the month.
Challenges will begin on the following dates:

  • April 3, 2023
  • May 1, 2023
  • June 5, 2023
  • July 3, 2023
  • August 7, 2023
  • September 4, 2023

Aprils challenge will be announced on 28th March with the details of how to earn the new souvenirs.

Challenges, are they good for Geocaching?
Do they inspire you to find more caches? Are there just too many challenges that they become boring? Or do you just ignore them? We have our views, it would be interesting to hear how others feel.

News & New Caches 80

Just one new cache to report since our last post, please note Premium Member only.

GCA5YRH Thomas Hughes Port by Glaslyn1 Traditional D2.5/T2

CITO Event Thank You

GCA5C5J CITO 2023 Season 1 by 9 Usual Suspects

For this event we returned to Caernarfon to one of our regular CITO sites Morfa Park/Parc Dre and the wooded area behind Tesco. This being our 6th CITO here since April 2018. We have increased the area picked but it is always disappointing to find so much rubbish when the park litter bins are emptied weekly. On the positive side there isn’t the fly tipping problem that we first encountered.

The hot spot behind Tesco recycling bins, again nice and tidy

Again the ‘Weather God’ looked after us, holding off the rain for the litter pick, the cake, paned and geochat, even for the visit to the recycling centre but sadly not for the unloading of the car.

Todays hard working Team with the results of their labours

Another trailer filled with all the usual cans, bottles, fast food containers and general litter. The odd finds included a couple of bread trays, part of a lifebuoy/ring stand, a silver sequinned stiletto shoe, a pair of glasses, a couple of old milk bottles and a Japanese soft drink Codd-bottle.

South Caernarvon Creameries Ltd
Phone Chwilog 251 1pt 568ml

According to the guy at the tip the oldest milk bottle, pictured above, is from the 1960’s due to the telephone number for the dairy being Chwilog 251.

Hatakosen Ramune Soda – Blueberry Flavour 200m modern Codd-bottle

The design for the above bottle was patented in 1872 by Hiram Codd a carbonated soft drink manufacturer from Camberwell, London. The original bottles were made from thick glass to withstand internal pressure with a chamber to house a marble and a rubber washer in the neck. The bottles were filled upside down, pressure from the gas in the bottle forces the marble against the washer, sealing in the carbonated drink. The bottle is pinched into a special shape to provide a chamber into which the marble is pushed to open the bottle. This prevents the marble from blocking the neck as the drink is poured.

Ramune (ラムネ) (Japanese pronunciation: ɾamɯne) History

In 1884 at Kobe, Japan, a British pharmacist, Alexander Cameron Sim, started producing a carbonated lemonade drink in Codd-bottles. This soon became very popular with the local Japanese after it was advertised in the Tokyo Mainichi Newspaper as a preventative for cholera. Today the drink remains a popular soft drink, sold worldwide, under the name of Ramune and is still available in Codd-bottles. There have been 57 different flavours which include peach, melon, and bubble gum, some of the more unusual flavours include takoyaki, curry, and wasabi. In Japan the empty bottles are recycled.

What have the council done to the park?

Improvements

We quote Norman Hughes from the council, ‘I am pleased to confirm that Cyngor Gwynedd have completed work at “Parc Dre” hopefully you will notice a great improvement and will lessen some of the workload for all volunteers.’
How could you not notice, I think the best description is they have implemented a scorched earth policy. Gone are all the massive Rhododendrons that surrounded the lake leaving vast areas of stumps and wood chip. It will be interesting to see how the council maintain their ‘improvements’.

At least the resident swans are still here

A big improvement to the park would be the re-opening of the toilets.

A very big Thank You to all who attended, your efforts are, as always, very much appreciated.

News & New Caches 79

Just one new event published since our last post:

GCA5YNK 9 Usual Suspects – Nosh & Natter 55 by 9 Usual Suspects D1/T1
When: Wednesday 29th March
Where: Anglesey Arms, Harbour Front, Caernarfon LL55 1SG
Time: 7pm to 9pm or when the last person leaves

Event Reminder

GCA5C5J CITO 2023 Season 1 by 9 Usual Suspects D1/T3

Our task for the day will be to pick up as much litter/rubbish as possible starting from our base on the old bridge, around the park then following the River Seiont towards Lon Eifion plus the wooded area behind Tesco. By attending this event you will earn ‘CITO 2023 Season 1’ souvenir.

When: Saturday 18th March 2023
Where: Caernarfon
Time: 11am-1pm

Do you remember when our litter picking efforts made the headlines? Well, maybe not headlines but page 9 of the North Wales Chronicle. Let’s hope the weather will be better on Saturday.

Geocaching HQ Latest Blog

Do you follow Geocaching HQ blog? It poses us with an interesting question.

The following is taken from their latest blog:

‘Geocaching groups and organizations enable players to make wonderful and sometimes lifelong connections with like-minded people. They help beginners learn the game, host awesome Events, do important work with land managers around the world, and much more!

You can find a geocaching group in your area by visiting this list and map of geocaching groups and organizations. This list of orgs was “vetted” with input from community volunteers and Geocaching HQ staff.

The list is a work in progress. We expect to expand it to other countries and add groups and organizations that are active in their communities and are contributing to geocaching in positive ways. Reach out to us with the group you’d like to see included.‘

The question is do you think we should be on the list/map? Please let us know through the comments or 9 Usual Suspect Geocaching account.

News & New Caches 78

Another quiet week in the world of geocaching, just one new traditional cache and a CITO event to report since our last post.

GCA5NGT Great wall of pentrefelin by ClareSion14 Traditional D1.5/T2

CITO Event

GCA5MYF CITO 2023 Season 1, Let’s Make Spaces for Wildlife by 9 Usual Suspects

We have a wide variety of activities planned, from making bat/bird boxes, insect/beetle buckets, bee-friendly seed bombs and learning to recognise the diverse wildlife that surrounds us while out geocaching.

We will be suppling all materials and tools, the Cache Bar will be open with drinks available on a self service basis and it wouldn’t be a 9 US event without cake!

When: Friday 7th April, 2023 (Good Friday)
Where: Plas Gwernoer, Nantlle, Caernarfon LL54 6BB
Time: 2.00-4.00pm

To help us with planning the day please remember to log a ‘will attend’ stating the number of adults and children that will be attending.

Event Reminder

GCA5C5J CITO 2023 Season 1 by 9 Usual Suspects D1/T3

Our task for the day will be to pick up as much litter as possible starting from our base on the old bridge, around the park then following the River Seiont towards Lon Eifion plus the wooded area behind Tesco. By attending this event you will earn ‘CITO 2023 Season 1’ souvenir.

When: Saturday 18th March 2023
Where: Caernarfon
Time: 11am-1pm

2023 Event Calendar

This a rough guide of our events for 2023. Please note dates, times and venues may change and will be confirmed on event publication.

March

18th Saturday GCA5C5J CITO 2023 Season 1, Litter picking around the park at Caernarfon 11am-1pm
29th Wednesday Nosh & Natter 55, 7-9pm venue to be confirmed

April

7th Friday (Good Friday) CITO 2023 Season 1 A different kind of CITO, we will be making Bird/Bat Boxes, Insect Houses and taking a look at the nature that surrounds us while out geocaching. Pete & Ann’s 2-4pm
26th Wednesday Nosh & Natter 56, 7-9pm venue to be confirmed
29th Saturday Mega Event GC9MAXX London Calling 2023 11am-4pm

May

28th Sunday GCA5EAK 9 Usual Suspects Re-visit Ynys Enlli 12-4pm
31st Wednesday Nosh & Natter 57, 7-9pm venue to be confirmed

June

11th Sunday Coed y Brenin 10.30-11am followed by, what may be an ambitious, walk to find the 11 caches placed on the forest trails.
28th Wednesday Nosh & Natter 58, 7-9pm venue to be confirmed

July

6th Thursday Ballast Island an evening event 6.15pm-6.45pm to be confirmed
26th Wednesday Nosh & Natter 59, 7-9pm venue to be confirmed
29th Saturday Mega Event GCA2BBR Piratemania 15 Pirates Royalists & Roundheads 10am-10pm

August

5th Saturday Mega Event GC9V5J3 Milton Keynes UK Mega 2023 10am-4pm
19th Saturday International Geocaching Day, 2-6pm Pete & Ann’s
30th Wednesday Nosh & Natter 60, 7-9pm venue to be confirmed

September

2nd Saturday An event at the site of the wreck SS Denham. This event is governed by a very low tide being between 8-8.30am giving plenty of time to walk out to the wreck. While at the wreck site we will be discovering GC9P8M2 RIP SS Denham Virtual D5/T5.
16th Saturday CITO 2023 Season 2 details to be confirmed
27th Wednesday Nosh & Natter 61, 7-9pm venue to be confirmed

October

7th Saturday International Earthcache Day, suggested location Black Rock Sands but this depends on tides.
25th Wednesday Nosh & Natter 62, 7-9pm venue to be confirmed

November

19th Sunday GIFF 2-4pm venue to be confirmed
29th Wednesday Christmas Nosh & Natter 63, 7-9pm venue to be confirmed

December

31st Sunday Goodbye 2023 times venue to be confirmed

Dates still to be arranged.

An update on Porthmadog’s PanIQ Rooms, Christmas Chaos closes on 5th March once the ‘The Clairvoyant’s Curse’ is back up and running we will arrange an afternoon event in the Australia while the non-competitive teams try to escape the Clairvoyant’s Curse.

A day trip to Dublin.

News & New Caches 77

One new traditional cache an a CITO event have been published since our last post.

GCA5C3D Maiden Hide by Ironknights1908 Traditional D2.5/T3

CITO Event

GCA5C5J CITO 2023 Season 1 by 9 Usual Suspects D1/T3
Our task for the day will be to pick up as much litter as possible starting from the the bridge, around the park then following the River Seiont towards Lon Eifion plus the wooded area behind Tesco. By attending this event you will earn ‘CITO 2023 Season 1’ souvenir.

Ynys Enlli/Bardsey Island Trip Update

GCA5EAK 9 Usual Suspects Re-Visit Ynys Enlli by 9 Usual Suspects D1/T4

Well this trip proved to be far more popular than expected, we have booked all the places on the 11.30am boat.

Important Information

As trips are dependent on good weather please be aware that our crossing may be subject to cancellation at very short notice. Sailings are confirmed around 6.30pm on the evening prior to departure. Bearing this in mind payment is made on the day in cash, therefore no deposits are needed.

Fares: Adult £45.00 Child £25.00

The parking is in the National Trust car park, (N 52° 47.941 W 004° 43.915, Sat Nav LL53 8DA, Grid Ref SH163255), from here there is a 10 minute walk to Porth Meudwy along a rough fisherman’s track. There is no parking at point of departure.

You are advised to wear waterproofs for the crossing. Life jackets are mandatory and will be issued before departure.

There is a café at Tŷ Pellaf farm, run by the Roberts family, which serves a limited variety of drinks, ice cream, snacks and homemade cakes. It is advisable to bring your own supplies as the café can sometimes run low!

Dogs are not permitted to visit the island.

The Bardsey Island Trust does not permit the flying of private drones anywhere on the island.

We will give more details nearer the day.

Ynys Enlli/Bardsey Island Trip

We are trying to organise a day trip to Ynys Enlli/Bardsey Island. Would you be interested?

A Bit About the Island
It is suggested the island was inhabited from as early as the bronze age. It is known as the island of 20,000 saints, owing to the Celtic and Christian monasteries established there since the 6th century. The population of Ynys Enlli, which is 1.5 miles long and no more than half a mile across, has fluctuated over the centuries. Today the permanent winter population is two but In the summer they are joined by visitors who help work the land, record the bird and wildlife and manage the 9 self catering cottages. The island is off-grid with most of the buildings unchanged since they were built in the 19th century.

Bardsey Island is the first site in Europe to receive a dark sky sanctuary certification, thanks to low light pollution and pristine night skies.

Photo Andy YnysMonBirders on our 2016 trip

As well as puffins and seals there is plenty to explore and history to discover. Currently there are 2 sets of Adventure Labs and 2 traditional geocaches, we will also be holding an event on the island.

The Plan
Proposed date is Sunday 28th May leaving Porth Meudwy at 11.30am.
Cost £45.00 per adult and £25.00 per child
There are only 12 adult places on this boat.
We will be on the island for approximately 4 hours.
You do not have to be a geocacher to join us.

If you would like to join us please contact us ASAP so that we can book, being a Bank Holiday weekend places are already limited.

News & New Caches 76

We have two new traditional caches and an adventure lab published since our last post.

GCA52BT Cerdded yn y Coed / Walk in the Woods by Hitch-Hikers Traditional D2/T2
GCA5663 West End parade by ___einierwilliams Traditional D1.5/T1.5

Colwyn Bay created by escapefromwork Nonsequential
This 5 stage lab cache takes you on a tour around this pretty seaside town. Apologies to Dawn for missing this one off our last post.

Event Reminders

GCA4CH4 9 Usual Suspects Get Puzzled by 9 Usual Suspects D1/T1.5

When: Sunday 26th February, 2023
Where: Plas Gwernoer, Nantlle, Caernarfon LL54 6BB
Time: 2.30-4.30pm

Are you stuck on a puzzle cache? Maybe we can help one another with hints and some fresh ideas, so come and join us for an afternoon of puzzle fun. We will also have a wide selection of puzzle boxes, some easy and some to drive you mad!

Not interested in puzzles caches? Then still join us for a geochat, the Cache Bar will be open, hot drinks will be available on a self service basis and it wouldn’t be a 9US event without cake!

Parking is at the house, please note our gateway is very narrow and the pillars are not forgiving!

GCA4W8J 9 Usual Suspects – Nosh & Natter 54 by 9 Usual Suspects D1/T1


When: Tuesday 28th February, 202
Where: Anglesey Arms, Harbour Front, Caernarfon LL55 1SG
Time: 7pm to 9pm or when the last person leaves

For this months Nosh & Natter we are returning to the Anglesey Arms, Caernarfon, I’m assured that they will be open for food……… Please note this event is on Tuesday 28th.

Thank You

GCA4ENX 9 Usual Suspects Visit Martin & Linda by 9 Usual Suspect D1/T1

We would like to thank Martin and Linda for their hospitality, PPR for setting the adventure lab and bonus cache, and everyone for joining us on a very cold Sunday.

News & New Caches 75

Firstly we would like to thank everyone who responded to our ‘Event Suggestions’ in our last post. Looks like we are going to have a busy fun filled year. We will shortly be publishing an event calendar for 2023.

One new Adventure Lab plus bonus has appeared since our last post.

Premium Member Only
GCA4HY7 Y Felinheli Hike Bonus Cache by escapefromwork Traditional D2.5/T2

Adventure Lab

Y Felinheli Hike by escapefromwork Nonsequential

This Adventure Lab explores the pretty village of Y Felinheli, situated on the banks of the Menai Straits with beautiful views across the water to Ynys Mon. Remember to collect the bonus information.

Event

GCA4W8J 9 Usual Suspects – Nosh & Natter 54 by 9 Usual Suspects D1/T1
When: Tuesday 28th February, 2023
Where: Anglesey Arms, Harbour Front, Caernarfon LL55 1SG
Time: 7pm to 9pm or when the last person leaves

For this months Nosh & Natter we are returning to the Anglesey Arms, Caernarfon, I’m assured that they will be open for food……… Please note this event is on Tuesday 28th.

Event Reminder

GCA4ENX 9 Usual Suspects Visit Martin & Linda by 9 Usual Suspect D1/T1
When: Sunday 19th February, 2023
Where: Bryntirion Inn, Llandderfel, Bala LL23 7RA
Time: 12-1pm

We are heading to the Bryntirion for a couple of reasons, Sunday lunch and to discover this Adventure Lab cache ‘Whodunnit at the Bryntirion Inn?’
Join us as we play detectives to solve the classic murder mystery and then find the bonus cache.
GC9G549 Whodunnit at the Bryntirion Inn – Labcache Bonus by PhilPamAndRob Puzzle D3.5/T2.5
There is no online menu but for Sunday lunch there will be a choice of roast beef, lamb, or chicken and 3 vegetarian options for £11.95.
Need a lift? Contact Pete or Ann.

Valentines Gift from HQ

Geocaching have updated the Geocaching® app so all players can see highly Favourited caches at a glance.  Caches are highlighted by their Favourite point total above their cache icon on the map. To commemorate this occasion, they are giving all Premium members an extra 10 Favourite points to award. Furthermore, to recognise that there wouldn’t be caches to find and give Favourite points to without our community’s ingenious hiders, all Premium members who own a geocache, will receive 20 extra Favourite points.
This caused great amusement in our household due to Naturesbyte’s reluctancy to parting with favourite points, he has accumulated the grand sum of 237 unused points, with the addition of the ‘bonus 20’ his total currently stands at 257. Can anyone beat this?