Cache Emplacement by njski

Cache Emplacement
by njski
Photos from geocaching.com Photographers: Howie57, metazbad, 1Wheel, s.sing, yawlog and bookworm3

Our featured geocache this month is the first we have featured that has been created by an out-of-state geocacher.

njski is a Cape May, New Jersey based geocacher with over 1500 finds and 100 hides to his credit. According to his profile he is an operating engineer and a U.S. Navy Submarine Veteran. It is no surprise, then, that after visiting Delaware's Fort DuPont back in 2004 he just HAD to place a geocache here. This cache went up on April 25, 2004 making it one of the older Delaware Geocaches.

Fort Dupont was named for Rear Admiral Samuel Francis du Pont. It was actively used as a military base beginning during the Civil War and continuing through World War II. Following World War II, the Fort was turned over to the State of Delaware. It has been used for various purposes over the years, including serving as the Governor Bacon Health Center and as an institutional home for children. Portions of the land were dedicated as a State Park in 1992 making it one of Delaware's newer State Parks.

The Fort is located in lower New Castle County near the Chesapeake and Delaware Canal. Delaware Parks require an admission fee from March through October so for the next several months finding this cache will require a small cash outlay. But if you are like any of the 68 geocachers who have found this cache over the past 3 years you'll find this an interesting and historic location that is well worth the admission fee.

One of the members of this Picnic team was the first to find this cache back on April 25, 2004 - the day the cache was posted. As you can probably guess is was Mike Ott. His log indicates that this FTF was a kind of "photo finish" with Mike making the find seconds before his partners. There was something else happening that day that brought this team together. It was the Delaware Geocaching Spring Event. And, as at all good events, the assembled geocachers just had to go searching. Discovering that a brand new cache went up on the same day proved to be a kind of cache magnet for the Picnic Team.

Behind the group you can see the concrete bunkers of the Fort. Note that you do not have to enter this bunker to find the cache. In fact the State of Delaware cautions visitors to avoid going inside. Like other structures of this type there are winding corridors that lead deep underground in there. Couple this with the fact that there is NO light inside and you'll quickly appreciate the reason why the State doesn't want folks going inside.

In case that's not enough of a reason, you should know that creatures such as the one pictured on the right can also be found in and around the Fort.

We don't want to scare you away. We're just suggesting that any time you find yourself geocaching near ancient structures you need to be aware of your surroundings and to take proper precautions.

Our suggestion is to examine the outside of the Fort and let your imagination fill in the details about what might be inside. There are plenty of additional things to see on the outside.

Here's one of them. It's hard to tell how old this structure might be. Does it date to the Civil War or is it more WW II vintage? Notice the "foundation". Yes, those are concrete blocks holding the building above ground level. But despite the age and condition of this building notice the curtains at the windows.

When was the building last used? Who were its occupants?

As with the Fort, we suggest that you do NOT go inside to try to find answers. Instead keep looking about the grounds and you'll find other interesting things.

Bookworm3 discovered this structure and was curious. It looks like a chimney but why does it have those ladder-like steps? There doesn't seem to be any other kind of building nearby. And again does this structure give any clue as to its age?

Hart612, found this cache on April 29, 2004 and noted in his log that there's another not-so-obvious feature to this area: "This is a great birding area. Walking back from the cache this morning, we watched a broadwing hawk circling overhead. "

And, if you look closely enough you can also find some curious insects. 1Wheel found too many of them when visiting on August 21, 2004 "The bugs were N-A-S-T-Y, we had only sprayed our legs at first, had to stop and spray head to toe to fend off the onslaught. " If you visit any place near the canal during August you are guaranteed to have a similar experience. That's part of the fun of geocaching during a Delaware summer.

njski provided parking coordinates of N39.34.396 W075.34.839 but warns visitors to be sure to pay the park fee. There is another way in here. If you park at the canal there is a long back road that will bring you here. But remember that this cache is in a Delaware State Park so even if you park "off site" you should pay the park fee when you come onto the property.

Back on November 27, 2004 by s.sing visited taking this long, alternate route to the cache: "Today was women's day (plus assorted sons, grandsons...). Took Mom and Sis on this one. Turned Mom loose with the GPS and that geographically challenged Granny found the cache (with a little help from my sweet Sis). I gotta tell ya, my Mom's special ability of getting lost is the stuff of legend but I really think the GPS will be her salvation. She honed right in on the cache."

By this time you are probably saying to yourself something like, "If there's all these curious structures and all this wildlife here, just where is this cache?" We're not going to give away that information but we will tell you that it is in a spot near enough to the fort that you'll be able to see everything we've shown in this review article. And, since this area is known to frequently be wet the cache is in a place where it should be able to stay dry that is if each finder puts it back in the same place and in the same way. Some haven't. A number of log entries note that the contents of the cache container were a little wet. But don't let that hold you back. Come visit this rather unique park and see how long it takes you to make the find.

Our thanks to njski for placing this cache.