Hello and welcome to the National Trust Podcast. I'm Jo Dyson, and today I'm visiting a weird and wonderful place. Once the home of giant creatures, a tourist trap for Victorians and now a top spot for all kinds of adventures. I'll be exploring this National Trust landscape with the added benefit of a treasure hunt along the way. So just arrived at Brimham Rocks car park and I
can't wait to find out what's in store for me today. It's been about a 20 minute drive here from Harrogate and I've passed beautiful farmland, quaint fields, bright green landscape. The drizzle that started this morning in Harrogate seems to be clearing. So I'm here today to meet a National Trust colleague called Rich Foster, and I think that could be him over there... Hi are you Rich?
I am. Are you Jo?
Hi I am, great to meet you. Nice to meet you. So, Rich, I've been told that you are an expert, but I've not been told what you are an expert in...
Aha. I am an expert. And I'm an expert in something called Geocaching.
Geocaching?
Yes.
Brilliant! So I have heard of this. Is it sort of like a treasure hunt?
It is. It is. It's a techy treasure hunt that's played around the world and you use GPS enabled device like your phone. And G. P. S. is like the sat nav in your car. Okay, That's the ‘geo’ bit Yeah, exactly. And the caching bit a cache is a store like something that's been hidden. So Geocaches or we shorten the word and say caches are some sort of container that you have to go and find. They’re hidden
all around the world. There’s boxes of all sizes and shapes in towns, cities and in fabulous places like this.
So when I was in Harrogate last night, I could have gone geo caching and then might have been containers to find.
You probably walked past some and didn't even know.
So what are we actually going to find here?
Well, I'm not going to tell you. That's all part of the mystery. But why don't we get going, start searching, and I'll fill you in on everything you need to become an expert Geocacher in 60 seconds!
Hah in 60 seconds? Brilliant. If only I could become an expert in many things in 60 seconds.
So here's ten things to remember before you go out Geocaching. Bring your phone or a GPS device to be able to find these caches. Bring some snacks and water and a pen or a pencil. I'll explain why you need that in a minute. Some sun tan lotion or sunscreen if it's sunny or maybe a jacket, if it's wet. Bug spray and antihistamines can be a good idea because you in the great
outdoors, a torch can be useful as well. Sometimes geocaches are hidden in dark places and you need to shine a light to find it. A few first aid essentials can be useful. Hopefully you'll never need them. And two final things tools of the trade, some caches can be really hard to spot or might even need a set of tweezers to pry open to appear in your bag just in case I'm finally swag for trading. SWAG stands for stuff we all get. If you find a cache with something in, you can trade it with a
small item. Of your own.
That's great, Rich, So we've got our top ten. We're ready to go. I've downloaded the Geocaching app, which I am delighted to see is free. So anyone can do this. And now just looking at my phone, we must be this blue dot. Yes. And then there's quite a few sort of green dots surrounding us. What does this all mean?
You've got the map of the area there, all those green dots you can see there, the Geocaches.
Looks like there might even be one in the car park.
There is. I'm quite interested in this one here, though. It's called Can't see the Wood for the trees.
So it's got a name?
Oh, they've all got names, you know. So, can you see on my phone here it's 186 meters away. The app tells us how far away the cache is. Okay. And it gives us a difficulty rating and a terrain rating. Difficulty is when you've kind of got into the area of the cache, how hard it is to find.
Okay.
And the terrain is how difficult is it to get to where the cache is? If it's a terrain one, it's accessible for all for wheelchair users and people with buggies and they go right up to five
And they're might we be using our climbing equipment?
They need specialist gear. So it's climbing equipment or you need a canoe sometimes...
A canoe?
Yeah.
Really? What, so you can reach it by water?
Absolutely.
Oh, I like the sound of those ones. Okay, So those say 1.5 for difficulty and 1.5 for terrain. I mean, I don't want to sort of jump ahead, but this one sounds pretty easy than if it's 1.5.
It should be.
So should we go and find can’t see the wood for the trees?
So I've got 111 meters to the cache now.
Yeah mine says 110. 109. It's quite fun that it's a countdown, isn't it?
Yeah.
We're getting warmer.
Yes.
Oh, wow. Look at those rocks through the trees. So, Rich, how long have you been Geocaching for?
I've been caching for about nine years. I'm a cyclist as well, and I had a bit of a bike crash and broke my collarbone, so I was looking for something to do with myself.
Oh, I'm sorry to interrupt again, but now we're only three meters away.
But I'm going to have to pause my story because we're right on top of the cache here...
We are, are we? Yes! So if I get back to the main screen, there's a description. Can I click on that?
Yes.
And there's a button that says hint shall I do that?
Yeah, yeah.
Oh, here we go... okay. “Above the service road layby in a crevice of a large rock adjoining a Birch Tree hidden by branches and moss. ” So that's the service road straight ahead.
Yeah
The crevice of a large rock...
Well, pick your rock around here.
I mean, that's not really whittling it down is it? Where’s the Birch Tree?
There's a number of birch trees as well isn't there?
So do you think this could be the rock in that Birch Tree? I think maybe down here a bit.
So you're looking for something that's obviously got some branches piled on top of it.
So this one maybe? Here's a crevice down here.
I've already walked past them looking for this... ah!
Have you found it?
Well, I'm going to walk away and guide you and say you're not very far away now...
Am I close? Because this tree is definitely close, isn't it?
Yeah.
Do you think it's down here?
Have a look for the gap in the rocks.
Oh my gosh, I found it!
There you go.
Oh, my gosh. That is so exciting. And there's the box oh wow shall I open it?
Aha!
Look, National Trust, Geocache. This is my first geocache find. Oh, this is lovely. Look Rich, there's a little pad of paper with people's names and dates.
The way it works is that when you find the cache, you look for the log book. And there's your log book and sign your name and your date to say that you found it.
So I'll add our names. Oh, this is so good. Oh, look what's in here. There's a little booklet. A painted rock that is painted with yellow and red stripes and. Oh, this is lovely. Look, it's like a little key ring that says National Trust 50 things. That’s the 50 things to do before your 11 & 3/4.
Yeah.
And this. A little acorn?
A little pinecone.
That’s what I meant!
Yeah, you meant pinecone. So that's all your SWAG, the stuff we all get.
Oh yes. So do you want to get something to leave in it? Why, yes. While I add our names.
So the deal with SWAG, all the things in the cache. The idea is that you trade up or trade even. So, if you want to take something from the cache, you can. But you must leave something of equal or same value. And it's brilliant with kids, with families, because kids are actually finding something that looks like treasure. So I've got a bag of swaggy bits here we can add. We've got some I love geocaching stickers and I've got like a Lego man in a box in a bag you can make.
So now do we just put the Tupperware box back together?
That's right. Put it all back. Leave it exactly where you found it for the next person. We need to log it on the app now, to say that we found it.
So now I think I'm ready for my next. This is addictive.
Good, isn't it? Let's go find another one.
I mean, I've genuinely never seen anything like this Rich. It's just the contrast of the lush green grass and then these absolutely vast boulders sort of jutting out. I did notice actually on this geocaching app that there's that button that says description.
Yeah. So when you click this description, it tells you something about the area that you're visiting.
The story of Brimham Rocks, It's realistically a 320 million year story. My name is Alec Boyd and I'm the area ranger here at Brimham Rocks. If you go back long enough, the UK used to be south of the equator and there's a giant mountain range that doesn't really exist anymore. I think it's roughly comparable to the Himalayas. It was probably one of the major mountain ranges in the world at
the time. And as this mountain range was exposed to weathering, you know, you'd get rain, snow, sleet, everything we're getting today, You know, weather that mountain range down and through a series of river systems, all that material would make its way down the slope where the area flattens out. And that's actually the source of what Brimham rocks is today, is this ancient, giant, meandering river delta.
The waterways are what gave the rocks their distinctive layering and appearance 320 million years ago when these rivers were going through, flowering plants didn't exist. So trees as we know them, grasses as we know them flowers didn't exist at that time. In fact, when it comes to Vertebrate Life, so life with backbones, the new kid on the block is literally Reptiles.
We've only got one fossil that we don't advertise too much because of where it's located, and we don't want to cause excess erosion to it. But we've got the fossilized footprints of an ancient Amphibian. So this is a type of Amphibian called a Temnospondyl, which is roughly related to frogs, newts and salamanders today, just think of it like second cousins.
The difference is these things can be absolutely enormous, some roughly the size of a small car, the one that we've got footprints on would probably be size of a small alligator. Imagine a newt with big sharp teeth and a really flat head. That's roughly what they look like. It's a very different ecosystem now. We're in this beautiful Heather Moorland with these rock formations, but these rock formations allow for all sorts of current life to have little
niches. We've got all sorts of nesting birds that use the rocks. Obviously insects and other invertebrates 320 million years makes quite the difference.
Rich, well that second cache was a bit easier to find than the first. I wasn't sure if we were going to find the first.
It was. It was a lot easier
And a much smaller box.
Yeah.
I mean, I am itching to go and find a third, but I have to say it's sort of coffee time and I've just spied this National Trust coffee shop. Shall we grab a coffee and a cake?
I'm up for a coffee.
Rich, I mean, look at that view. I don't think there could be a more beautiful, picturesque place to sit with our coffee.
It is lovely.
Hey, Rich, look behind you. Can you see that stone wall? And then there's a bit jutting out, and it looks like there's a loose, loose rock. You don’t think that could be a cache do you?
Oh I'm not sure you you might be seeing caches everywhere. I tell you what, have a look on the app just to have a check.
Okay. So I'm zooming in on the GPS Look, the blue dot of us is right next to a green dot. Shall we go and have a look?
Oh, that's amazing.
So this is the Brimham house cache. Look, if I press on that description button on the app-
A lot of people say when they see the house, they ask, who was the house built for who lived in it? But actually it was built for visitors. It was built to be a visitor reception point. My name's Jen Taylor. I'm the property operations manager at Brimham Rocks. People have been coming to visit Brimham rocks since the first owners of the estate built Brimham house really. It was a tourist destination in the very early days of tourism and that
really boomed when the railways came. The Victorian tourists really enjoyed the sights of Brimham and were fascinated by the stories of the Druids. The Victorians were fascinated with lots of different things. They were obsessed with death and they were obsessed with all sorts of mysticism, and Druids were part of that. They used to think that the Druids had created the rocks. They didn't think about the way we look at it now and the
geology of the site. They much prefer to think of it in a more mystical way.
And that's another one ticked off Jo.
Hello, guys. I heard you were here today looking for our Geocaches? How are you getting on? Oh Good. Oh, good, good. I'm Molly, one of the Rangers here. Oh, fantastic. I look after the Geocaches.
Well, you're doing a brilliant job with these caches. We've had a great time. That's the third one we've found now.
Where else have you been?
We found one called. You can't see the wood for the trees. That was the first one. It took us a while to find that one, actually.
Yeah.
It's a bit tricky is a lot of places it could hide. So you haven't found my favourite one yet, which is Druids Writing desk. No we haven’t...
Druids writing desk? What a great name.
You'll understand when you see it.
Curious to know why is your favourite?
The container for it was made by one of our volunteers here at the site, and it's very unique and very special.
Oh, fantastic.
Let's have a look at your app now. We're getting close to it.
Oh, 21 meters. And actually it's saying let's turn left. I mean, I think I'd be really struggling without this compass... what’s that?
There's something... you've just come upon a log standing by itself.
It looks a little bit manmade. And I do remember Molly saying that it's made by a volunteer. Does this top of the log look like it twists around?
Look at that. It's swivelling.
Oh, look at that. Oh, that is beautiful.
So the inside of a log has been hollowed out.
And then inside is... the cache.
Oh, Jo, I can see how happy you are finding this one.
I am!
You gone from being a complete beginner to being a little bit addicted.
So I filled out the logbook.
Okay, I'm just going to put some swag in here.
People have already been here today. The puddle jumpers.
Molly, Why is it called the Druids writing desk then?
Yes. If you look over here behind the trees, there's a certain rock that is named Druids writing desk. Yes. So it's that rock there. I think in the modern times, people call it ET.
That is incredible. So that rock that's perched on the sort of plinth almost-
Yes
That is the Druids writing desk. So is it called a desk because the top of that rock is very flat, isn't it?
Yeah, that's correct. Yeah.
It's... I can't fathom how that sort of perched on top of that plinth. It looks like it could almost topple offer any point, but just stood here and looking out beyond... I mean it's absolutely beautiful. I can just see miles and miles and miles of green landscape in the background.
This is the valley of Nidderdale, so it's predominantly farmland. It's an area of outstanding natural beauty.
I can see that. I see why exactly! Are there any others that take in an incredible view like this.
Yes. So there is another one called Mushroom Rock, which is a bit further out, nearly 700 meters away, leaving the rocks behind, going onto the moor. It's a bit more wild. You have to go over different terrain and there's a little bit of scrambling involved to get to the cache.
This sounds absolutely right up my street. What do you think, Rich? Have we got time to find a fifth?
Oh, let's do it.
So, Rich, you've travelled all over the world as well with your geocaching, haven't you? Where's the most extreme place that you've been?
Around the world? I think Singapore Airport.
Yes, yeah
They have a butterfly garden you can go into while you're waiting for your flight. And there's Geocache in there. I wouldn't have known about the butterfly garden in the airport without having Geocaching there to take me there.
That's brilliant. What’s the sort of most extreme cache that you've heard of? Do you think you have any on the moon?
Not sure about the moon. There is one on the International Space Station.
Is there?!
Yes, there is!
Who took that up there?
Not me! One of the astronauts.
And do we know what's in that cache?
There is a log book, I think. Obviously hasn't been signed by many people. Hasn't been found by many people.
No, that wasn't on our top list of ten things. Was that rocket to get to that one?
Indeed.
Now, it’s saying we’re three meters. I suppose we need to go right to the mushroom, do we? Mollie's looking knowingly. Look. There's a tiny little hole at the side here, so there is a bit of scrambling involved downwards.
So you might.
Okay, there's a couple of steps here in the rock. I'm going to go first.
Yep. Okay. Thank you. I'm going to press the hint. Look at the base of a rock shaped like a mushroom. Okay. This is why we need to go down just scrambling between two rocks.
Now I'm going to walk away in a sort of smug fashion, Jo.
Oh, okay. I think Rich has seen something. Now there is a hole. Hole down there... Is there something under this grass?
Do we give her a clue?
Yeah. I need another hint.
You need to be on your right hand side a bit more further. Right.
I love it, Rich is like warm, warmer. Am I hot?
It’s getting warmer
In here?
Have a look underneath something. There's a hint. There's a hint.
Oh, that's cool. I mean, that is the perfect spot for us. I mean, Rich, you have super senses. How on earth did you see that?
You just get tuned in to looking for Tupperware after a while. Jo.
Oh, I don't know how you saw that straightaway, but look at that spot. That's the perfect little hiding space.
It's got a little barrier of grass in front of it, so you can't quite see it.
Yeah, that's grown up beautifully to hide it. I mean, I just don't really want to stop here now. I know we don’t have time to carry on, but it is really quite addictive, isn't it?
You just want to keep going. I mean, the landscape's brilliant, isn't it? Cache’s should bring you somewhere interesting.
Yeah.
To answer that question. Why are you bring in the cacher here. And you're bringing me here because this is a fabulous place, so I'm going to find them all. Now I'm going to head off and find them all Jo!
I’ll join you then! Thank you for listening to this episode of the National Trust Podcast to find more episodes, go to nationaltrust.org.uk/podcasts or search for the National Trust Podcast in your favourite podcast app. If you've listened to this far, we have a little hidden bonus for you. We have planted our own audio geo cache at Brimham Rocks. Here is your hint ‘poetry set in stone. We'll be back soon with a new episode. But for now, from me, Jo Dyson, goodbye.