Growing up in Colorado, I spent many summers travelling back and forth on US285 between my parents' home in Centennial and their cabin (now their home) in South Park (near Fairplay). This is the first in a planned series of caches describing places and events that I found particularly important during this time.
Bailey: You've scaled Crow Hill and entered the town of Bailey, which has long been considered the halfway point between homes by my parents and myself, although as the crow flies it is closer to the South Park area than to the Denver area. Perhaps it simply seemed like halfway because until here, the speed limits are relatively high. This cache is placed at an establishment which is most remarkable as the last of its type until one reaches the town of Jefferson in the South Park area, or approximately 23 miles, during which you will move from Bailey at 7739 feet above sea level, up to the 10,000 foot Kenosha Pass, and back down to 9501 feet in Jefferson. Please plan accordingly and make sure you have plenty of water!
Of particular note in this area for fellow cachers are some of the first caches one will encounter of the South Park GeoTour (bookmark list for pocket queries), including Estabrook to the east and Glen Isle, Shawnee, and Ben Tyler Trail to the west. This is a fantastic series of caches placed by the South Park National Heritage Area, and definitely worth a look.
To successfully get the smilie for this cache, you will need to employ your best stealth techniques at almost every time of day. It is for this reason that the difficulty is higher than normal for this type of hide. In order to help prevent future losses, I've made the decision to mark this cache premium only, but if you have basic members in your group feel free to assist them with signing the virtual log, I will not be deleting basic member logs on this cahce.
Congratulations to Shadow Catcher for FTF!
Growing Up On US285: Bailey
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