GC52E2 Denver Benchmark
Type: Virtual | Size: Virtual | Difficulty: | Terrain:
By: Jim Reeb @ | Hide Date: 04/29/2002 | Status: Available
Country: United States | State: Colorado
Coordinates: N39° 44.879 W104° 56.457 | Last updated: 08/30/2019 | Fav points: 107

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This is a virtual cache, hunting for an easily accessible benchmark in Denver .

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Are you sometimes concerned about whether your GPS is working properly?
Now you can check it out!

On the East Side of the Denver Museum of Natural History, in the lawn area directly in front of the IMAX entrance, is a USGS benchmark. To find it, walk out the east entrance (from the snack bar), and proceed due east until you are about 30 feet from Colorado Blvd. The benchmark is inside an aluminum pipe with a hinged lid marked "Colorado Department of Transportation-City Park" and is surrounded by a concrete collar. It is flush with the ground. If you don't find it right away, walk either North or South 15 or 20 feet until you spot it. It is also 156 feet north of the Northeast corner of the entrance gate to the museum on Colorado Blvd. The exact location of the survey mark is:

N39 44' 52.71761" / W104 56' 27.43564" / Elevation is 5304 feet

The above information was taken from the Western Interior Paleontological Society web site.

Using a Garmin etrex Venture, my reading at the location was: N39 44.879 / W104 56.459 Elevation 5313
As you can see, I am somewhat over eight feet tall and the GPSr was indicating that I was 4.7 feet away while standing on the benchmark.

When you enter your log, please enter your Lat/Lon, elevation and GPSr.

On October 16, 2007, at least one Geocacher logged this geocache without visiting the location.
I am not deleting the log so that others will know who he is.

07/05/2019 By eyekwilt2
Clearly, I haven't used the elevation on my GPS for awhile because when I looked at other logs and the number for elevation that I got at the benchmark, something was clearly wrong. We live in a state where much of it is fairly close to sea level so it didn't raise any alarms for me.

Then, I looked at my GPS elevation dashboard, and there it was "M". Oops. A quick conversion cleared it up.

I had 5354.331 ft. at the Benchmark and my GPS said n 39 44.878 w 104 56.457. Just as we were leaving the raindrops started to get heavier but they ended before too long. WOW, I just looked at the posted coordinates for the cache page and mine were almost dead on. That doesn't happen very often! TFTC

06/28/2019 By Alpenist
TFTC Found this cache on a visit to the museum.

06/21/2019 By sawandkids
With podtoo for the find.
Elevation was about 5316.
39 44.879
104 56.459

06/21/2019 By podtoo
Never one to pass up a virtual cache if there is one around. Elevation fluctuated between 5316 and 5325. TFTC

06/15/2019 By SpanDino
0303p , fs 2.5 ; benchmark elevation 5305ft ,

10/14/2018 By tominohio
Visited the museum and had to get this one. From Dayton OH. TFTV

10/13/2018 By GeoHunter..
Our second big trip this year. This time more mid country hunting for the oldest caches in the states. Our trip started in Kansas City, MO and continued through Iowa, Nebraska, Kansas, Oklahoma, the most NW corner of Texas, New Mexico to culminate in Colorado. It rained all day first three days but that did not stop us to accomplish our goals and some. Colorado Springs welcomed us with the snow and below freezing temperatures. But the hunt must go on... Maggie :) and I enjoyed this beautiful country, the scenery, the animals, the food and friendly people.

TFTHunt

10/13/2018 By Maggie :)
Had an hour before our flight. Grabbing a cache or two. Picture attached for myself and GeoHunter..TFTC.

10/13/2018 By PixieKelly
Meeting some friends I haven’t seen in awhile at this virtual! Thanks for the find!!

10/11/2018 By BigChiefS4
Day 5 of an epic 6 day journey out to the western frontier. I had some vacation time that I needed to burn up by the end of the year, and what better way to use it than to go Geocaching! My main goal was to find caches in New Mexico and Nevada, which would complete my map in the western US. The rest of the 4 remaining states are on the East Coast. Secondary goals were to find oldies, mostly virtuals, and high favorited caches. The only bad part of the trip was that it rained every single day of my vacation.

I headed south out of MN on Sunday and returned home on Friday.
Sunday - Drive all the way through to Colorado (15 hours!)
Monday - Cache in and around Denver and Colorado Springs, with an attempt at Pike's Peak (closed at Mile 14)
Tuesday - Head south towards GC19 and then west through Wolf Creek Pass
Wednesday - Four Corners monument and west towards Nevada
Thursday - After a night in Richfield, UT, head east through the skiing areas of Colorado towards Nebraska
Friday - The long drive home

Thanks to all the cache owners for placing these caches for me to find and for keeping the oldies going all these years.
Neat virtual. I was using a Garmin Montana 680. My coords were N 39 44.878 W 104 56.459. I didn't get the altitude.

09/12/2018 By LostinDenver
Last if the caches i grabbed in this area while taking advantage of the free museum day. Perfect weather right now. Thanks for taking me here.

09/08/2018 By goldpot
Geocaching has changed a lot since this cache was placed!
We were on vacation at Denver for the day and visiting some interesting caches in this fine city. We loved the park and it’s open spaces.
TFTC answers submitted.

-GOLDPOT- #11697

09/07/2018 By Truvtter
Interesting location. I used an Oregon 450 and my GPS coordinates are n39 44.880 w104 56.457.elevation 5334. Tftc

09/06/2018 By IowaGerd
Well, that was interesting.

09/03/2018 By Firemnky
On a Fall trip through Colorado doing some caching and seeing the sites. A beautiful scenic drive through Rocky Mountain National Park. Visiting the downtown areas of Boulder, Denver, Castle Rock and Colorado Springs to name a few. We enjoyed a beautiful hike on the Barr trail at the Summit of Pikes Peak. It was a wonderful trip with quite a bit of caching thrown in along the way.
Elevation, 5280; N 39 44.878 W 104 56.457; Oregon 600.
Thanks for the fun.

08/20/2018 By kb0rpw
Nice walk with a friend at the hospital close by.

08/15/2018 By WSquared2
So cool. Visiting Denver for a couple days from Michigan. The zoo this morning and pikes Peak this afternoon. My iPhone showed about 12 feet off. Thanks you very much for this cache
GC52E2

08/15/2018 By LasCabrasDeMontanas
We have been phone caching lately. The picture is from my iPhone 6 (the small one, it’s hard enough to hold this one.) But, we are in town for a few days, I may return to check out both of our Garmins. TFTC

GC52E2

08/08/2018 By kaput360
Grabbed this one with Lullabye and Madvibe. Not sure while the elevation here is such an argument. It's high, you're cool! TFTC!

08/07/2018 By lullabye4u
Last day of our Colorado vacation before we fly back to Tennessee. Hands down, I loved the mountains more than the city. That mountain range could have entertained me for a year or so. The city seemed to be full of traffic, construction, and shopping malls. It just didn't call my name the way the mountains did.
Anyhow, answers for Madvibe and Kaput360 and Lullabye4u:
Our elevation was 5299 ft at N39 44.883 W104 56.450 with Garmin Etrex 30. TFTC
AE5249 Benchmark

08/07/2018 By madvibe
Out and about Denver today with an early flight home in the morning. Working on GC7B8GQ, and grabbing caches here and there that are on the way! Answers submitted by lullabye4u. Tftc!

08/01/2018 By StraitCash
Tftc

07/29/2018 By Gemini Mission
Pretty close on cords. Tftc

07/26/2018 By jjt002
Walked right to this and using my phone, my GPS read 7 feet at the benchmark. Elevation was 5306 ft. TFTC!

07/26/2018 By 2nd Son
Found with Strait Cash. We had some extra time so we decided to check out some of the local virtual caches. TFTFUN!

09/10/2016 By dustyriver
Found at 294 feet elevation with etrex 20x - May have to check my GPS or just remove grass.