GC4CV7B Traditional Cache Heart of Horses
Type: Traditional | Size: Regular Regular | Difficulty: 1.5 out of 5 | Terrain: 3 out of 5
By: Back Country Horsemen @ | Hide Date: 05/24/2013 | Status: Available
Country: United States | State: Colorado
Coordinates: N39° 23.772 W105° 03.106 | Last updated: 08/30/2019 | Fav points: 0
Dogs  Access or parking fee  Scenic view  Significant hike  Picnic tables nearby  Bicycles  No Motorcycles  Horses  Long Hike (+10km) 
A camoed small coffee can near a nice picnic area. Use the signed picnic table access trail off Ringtail Trail then right along a social/wildlife trail & openings around the scrub oak then through about 10' of scrub oak. The container is not covered by anything.
The cache is just off the Ringtail Trail in Douglas County Open Space. This trail is accessible by all non-motorized users either from the Indian Creek TH* ($6 parking fee) off Hwy. 67, the **Sharptail Ridge TH on Roxborough Rd. (horses & hikers only, no fee) or from Roxborough SP (hikers only, $7 entrance fee). For many cachers this is the backcountry but it is a favorite front country trail for equestrians.


*NOTE It is 5 miles one way from the Indian Creek trailhead.
**Hikers & horseback riders (no dogs or bikes) are able to get there from the Sharptail TH (7 miles one way) when it isn't closed for hunting in the fall. Check the Douglas Co. Open Space website for closure dates before heading out.
The only reason for the 3 star terrain rating is the distance to the cache. The trail is well built & easy to follow. The views on the way up from either direction are fantastic!
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base of very young Douglas Fir

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 Logs

5 Logs: Found it 2  Owner Maintenance 3  

Owner Maintenance 10/29/2017 By Back Country Horsemen
Once again we rode here and stopped for a late lunch and to check on this cache. Fortunately I had brought a replacement container because the previous one not only leaked by was now chewed by critters. The new coffee container is about the same size. This is yet another lonely cache along the Ringtail Trail with over 2 years since a find.

Owner Maintenance 05/13/2016 By Back Country Horsemen
We made our trek up the Indian Creek trail to the "dump road" then straight across to the Ringtail Trail that accesses this cache. We always stop at the picnic tables near this cache for a late lunch. I guess I've never been up here when the scrub is leafed out, so it is pretty easy to spot the wildlife opening through the oak that takes you towards this cache. After you are on the trail to the picnic tables, just as it makes a left turn, go right into the open area & go from there. The oak has grown in a little bit more since this was placed, but at least the ground is basically level.
The container was once again laying on its side & the log is still a little damp, but signable. I need to make a note to replace the container the next time I visit as I guess it's not totally waterproof.

Found it 06/14/2015 By Captain Bligh ;-)
On a recent trip to Ontario, I dropped off my Year of the Horse Geocoin (TB68734) in Coyotes Den Trading Post (GC30CKB), and retrieved a cute little horse trackable named Chubster (TB6M3ZJ). I brought Chubster back to Colorado to help him achieve his goal of visiting horse related caches, events and places around the world. After a quick stop at the Colorado Horse Park outside of Parker, Colorado, we headed for this area for a little geocache exploring.

The Heritage of Horses was our first find of the day. We subsequently found It's All About Horses and Heart of Horses, taking photos of Chubster by the "spoils" in each one. On the return trip out, we dropped Chubster off at It's All About Horses, where someone else can pick up where we left off, taking him on his journey.

What a beautiful area - thanks for the caches!
Captain Bligh! and Princess Deborah

BTW, The Heritage of Horses and It's All About Horses were easily accessible (distance aside), and not too difficult to find. Heart of Horses was significantly more challenging due to the vegetation. Perhaps I just wasn't lucky enough to find the right openings through the scrub oak, but for me the trip required closer to 120' of "bushwhacking" through pretty dense and "shorts/T-shirt-unfriendly" scrub oak. In spite of ripped pants and a few minor cuts, it was well worth it - perseverance prevailed! ;-)

Found it 11/22/2014 By Greasepot
11:13:00 AM
3/5
Parked at Sharptail Ridge Trailhead and went for a total of 16.4 mile walk today. Beautiful weather except for the strong winds in the morning. Hardly saw anybody all day. Got back to the car about 3:00. I was hoping to get "Heritage of Horses" also, but decided I had done enough miles for today. Will have to save that one for another day. When I returned to the trailhead, there was one horse trailer parked there. These were fun! Really appreciate that you set these out here, it gave me a fun place to walk today.
Thanks! GreasePot from Golden, CO

Owner Maintenance 10/05/2014 By Back Country Horsemen
We made our annual ride up here to check my caches. I found this one tipped over & the lid was off. Unfortunately the log must have gotten wet & there is black mold on it now. But it was almost dry and since I did not have another log with me I put it in a baggie and left it in the cache. It is now wedged with a rock to keep it upright. If you visit this cache, please make sure it is wedged well. The scrub oak may have grown in a bit more this year, but it is still not hard to get to compared to other caches north of here!