Written by Team Phoenix
In January 2004, The X-Treme GPS Team released a cache called Aircraft Wreck #2. The following story, written by CuriousGeorge of Team Phoenix, recounts the adventures in solving this puzzle.
Tue Jan 20th
We’d been emailing back and forth frantically for the last few days wondering why no one had posted their intention to go for this one yet. I was trying to arrange time off work but knew that I couldn’t leave until Thursday.
A quick email to the TEAM confirmed that as long as we started our quest within 24 hours of posting out intent we would be ok. A few more quick messages and I made the decision to post, without knowing yet if I could even get away from work.
I posted our notice of intent and now the pressure was on – first I had to make sure I could get away from work and then we had to make sure we could complete the job within 14 days.
Within an hour or so of posting, our plan was already in motion. We knew that we needed to get some of the local clues before heading south. P007 headed for the ferry terminal to play a hunch – a little later in the day and the Team Phoenix hotline rang…this first grave marker had been located. Phase 1 complete.
That night a nice low tide revealed the next part of the puzzle – by the light of the moon the “moonbomb” made the pin detector jump off the scale. Phase 2 complete….so far so good.
Wed Jan 21st
The next morning came far too early for P007. Yet another ferry ride put him on the required island before the sun was even up. Thank goodness for BFL’s! A short search and the second grave marker was soon located, while it was still dark out. My phone rang and I anxiously wrote down the required info – “did you get the required pictures” I asked….this was to become my motto for the next week.
Well at least there were some caches that P007 could do while killing time waiting for the next boat home. I was busy making final preparations to get away from work – it would be a late night, lots of gear to pack.
We had done quite a bit of research as soon as the clues were released and one of the hardest decisions to make was what vehicle to take down to the desert. My 4Runner would be good off road but would be slower on the highway and harder on gas – P007’s TPORRAV would be much faster for the trip down, much better on gas, but could limit our off road capabilities when we got there. After studying lots of maps we decided that if we couldn’t get off road then it would just mean longer hikes. It turned out to be the right decision…..more on that later.
Thu Jan 22nd
We thought about an early morning start but decided that it may be our last chance to sleep in for a while so we elected to take the 9:00 boat to Vancouver. Unfortunately both the Anacortes and the Port Angeles ferries are out of service until March, so driving around was our only option.
The TPORRAV was the way to go, the miles flew by, we were passing through Seattle before I knew it. A pretty uneventful drive all the way down that crappy I-5 and soon we were in Oregon. We kept pushing south and ended up spending our first night in Roseburg (about an hour north of the California border). We found a place to stay and then got our first dose of the no vegetable diet which appears to be popular south of the 49th. If sodas were healthy we would have been fine. Back to the motel for the nightly dial in to check for messages and news.
Fri Jan 23rd
Up and on the road again, passing by the town of Phoenix we couldn’t resist stopping for a photo op on the side of the interstate. Back on the road again and we were headed up and over a 6,000 foot high mountain pass, hmm there’s snow all around…..oh well, there can’t be snow in the desert, can there?
A quick gas stop in Yreka, CA and I checked messages. There was an urgent message to check in with our team mates. A quick phone call later and we found out that there was a problem with the original instructions – a mathematical step was missing. We had already played with estimated numbers and plotted a final position which didn’t make sense – it put the plane wreck somewhere in northern BC which we knew could not be right. Now that we had the missing info it was all becoming clear 😉
We finally got off of the I-5 at Mt. Shasta and made a b-line towards our target area. A lot more snow and a lot of long straight roads. We pulled into Hawthorne Nevada just after dark and found a place to stay for the night. We had brought our camping gear but the temps were dropping down to -10 to -20 at night, a little too chilly. Once in our room we dialed in to check for updates again and to see if there were any caches nearby. Turns out there was a micro less than 300 feet from our motel room. We walked out the door, looked at each other and said “there it is”…turned off the GPS and walked the 300 feet to get it, we’re good! A short walk to find some dinner and then we were able to squeeze in another micro for dessert, then it was off to bed.
Sat Jan 24th
We were all pumped as today we would be going for our first southern clue. But before heading out of town we had noticed a nearby benchmark. We went and found it by memory…….our first official benchmarks, wahoo.
Back on the road and not much more than an hour later we were arriving at clue #8. Our maps and all of our research showed that we should be on the left side of the highway, but our GPSs kept pointing off to the right, hmmm. We decided to park and do the short hike to where our GPSs said we should be. Well it paid off, we found the “old” highway on our way in. Turns out that the highway had been moved so we were on the correct side after all. With about 50 meters to go to our waypoint we came across a series of old railway ties in the sand. More and more debris could be seen all around. As we approached our waypoint we could clearly see the remains of another track which joined up with the one we were on. We knew we had the right spot 😉 We took some pics and video, spent some time exploring the area and also logged a benchmark not far from our location…..cool, we’re off to a great start. We also checked out the remains of a stone house about a quarter of a mile from where we were, it just looked neat.
Back in the car and we were speeding south again. We decided that the best approach would be to go after the most southerly clue next as it appeared to be a relatively easy one. As we were speeding south along the highway both of us spotted a plane wreck laying in the sand right at the same time. P007 engaged the anti-lock brakes and we backed up. Could this be the plane wreck that we’re looking for? Because we didn’t have enough numbers yet it was still within the possible “box” so we took a bunch of photos and GPS positions. If this was it we wouldn’t have to come back.
Once again back into the car and we sped off towards clue #7. Our maps showed a road which should have gotten us close to it, but the road just did not exist any longer. Over the next few days we were to discover that most of the “roads” showing in our mapping software either did not exist any longer, or they were so overgrown that they were not accessible, even with a 4×4.
We drove further into Death Valley until we were at the closest possible point that the main road would get us and decided it was time for our first real hike. We geared up and headed out. It was only about 2.80 km straight line distance to the clue, but we had to hike quite a bit more than that to get there. We had to go up and over one pretty decent ridge and then skirt around a few others. When we finally arrived the first thing we saw was an open mine shaft in the desert floor. 10 seconds later and we located the tag we were looking for. Took the usual photos and then played at the mine for a while. The old wooden ladder going down into it was way too scary to consider going down. But we got close to the edge and dropped a few small rocks, we timed it a 6 seconds before it hit bottom – that’s a long way down! A few more photos and it was time for the hike back.
It was sunny and warm out but not too hot, which was nice. We had come prepared for everything. As it turns out we had great weather the whole trip. After the hike back we decided that the best option was to stay in Beatty Nevada for the night. But first we made a quick trip to Stove Pipe Wells just for fun. We had to find a benchmark there to help us solve a cache in Vancouver 😉
Then it was back to Beatty for the night. There isn’t too much there….a casino, a gas station and a motel. The only place to eat was the casino restaurant, not exactly 5 star but it fuelled us up for the next day – once again, they didn’t know what vegetables were. We spent a fair bit of time that night looking at topo maps and plotting our plan for the next few days. We knew the easy ones were out of the way now and that things were going to get tougher. The good thing was that with each clue we nailed, the “box” containing the plane wreck got smaller and smaller.
Sun Jan 24th
Got up and headed north into Death Valley again. We decided that we would make a recon of the area near the remaining 3 clues to determine how to best tackle them. We passed through Scotty’s Castle on way into the park and stopped to stretch our legs and get some pics – got to do a virtual cache while there as well. We also got a really close photo op with a coyote. A short drive down the road and we discovered that what showed as a paved road on our maps was not paved at all, in fact it was much to rough for the TPORRAV. Oh well, we did what we do best and improvised on the fly. Made our way back to highway and took another approach into the park. As we were speeding down one highway I told Mark (P007) to stop. I spotted a small road that I had looked at earlier on the maps. It led through a place called Kookamunga Canyon. My GPS showed that it would get us to the area we wanted to be in. Even though it was a dirt road we decided it was worth a shot.
The road was actually pretty good but as we got further into the canyon we began to climb in elevation. Soon we were in the snow. We stopped to assess the situation, and so Mark could try so get himself a Joshua tree seed pod. If the road went through it would save us a very long drive around the north end of the valley. So we kept going, the road got a little rough in spots but not really too bad. We passed through an area where there were huge washes, you could tell that in a flash flood there must be a raging current running through there.
We pressed on and eventually we connected with the Death Valley Road – after using our really cool TEAM shovels to smooth out a few ditches and bumps in the road. Half an hour later and we were approaching the area of clue #9. We knew this one was in an old mine, and our maps showed a road that went right to it. But just as before when we got to the spot where the road should be it was nowhere to be found. We could see faint traces of where the road used to be but it wasn’t driveable. So we once again drove as close as we could get and geared up for another hike.
It was a little warmer this time so we loaded up with water. The straight line distance was only about 3.5 km but we had a pretty major ridge to get up and over. We headed off and about an hour later we were standing on top of the ridge. We could see the valley floor about 600 feet below us and we could clearly see the mine part way up another ridge off in the distance. We carefully picked our way down the very steep descent – every footstep had to be precise as one wrong step and it would be a 600 foot drop.
After the descent we made our way across the valley floor and up to the old mine. We were pumped when we got there. This mine went straight back into the rock face of the mountain as far as we could see. We snapped a couple of pics outside the mine and then geared up to head into the bowels of the earth. The mine actually only went in 150 – 200 feet or so but it was really neat. We got all the way to the back and found the tag no problem at all.
After emerging we surveyed the terrain and decided it was better to try and follow the old road back out to the highway and then walk back up the highway to the car instead of trying to get up and over that ridge again in the failing light. As we worked our way towards the road we found another old mine – we couldn’t resist exploring it as well, who knows, maybe there are more tags in there 😉
There really wasn’t much of a road to follow so we just picked our way through the barren landscape along the best line. I could tell that Mark wasn’t feeling too good. He had been sick for the last few months but had been feeling better before we left – but I could tell he was suffering. We slowed our pace and I told him that we were in no rush. We were well equipped and even if we were out after dark we would be fine. We talked about how he was feeling and decided to take it easy. We would sleep in the next morning and just see how he felt. If he was bad we would take a rest day, and if he was really bad we would decide if we needed to head home. We got back to the car before dark…..our “We are Hiking – We are OK” sign on the dashboard had been scribbled on paper at the last minute, but it was a good idea as people are not used to seeing abandoned cars in the middle of Death Valley.
We drove up an over the mountains in the dark and out of the valley to get to Bishop CA, which was the nearest place to stay. We knew we had only 2 more clues and the final plane wreck to go. Bishop was the closest place, and we figured that each clue would take a whole day so it was a good place to base out of for the next few days.
We got a place to stay, dialed in and checked for news. Good news from our Teammates Dagg and JimmyJames – they had done a long drive and a hike in the snow and located the final clue that was up north. Here we were in the desert, and they were digging in the snow on a mountain – at least JJ got to try out the snowshoes he got for Christmas. They passed on the required info and we were another step closer.
Each time we got one of the clues we emailed the TEAM to verify, they were following our progress with excitement. And each day our “box” for the plane location was getting smaller and smaller. By now we knew that it was going to be in Death Valley for sure, and unfortunately the plane wreck we had discovered earlier had now been ruled out. More map work and math and then it was time to sleep – we would sleep in and see how Mark felt in the morning. If he was up to it we decided to tackle the easier of the two remaining clues first – not a true rest day, but it may help.
Mon Jan 25th
We managed to sleep in until about 8, wahooo. Mark was actually feeling much better so we reassessed our plans. We made the decision to tackle what we thought would be the harder of the two remaining clues today. We figured that psychologically it would be good for us. We had no idea how hard the final plane wreck would be, but we assumed that if we had to work hard for the clues, that maybe the final location wouldn’t be too hard……..lol, won’t make that mistake again.
So it was off in the TPORRAV again and up through another mountain pass. The road was incredible, narrow, twisting, up and down, off camber corners….P007 was in heaven – it was the kind of road where you would take your dream car to test it out. We had two possible access points for the clue we were after today, one was down a windy dirt road and then a very steep decent down an old riverbed for about 4 kms. We started down the dirt road but it got pretty rough while we were still about 3 km from where the 4km hike would start. We decided to try our other approach before committing to a long hike.
Half an hour later on another dirt road we discovered yet another non-existent road. Not to worry, we parked and geared up again. Time to hike – this one was 5.85 km straight line distance one way. We had to climb up and over a ridge and then descend to the valley floor. We followed an old washout down which was nice, and easy going – glad there was no chance of rain though. We could see how much water comes down off the hills in a flash flood and the amount of damage it can do. Huge boulders are piled like kids play toys all over the place.
Once we descended to the right elevation we turned to head straight for the clue. We had to go up and over 5 or 6 ridges which was pretty tough work, but much shorter than trying to go down and around the end of each of them.
On our way we came across a number of old mining claim stakes, it was neat to open up the containers and read some of the info. Some of them were pretty old. About 8km of hiking later we arrived at our destination, a small wooded stake that was pounded into the ground, with two tags attached. Turns out that all of the clues have been there for 5 years, we could tell by the amount of rot on the bottom of the stake. The usual pics, a food and fluid break and we were back on our feet for the 8km hike back to the car.
We found several sun bleached skeletons on the way back (cows not people). Unfortunately none of them were intact, you could tell that they had been torn to pieces by some find of animal and taken to different locations for a snack.
Several hours later we were back at the car. Tired and thirsty but feeling even more pumped. Only one clue remained! We drove back down the dirt road and the winding highway, stopping to do 2 caches along the way, and then back to Bishop for our second night in a row. At dinner I knew that Mark was feeling better again, he ate a burrito that was bigger than most dogs I know, and I’m sure he could have eaten more. By now we were feeling the effects of a no vegetable diet. We considered emailing the TEAM and asking them to arrange for an airdrop of veggies 😉
The usual dial in, updates and map work and we now had only one more tag to get – we also had a very good idea of where the plane wreck would be, unfortunately the terrain didn’t look nice. Oh well, gotta get the last clue before we worry about that.
Tue Jan 26th
The final clue. We knew this one would require a bit of a hike. From looking at our maps we knew we should be able to get close to Deep Springs CA and then we planned a route up through Soldier Pass Canyon and to the clue. We parked about 2 meters from our estimated departure point and set off in the sun. We climbed a little ridge that we really didn’t need to and then spotted the real entrance to the canyon from up above. A short descent and we were in the middle of the canyon. You could tell that cattle use part of the canyon to move back and forth. We dubbed the nice sand washout the cow superhighway as it was covered in hoof prints and special pies.
A lovely walk through the canyon and then we came to the edge of the plateau. From there we had to make our way down about 500 – 600 feet, following the “intermittent stream” (really a dry riverbed) down to the main Death Valley Floor. Once down we had to make our way around the end of a ridge and then hike up into another canyon which was really a giant grotto. At times it was only 25 – 30 feet wide, with walls rising straight up on either side. We could see a very faint set of dirt bike tracks as we pressed on into the canyon. There were several 90 degree turns as we hiked the 2 or so kms to the end. As we rounded the last bend we could see a very old cabin – hmm there must have been an old mine here as well.
We dropped our packs and went in search of the tag. Something didn’t seem right though, the area where both of our GPSs kept taking us was very steep and crumbly. We very carefully made our way around the hillside but there was no sign of the stake or tag to be found. We decided to sit and eat while we let our GPSs average out for a bit. Perhaps the steep canyon walls were giving us funny readings. We enjoyed a nice sandwich and plenty of fluids and the ultimate hiking treat, Gummy Bears – P007 would later name this place the Gummy Bear Grotto.
Our GPSs were still pointing us to an area that didn’t make sense so we put them down and started searching the area. Which I was busy checking out a tarantula P007 called out that he had it. AWESOME, we now have all the clues! It was about 50 meters or so from where our GPSs put us. We took a good position for it and the usual pics. Then we realized that all of these clues were put in place when SA (Selective Availability) was still in effect, so a 50m difference wasn’t really a big deal. We were just glad that we were able to find it.
A few more Gummy Bears and pics and we started to long hike back. Out of Gummy Bear Grotto, back up the washout to Solider Pass Canyon and back to the car. About 6 hours in total and another 15 – 16 km hike. By this point we were getting really excited. By tonight we would know exactly where the plane wreck was.
We decided that the best place to stay that night was Panamint Springs, in Death Valley. We had touched base with the TEAM the day before and asked if there was a place to stay there, they had let us know that the Panamint Springs Resort was the only place to stay – well we thought that meant it was a really nice place to stay, once again we assumed wrong, they literally meant that it was the ONLY place to stay. Panamint Springs consists of a gas pump, a restaurant and the resort (rooms with beds, no phones, no TV) and that’s it. There was not even a land line so there was no way we could let everyone know that we were ok – or to confirm our final numbers. So we had to drive deeper into Death Valley in the dark until we got to an area where we could pick up enough of a signal to make a roaming cell phone call.
A very quick message to JJ and a list of calls and messages for him to make. At least now everyone knew we were safe and that we had the final location for the plane. Back to the “resort” for a restless nights sleep. We knew that this final hike was going to be a tough one indeed.
Wed Jan 28th
We drove out into the valley again and had a heck of a time picking up coverage so we could get a call out again. We wanted to get confirmation that our final numbers were good before heading off – it was going to be a long day. Finally we got coverage and a quick call confirmed all was well. We made sure the JJ knew where we were going and told him that we hoped to have good news later in the day.
Within 10 minutes of the call we were parked at our planned departure point. This time we loaded up with plenty of fluids and gummy bears. We started climbing right from our parking spot, over the next hour we worked our way up a 1,000 foot ridge. Almost exactly one hour into the hike we gained the top of the ridge. We could see the valley dropping away on the other side, and the car as a very small dot off in the distance. We could also see the plane wreck, it was almost at exactly the same elevation but it was about 3 kms away on the other side of a huge cirque. A quick assessment of the terrain and we knew there was no way that we could simply hold the same contour around to the crash site.
The only route would be to follow the ridge top which would eventually climb up to the summit of Towne Peak, another 1,200 feet higher than where we were at already. We slowly made our way along the ridge top, the view was incredible, you could clearly see for miles on either side. The terrain sloped gently away on one side, on the other it was pretty much a straight 2,000 foot drop. We had to ascend and then descend a number of smaller peaks before making our way onto the summit ridge. I turned to P007 and said “I wonder if there is a summit log?” “What is that” he asked – I explained that all real mountain peaks usually have some type of log book hidden in a container or rock cairn, and that everyone who summits gets to sign it. Well sure enough, when we hit the summit we found an ammo can with a log book and scraps of paper in it dating as far back as 1967. We took the time to read through most of the entries before we added our own. Signing a real summit log has always been on my things to do in life list – thanks TEAM.
There were also 3 benchmarks right at the summit – unfortunately none of them show up on the geocaching site so we couldn’t log them, too bad would have been a neat story. From the summit we then had to descend about 1,200 feet in elevation down a series of ridges. As we closed in on the crash site we spotted a huge ammo can on a small plateau. It was full of water and food – obviously put there for people who run into trouble while out this far. Fortunately we were well prepared and didn’t need to go into it.
The really funny thing was that we could clearly see the plane from several kms away, yet as we approached it we couldn’t see it at all. We got to within 8 meters of the position and we still couldn’t see it. We went around one edge of a rock face and started to work our way down, but the terrain was very unstable and for every step you took you would slide about 2 feet. We backed up and looked for another possible approach. We had a rope and considered roping up, but there was nothing you could have anchored to, other than your buddy.
We made our way down another ridge and then finally spotted the wreck – we were still about 75 meters away and it did not appear as if there was an easy way to get to it. It had slammed right into the mountain below a vertical rock wall and there was no way to come at it from directly above. We gingerly made our way closer. At one point we had to traverse a gully that was full of softball size rocks. The ground moved with every footstep. Without a word of a lie the slope was on about a 60 degree angle and you could see straight down the gully about 2,000 feet to where large pieces of the wreck had fallen. We went one at a time, in case something happened. We both made it safely across and then it was a short scramble to the wreck.
When we got there we were so pumped. We took a few minutes to reflect on the accident and what must have happened. From the force of the impact we don’t think anyone would have suffered at all. We’re still doing some research to find our more information about the circumstances behind the wreck.
The plane itself is literally clinging to, and melted into, the side of the mountain. It was not easy moving around just to get the required pics. If there was any type of rescue operation after the crash I can only assume how hard it must have been. There is no flat ground to stand on and one wrong move and you’re going a long way down.
We took the required pics – celebrated for a few minutes and began the long hike back. The 1,200 foot climb back up to the summit ridge was tough. We were tired after so many days of long hikes and the terrain was very steep and crumbly.
We decided that we would stop for a short rest at the summit and get some food and fluids into us. While there we turned on our phones and were amazed that we had cell coverage – it shouldn’t have really been a suprize as we were on the top of a mountain and could see for miles in every direction.
A quick call to Dagg to report that we had done it – we asked him to post a note on the cache page that the “Fat Lady was Singing”…we would post the winning message and all of the photos later. We were jumping up and down like little kids on that mountain top. After a short break we decided to press on – we still had a long hike back. More descending and climbing again and we eventually made it back to the ridge where we had first spotted the plane. One last look and a few more pics and then we began the final 1,000 foot descent back to the car. We finally got back to the car after 7 hours and 45 minutes of hiking and approximately 3,500 feet of elevation gain over 15 kms. Tired, but the good kind of tired, and pumped up. We knew we would sleep well tonight.
From there we had a long and uneventful drive home. We had hoped to make it back in time for Cachers Haven but we just had too far to go. The first night we made it to Lone Pine CA. The second day we stopped by the Laws Railway Museum for a photo op and then drove to Mt. Shasta CA. The third night we got to Centralia WA. We picked up a few beers in Centralia to celebrate (the first of the trip) and dialed in live to Cachers Haven to post some pics for the crowd.
A final night on the road and we were back in town on Saturday afternoon, 10 days after leaving. What an incredible trip it was. Over 65 kms of hiking through the desert and mountains in 5 days. All clues located, some caches, some benchmarks, a real peak summited and a great time all around.
Everything went right for us, but we did a lot of prep work and a lot of planning. I would have no problem saying that this was the hardest geocache (although unofficial) in the world. The $5,000 prize was a nice bonus, but the real reward in this one was the journey itself.
Thanks TEAM!
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