Stara hora 13 / Old Mountain #13

A cache by FofrMisky geofamily		Hidden : 07/13/2009
Size:  (Regular)	Difficulty:	Terain:
	1 is easy, 5 is hard

There are more possibilities of searching - from "drive-in" až to hours long trip in forrest.

Old Mountain #13

Welcome at our web page of our first hiden geocache. It's decided to the place we love and we hope you will like this lovely place and our cache too!

Main informations

The cache is placed on Stará hora (= "Old mountain"), near by the cottage n. 13. The Old mountine is the hill with the top closely below 900 meters, in easter part of Krkonoše (= "Giant Mountains"). You are in National Park named KRNAP (= "KRkonose NAtional Park") and that's why you are plesed to keep all visitors-rules of this National Park!

If you decide to make a bit longer walk trip, you'll be smitten with beautiful nature and gorgeous viewpoints. You can get to the cache in several ways. Except of those, which will be punctualy described later, you can "hunt" the cache by short turnings from "Emina way", which faces from Pec pod Snezkou or from Spálený Mlýn (="burned mill") to the village Horni Marsov. You can also decide for easier way - then go with your geo-car upstairs almost to the cache, but in thit case you must stop on management of National Park and buy one-shot permission to drive in.

Old Mountain with this cache is in territory Temný Dul (="Dark Pit"), which is a part of village Horní Maršov . This highland village, which noticed after the "Velvet Revolution" in the year 1989 big growth of tourism movement, thanks to this it is always spreading, it's far from here about 1km by the way through the wood, or about 3,6 km by an asphalt road. Horni Marsov is member of Svazek obcí Východních Krkonoš (="The Confederation of Villages in Easter Krkonose") and at last but not least it also belongs to the Krakonošova království (="Krakonoš's Kingdom").

History

Most cottages on the Old Mountain were built roughly in first half of 19th century. The buildingy no. 13 (which our cache is named by) is built as a house with the highest position on whole mountain and it was built in the year 1841. All houses built all over the hill belonged to two stems of one large family - Zawadill's and Schmidt's. At the time of construction of these houses there wasn't any road, at the most footpath and one cart-way, which reproduce partially the present blacktop and partially traverses present grass field. Everythung necessary for building was transported with the help of shaft-horse. Buildings were built from accessible construction material: living part was from wooden beam and agricultural part was made from massive stones. The floor area and ceilings were wooden, hay was used as an isolation. The roof is saddle, original covering were hand-made wooden shingles. The same were using on shield as an isolation against the wind, rain and snowfall.

The house with lucky number 13 was owned by a local seam, which once a week went on foot to the village Hroní Maršov (originally "Marschendorf", later "Maršov IV."), to deliver finished work and picked up next shoes to reparation. The inhabitants here cradled cows, goats and other small animals stock, They cultivated here vegetables and in surely exploited everything, what the wood baded to them. We dont know anought about story of this house, but it is however general knowledge, that during IIWW just in this home leadership of local Gestapo used to come here offen to jolly with home-born young ladies, living in this house. In these days nobody knows if there where really living collaborators here or if here-living people tryed to obtain any information about enemy by affectation of favour. The fact stays, that everyone were expelleed after the war and it is sayd not to be very friendly against the "colaborantes". Records of hate of villagers to inhabitants of this hous is also the fact, that abandonmed building was (as well as his owners some time before) target of mass lynching, plundering and vandalistic demolitions. The Republic, as the owner of all desolate cottage, decided to offer them very cheaply to quick settlement. Whole Bohemian borderland was depopulated : after Munich declaration in the year 1939 many Czechs were expulsed from here, after the war then all Germans and most houses there were uninhabited here. When the interested person (potentional buyers) arrived here in the year 1947, all cottages except one were still empty. The married couple named Krejeí from Prague (originally both of them was from east Bohemia) with their two small children, chosen just this cottage for its position and large piece of land and Married couple Krejcovi from Prague, originally both from Pardubicka, chose this very cottage for her position and big piece of land also with the building story and the necessary immediate repairs. Quite doubtless benefits were two brooks too, which both of them rises off the ground on meadowland, which belongs to the house. Since that time the house already switched the owner only within family.

The house passed by many reparation and adjustment during the half of century, wooden riders were supplying with bricky construction, every window was exchanged and by way of exchange pass the roof too, when wooden thatch were replaced with asphalt paper coated slate, which produces in not so far village "Svoboda nad Upou". All adjustment and corrections were however made to conservate the original character of construction and its spirit.

About cache

The cache-box is of "Regular" size and it's a plastic box about 3 litres large. During searching of the cache you do not have to be affraid of detection by muggles - the crew of nearest building is well-disposed to geocaching and thats why you have to pay attention only on pertinent passing through smugggles (they do not use to go here very offen!!!). If you will see near by location of the cache parking a car/cars, keep a watch of geo-dogs taking their course on meadow behind the fence. They are though friendly, but they have very yaping character and they want to defend their territory. Therefore if would you like to embark on homestall (e.g . for drinkable waters etc.), try to call somebody first to calm them down!

The cache by itrself, or more precisely subjects for exchange, are not any specially sight, but perhaps some sight appear in future. At the moment we there are prepared for first finders FTF, STF and TTF cards and small subjects with Krakonos (the master of whole Giant Mountains - Krkonoše), for others are placed here several sundry. We picked for beginning to the cache several TBs and we hope, that in the course of time they will be coming here many others!

You are in national park, that's why keep a watch of wild animals! Especially before you will dig your hands into any hole, gap or earth-house, make sure, that there isn't any poisonous snake!!! Their presence isn't recently very frequent, but nevertheless here lives Viper (about 60cm long snake, protected by law), which can kill any human being during several clocks from bite!!!
Walking through the wood DO NOT SMOKE, especially in summer months pay attention, so butt-end DOES NOT brought about bushfire!!!

There are several ways to find this cache but we will describe anly 3 of them. There are two more geocaches in nearby of this cache ( GC186EG - "Na krizove ceste/On the Way of the Cross" and GCNQ82 - "Hrabecí/Greflich") , that's why we pick here the map of nearby first and description of those ways follows:

Ways to find the cache

There are many ways to find the cache, we are describing three most usefull:

Way #1

Size:  (Regular)      Difficulty:       Terrain: 

This way enables you to find the cache almost in drive-in style. If you don't want to risk a big financial penalty, you have to stop in any KRNAP center where you can buy lumpsum permission to drive in National Park to route "Horní Marsov - Stara hora 13" (we recommend info-center Veselý výlet Loc: 50°39'52.777"N, 15°48'27.151"E - here also you can borrow (with no payment) keys from small castle "Aichelburg", which is on the opposite hill and near which/in which is hid another cache. One more cache is then near small chapelle "St. Anna", which is above "Veselý Výlet", but ther's forceful climb over stony way - stations of the cross...). Then go to the square in Horni Marsov and go out in the direction of Lyseciny and Alberice (so to the north), pass around the pub "Pod Starou horou" (Loc: 50°39'44.993"N, 15°49'15.407"E), where by the way you can take delicious meal for reasonable price, and near guest-house Drahnik (Loc: 50°40'9.673"N, 15°49'18.639"E) turn to left and go up hill. Follow asphalt roads and on crossroad direct gently on the right (more up hill), as far as getting on plateau closely beside the game-keeper's house. If you look sidelong left up, you see cottage No. 13 striking through the trees (in winter it's alight shining chains). Go on along over asphalt way up, as far as strike on crossroad, where is only forest road to the left. Follow it if possibility by foot (geo-car park next to blacktop e.g . in right-handed curve just above referenced crossroad) to place where the cache is hidden. Watch your steps in winter - roads are not cleaned, they use to be blowen and you doesn't know, which way is asphalt and which is not. Even some corridor in wood looks like roads!

Way #2

Size:  (Regular)      Difficulty:       Terrain: 

This way is foot-passenger, all walking is except some hunderet meters long section of forceful uprising quite unexacting and it's roughly 4km long. Park your geo-car near by major road from "Horni Marsov" to the "Lyseciny" and "Alberice", e.g . opposite guesthouse "Drahnik" (Loc: 50°40'9.673"N, 15°49'18.639"E) next to brands "Horni Marsov - Dolni Lyseciny" and start go by foot over asphalt way up hill. Follow asphalt roads, after go out c. 600m forceful uphill go on again almost after plains - again after asphalt and on next crossroad direct gently on the right (more up hill), as far as getting on plateau closely beside the game-keeper's house. If you look sidelong left up, you see cottage No. 13 striking through the trees (in winter it's alight shining chains). Go on along over asphalt way up, as far as strike on crossroad, where is only forest road to the left. Follow it to place where the cache is hidden. Watch your steps in winter - roads are not cleaned, they use to be blowen and you doesn't know, which way is asphalt and which is not. Even some corridor in wood looks like roads!

Way #3

Size:  (Regular)      Difficulty:       Terrain: 

This way is determinated for physically able geocacher, whose like to pass through heavy cross country. Trip length is around 6km by variously heavy cross country - mainly after forest footpath. We advise to start the trip at restaurant "Pod Starou horou" (Loc: 50°39'44.993"N, 15°49'15.407"E) and from here to go up hill after green turistic drawing symbols around ski slope "Toešoovka", as far as get on asphalt road. There turnin to left, go perhaps 100m up hill and on big crossroad go on to the forceful uphill after turistic green drawing symbols again. Follow this forrest road until you came to signpost named "Pod Starou Horou", which is near by asphalt road. From here follow the asphalt road direction down, pass through the red iron gate and behind first sharp turning left is right-side-branch - forest road to the right, which introduce you to the cache. After successful hunt and possibly refreshment (near cottage No. 13 flows excellent well-water and we will make to you cup of coffee or tea ;o) we advise to continue straight downhill. Take care of wo-turgescent brooks, which forme in some places from meadows to swamp. They're not anyhow wide and in any case aren't dangerous, but it definitely is not anyhow comfortable to pass the rest of travelling in wet shoes! After overrun of beaten road, visible also from our cache, go on along forest among other cottages straight downhill. By this way you will arrive to the chappel of St. Anna, where is another lovely cache GC186EG - "Na krizove ceste/On the Way of the Cross". Rrom here you have to go by the way of Cross downhill to "Veselý Výlet" and then by the main road from "Pec pod Snezkou" go about 1km to the square in center of "horni Maršov". It's NOT RECCOMMENTED to use this way in winter - there use to be a lot of snow here!!!

We hope you will like our cache as well as all the trip in this lovely nature in nearby of the cache - it's really it's main goal! Yours geoteam FofrMišky.