2015-05-07 53 -2

Location

The geohash is in Appley Bridge, an area within the Wigan borough. The geohash is located inside a field, towards its upper edge. The field is next to a residential area. Houses surround the geohash to the north and east with some trees present in-between. To the west are train tracks and to the south is what appears to be a private farmhouse.

Participants

Marsh

Plans

The plan was to take a train from Wigan Wallgate station to Appley Bridge station, covering most of the distance. From there I would walk through residential streets and enter the field's adjacent dirt trail. I wasn't sure what I'd do at this point. I was hopeful that I'd find a public route going past the geohash. Alternatively I hoped the field was public, or that I could get permission from the landowner to enter it.

Expedition

This was my second geohasing attempt and the first to end in failure.

I took the train from Wallgate to Appley Bridge as planned. Of note, the train went immediately past the geohash and I observed that the field was free of animals (possibly supporting my right to enter it.)

I'd never been to Appley Bridge before and found the place to be very hilly and twisty. However I managed to navigate towards the streets closest to the geohash by using my phone's GPS. I located the field's adjacent dirt trail but found a closed gate in my way alongside a sign that claimed the area was private.

Not to be defeated I visited several other nearby streets hoping to find an entrance. I walked to the nearby train tracks and tried to walk alongside them (there was a metal fence in-between me and the tracks), however the trees became too thick to continue.

Regardless I would have ended up in many people's back gardens before I had reached the field. After traveling up and down nearby streets for twenty minutes I admitted defeat and returned to the fence. I knew there was a farmhouse down the trail but I could not ask for the landowner's permission without trespassing.

I gathered some nearby twigs and spelt out 'xkcd' as a marker. Although certain points of nearby streets were technically closer to the geohash, I counted the gate as the last reasonable point that it was possible to reach. I snapped a few pictures and returned home. Ahh well, there's always next time.

The Wigan area doesn't seem to get the geohash much but it's been cropping up a little bit since I started.

Photos

The gate that blocked my way (marker visible)
At the gate facing the direction of the geohash
At the gate
"NO FOOTPATH PRIVATE ROAD ACCESS ONLY TO VALLEY VIEW COTTAGE & BROADRIDING FARM HOUSE"
Closeup of the marker
At the train tracks facing the geohash. There was a hopeful path but it could not take me there.
My train went right past the geohash
Close but no direct access